This page focuses specifically on changes and improvements underway in Marketing and Communications as part of PSU’s Operational Excellence work.
The overall objectives of Operational Excellence are to align administrative structures, reduce duplication of work, strengthen accuracy and compliance, and improve career pathways for administrative staff.
Current Updates
Below are the most recent actions underway in Marketing and Communications. These updates reflect implementation of previously approved recommendations.
Update: August 2025
- Hiring of interim Chief Marketing Communication Officer, Myla Edmond.
- MGT developed new process maps to improve the experience and outcomes in the areas identified as challenges by stakeholders.
Findings
Team findings:
- Inconsistent brand application
- Lack of coordination between units
- Large number of practitioners with limited training and experience
Colleagues across units on campus described challenges:
- Student communications
- Employee communications
- Website maintenance
- Creating brand assets
- Measuring ad performance
Findings from the workgroup and MGT identified needs for improvement that extended beyond streamlining processes, therefore a decision was also made to engage RW Jones, a consulting firm specializing in marketing and communications, to evaluate the unique challenges related to university-wide marketing strategy. RW Jones's assessment found that PSU's central marketing unit (UCOMM) is under-resourced and structurally misaligned compared to its peers.
Key Recommendations
Implement a centrally led and coordinated marketing and communications strategy, led by an interim Chief Marketing and Communications Officer (CMCO). The strategy involves a phased approach to increase the connection and responsibility distributed units have to a strong, centralized strategy and operation. Along with new processes developed by MGT, this is expected to improve adherence to brand guidelines, increase accountability, and ensure that marketing efforts are directed more efficiently toward the university's goals.
Process
The marketing and communications (MarComm) team, consisting of six members, met nine times to address issues related to marketing processes within their units.
In March of 2025, MGT Consulting held a listening session with 94 participants. The session was followed by a survey that was shared in PSU's employee newsletter.
In August of 2025, the Marketing Communications recommendations were consolidated into a Year One Report as part of the Operational Excellence project.
In October of 2025, Marketing Communications presented these actions as part of a town hall meeting to campus.
Why Marketing and Communications?
Marketing and Communications was identified in the 2022 Huron Support Services and Operational Review as an area where the university would greatly benefit from structural and organizational alignment. Marketing and Communications at PSU is highly distributed, with governance and ownership widely decentralized.