Ensuring Your Team is Strategically Enabled to Use Technology with Stephanie Smith Euting

Introducing new technology into an institution is only the first step. Ensuring that teams are fully prepared to use it in ways that align with strategic goals is where the real work begins. Strategic enablement is more than training users on where to click. It’s equipping people to apply data and tools thoughtfully, effectively and consistently to support long term student success. 

In this episode I talk to Stephanie Smith Euting, Director of Strategic Enablement at Civitas Learning about turning software adoption into measurable impact. With nearly 20 years of experience in higher education and ed tech, Stephanie shares how she helps institutions move beyond one time training to build ongoing strategies that support their people, processes and priorities. She explains the difference between functional training and strategic enablement, the importance of quick wins and how to plan for long term engagement.

Stephanie also talks about the common pitfalls that derail technology rollouts and offers practical advice for creating a culture of continuous learning. Whether it’s collaboration across departments, refining workflows or using predictive analytics to guide student conversations her advice is grounded in real world application. This conversation shows how a focused enablement strategy can help institutions get the most out of their tools and drive lasting change.

 

Show Notes:

[03:08] Stephanie shares a little bit about her background.

[04:51] Defining strategic enablement and how it's different from training.

[05:41] Strategic enablement anchors your knowledge and uses cases, strategies, and data.

[07:42] The importance of having the right teams and leaders working together to understand the "why".

[09:11] Stephanie loves how Civitas Learning can help support these strategies.

[09:15] Adopting a “crawl, walk, run” approach to avoid overwhelm and support gradual adoption of new technologies.

[10:00] Using data tools to provide real-time insights for staff, such as advisors, to support student needs effectively.

[11:00] Building on initial success with predictive analytics and more proactive student engagement strategies.

[12:20] The importance of layering data insights into workflows to improve academic planning and outcomes.

[13:10] How ongoing reinforcement and repetition support cultural shifts and technology integration on campus. The importance of workshops.

[14:35] The importance of partnerships with vendors. The value of vendor partnerships that go beyond software delivery and include strategic collaboration and support.

[15:47] Applying the human touch in conjunction with the software and industry experience. 

[16:45] Knowledge sharing and Innovation helps us to continue to learn from each other as we strive for the next level.

[17:06] Keeping up with the times and utilizing things like AI with student success tools.

[18:01] Strategic enablement is ongoing. Having support in place and opportunities to engage is crucial.

[19:01] Strategic enablement isn't one size fits all. It allows us to hone in on individual institutional priorities.

 

Links and Resources:

Stephanie Smith Euting - LinkedIn