What I Learned Working with an OPM

Across campus leadership circles, I hear the same concerns repeated again and again: enrollment pressures, federal funding uncertainty, and ongoing skepticism about the value of a college degree. These forces make it harder than ever to balance institutions’ academic mission with long-term financial stability.

This moment feels like another major inflection point for higher education. Do we continue to do things as we’ve always done them, or do we embrace new models that can support both our mission and our margins?

Online learning sits squarely at the intersection of these pressures — offering an opportunity to reach new students, diversify revenue, and deliver education in ways that fit today’s learners.

For many universities, including my own, online program managers (OPMs) are critical partners in navigating this complexity — bringing the expertise, marketing muscle, and enrollment support that most institutions simply can’t replicate on their own.

Yet, when OPMs come up, there’s often skepticism in the room. Why outsource something as critical as student recruitment and program support? Are these partnerships giving away too much control or driving up costs?

I want to share my own experience with OPMs: how we navigated that skepticism, what value these partnerships bring, and the lessons I’ve learned as we continue to expand our programs. At a time when higher education is being asked to do more with less, I’ve seen how these partnerships can be the difference between simply surviving and truly thriving.

How We Built Sustainable Online Growth with an OPM Partner

A decade ago, online learning was an experiment. Five years ago, it became a lifeline as the pandemic forced institutions to pivot almost overnight to remote instruction. Today, it’s a strategic imperative.

At Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU), our own journey with online learning reflects that evolution. About seven years ago, our central administration began exploring what it would mean to scale online learning beyond one-off faculty efforts. This was well before COVID-19, but we already saw graduate education shifting online and knew we needed a plan.

We engaged a consultant who identified programs well-suited for online delivery, including our MBA program. As dean of the business school, I participated in the early discussions that led us to consider an OPM partnership.

At first, skepticism ran high. The faculty worried about maintaining academic quality and control, while administrators questioned whether outsourcing recruitment and enrollment functions was the right move. Addressing those concerns required transparency, collaboration, and countless conversations to clarify what was — and wasn’t — changing.

We soon began working hand-in-hand with our OPM partner to build out a digital presence, design a customized marketing strategy, and integrate new processes with our enrollment and IT teams. Just over a year after launch, our MBA enrollment nearly tripled — and we’ve sustained a much higher base enrollment ever since.

That success quickly changed minds. Faculty who once doubted the partnership saw the quality of students coming in and appreciated how much time was freed up to focus on teaching and research.

Administrators also recognized the value. We didn’t have the internal resources to handle prospecting, market research, applicant follow-up, and student re-engagement at the same level as an OPM could deliver. These aren’t core academic functions that most universities excel in. They’re business operations — and they’re exactly where specialized expertise makes sense.