Slate Health Check: Mercy College

MERCY COLLEGE OF HEALTH SCIENCES

While Mercy College has successfully implemented Slate as its admissions and recruitment CRM, several key enrollment processes continue to rely on manual workflows, spreadsheets, paper-based tracking, and limited integration with Colleague. These operational dependencies have resulted in fragmented processes, duplicated data entry, and reduced visibility across the enrollment lifecycle, limiting the institution’s ability to fully leverage its Slate investment.

CHALLENGE:

SOLUTION:

To better understand these challenges and identify opportunities for improvement, Solidan conducted a comprehensive Slate Health Check focused on system configuration, operational workflows, and platform utilization. The engagement included stakeholder interviews, system analysis, and collaborative working sessions with Mercy’s internal Slate leadership team. Rather than focusing solely on technical configuration, the review emphasized how Slate was being used in practice, where manual processes persisted, and where staffing and integration constraints were impacting operational efficiency.

The Health Check revealed that while Mercy College has established a solid foundational use of Slate, there are significant opportunities to expand adoption and improve efficiency across several key areas. Key themes included process fragmentation driven by continued reliance on spreadsheets and manual tracking, underutilization of core Slate functionality such as automation, Reader, and Workflow tools, integration gaps between Slate and Colleague that contributed to duplicate data entry and limited visibility, and reporting constraints driven by manual data compilation and external tools. These findings highlighted both operational risk and significant opportunity to improve efficiency through deeper platform adoption.

Following the assessment, Solidan worked closely with Mercy College stakeholders to prioritize findings based on operational impact, implementation feasibility, and institutional capacity. This prioritization ensured focus on the highest-risk and highest-impact opportunities, particularly those related to reducing manual effort, improving workflow efficiency, and strengthening system integration. Staffing constraints were also considered throughout, resulting in recommendations designed to balance quick wins with longer-term optimization opportunities.

What began as a structured Health Check evolved into an ongoing support partnership, as Mercy College engaged Solidan to help translate findings into actionable improvements and phased implementation planning. This transition ensured the engagement moved beyond assessment into execution support, enabling continuous progress against the identified roadmap. Ongoing efforts have focused on expanding automation within admissions workflows, reducing reliance on manual and spreadsheet-based processes, improving Slate–Colleague alignment, and supporting staff adoption of underutilized Slate functionality.

“We could not be more pleased with the level of customer service and expertise we have received from Solidan. We look forward to continuing our collaboration to enhance our own team’s operations as well as the student experience!”

Katelyn Schmitt – Director of Enrollment Management

RESULTS:

The Health Check produced a detailed, module-based findings report covering areas such as Applications, Deliver, Events, Reader, and others. Each module included a structured evaluation of current-state usage, identified gaps, and prioritized recommendations designed to improve efficiency and reduce operational risk. More importantly, the findings provided Mercy College with a clear roadmap for decision-making and a foundation for strengthening its Slate environment in support of enrollment objectives.

Since the completion of the Health Check, Mercy College has already begun implementing early-phase improvements focused on workflow optimization and reduction of manual processing. These initial enhancements demonstrate early value from the recommendations and have helped reduce operational friction in key admissions processes, with additional improvements progressing through the ongoing support model.