4 Big Signs to Guarantee Your Performance Won't Turn Around

August 9, 2022

Got gaps?


How do you know whether your performance is going to turn around?


That’s a great question.

So many leaders I serve are trying to turn their campus performance around. 


Some are academic, others are operational. Both impact reputation and demand. 


Sometimes that means moving a stuck or declining project into growth. Other times, they sense they’re losing momentum and want to gain a foothold for tomorrow.

tennis ball stuck in fence

These are tumultuous times for so many campus leaders as entire systems are being disrupted.


Good news… You are not alone and have friends in the hotel industry, movie theatres, taxi companies, news, music industry, churches, restaurant industry, and malls – all struggling with seismic shifts in how people currently behave.


It’s hard to be a cab company in an era of Lyft, a grocery store in the era of UberEats, a theatre in the era of Hulu, Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Apple TV, a brick-and-mortar store in the era of Amazon, or a church in the era of a million online options and the rise of post-modern America.


Likewise, every institutional leader is hoping to snap their fingers and magically go back to 1990 where they were the best (and perhaps only) show in town. 


In light of all that, how do you know if your system will stay viable (in demand) in the year 2030? 


I’m an optimist and a prisoner of hope. I believe you can do far more than you can imagine, and that the future is abundantly bright. I’ve also seen campus leaders spin their wheels while fight losing battles left and right. Nobody wants to be the person forced to sell CDs in the age of Spotify. 


Unwittingly, many of you are doing just that. 


Community trust and your capture rate of students is lower than most leaders desire or know how to manage. So, how do you know whether things will turn around?


While that’s tough to answer universally, there are common patterns I’ve seen in leadership that are worth naming.


Here are four big signs to guarantee your performance won’t turn around. 


These are gut checks, so buckle up…


1. You’re Jamming What Worked (In The Past) Into A World That No Longer Exists


At the most basic level, too many leaders try to revive what was in demand in the past rather than find what will work in their current reality. That’s understandable for a few reasons.

First, most humans are wired to be most comfy with the known than with the unknown. 


If you remember something that worked, it’s easier to say “let’s spin that wheel again” than trying to blaze an unknown trail into the future. 


Building a nicer, shinier taxi fleet is an easier-to-grasp idea than imagining the day when people use private car sharing to hail rides off an app.


Second, the past has a nostalgia the future never does. We tend to romanticize the past and worry about the future, and leaders easily forget how innovative and controversial some of the things were a decade ago (think 1000 songs in your pocket, using your credit card online, or checking out your own groceries).


I’m not against the past at all, but if most of your efforts are spent trying to revive what worked yesterday, you’re probably going to have a less preferable tomorrow.


Ask yourself, is most of your energy spent trying to revive what was, or build what will be? Your response will be the palm-read of your future.


2. Your Metrics Are Tethered To The Past, Not To The Future


Every leader has metrics they track, but often leaders track the wrong metrics. Tracking overall enrollment, retention, course completion, and graduation rates are necessary, but when you only see general data, you can get into long debates about what it means. 15 people will come up with 15 reasons why things are flat or underperforming. 


The smarter we are, the better excuses we can generate for why performance is lacking. 


Rather than tracking conventional data, you might start tracking demographic data. How many young families new to your community are you seeing? How many single parent homes are you serving?


Tracking demographics can show you trends (either positive or negative trends) that give you information on whether there’s light at the end of your current tunnel.


And don’t ignore the internet. A ridiculous number of campus leaders either don’t track their online data or don’t know what to do with what they find beyond knowing whether it’s growing or not growing.


Google Analytics and social apps can give you a crazy amount of data on who you’re reaching or not reaching (I know, this is scary, but this is the world we live in and I’m trusting you’re a leader who is committed to using these stats to make the world a better place.) 

For example, I know the bulk of the readers of this blog are between 35-45 years of age, and the top cities for my readers and listeners (hello Minneapolis, Phoenix, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, and London…).


What are some specific digital artifacts that you might want to track to see if you’re making inroads or not?


Side Note: You might do community focus groups with people curious about your campus/district and others who have recently left for another to discover what’s what.


You tend to manage what you measure. So, measure better.


Change is inevitable. Irrelevance isn’t.


But the reality is that far too many campuses aren’t shifting quickly enough.


That’s why I’m on tour with the RECLAIM MOMENTUM {LIVE} Keynote. It’s a value-packed event where we’ll dissect the 6 Lead Measures of Building Irresistible Campus Culture and get equipped with a framework to lead successful change with less resistance.

Register Here


3. You’re More Committed to the Method Than You Are To the Mission


This is one of the most telling signs of the success or demise of your turn around. Ask yourself: Are you more committed to the method than you are to the mission?


Even though almost everyone I ask answers that question by saying “the mission,” reality suggests differently.


Fundamentally in an era of massive disruption, the mission is fixed. The methods flex.


The market for the mission never goes away, it just changes.


The mission is:

✅ Transportation. The method is taxis, Uber or Lyft.

✅ Photography. The method is Instagram and smartphones, or film and printed pictures.

✅ Travel. The method is a hotel or Airbnb. 


In education, the mission is to prepare students for their preferred future. The method is on- campus learning, virtual learning, public schools, private schools, 4-year university, 2-year transfer colleges, certification programs, workforce, etc.


Here’s the bottom line: To preserve the mission, you must constantly reinvent the method.


I love writing. My blog has doubled in downloads each month since 2021 and it’s been a much bigger success than I ever dreamed. My colleagues ask me if I’ll write forever. When I tell them no, they often look surprised.


Here’s why I say no: My mission isn’t blogging. It’s just a method. My mission is to optimize higher team performance. Right now, blogging is a great method. When it stops being effective—or before it stops being effective—I’ll reinvent.


4. You Constantly Criticize The People Who Are Gaining Traction 


A final sign that you will get and stay stuck is when you persistently criticize the people in your sector who are gaining traction.


It’s easy to hate the innovators, to make fun of the next-gen learning providers. Those who are bending or breaking tradition or who just don’t understand the value of a conventional “campus experience.”


At a more sinister level, you may even villainize the motives of people who are reinventing the learning experience.


So often leaders on the decline adopt a critical spirit about everything around them.


Just stop. Adopt a critical mind, not a critical spirit. 


Great leaders have critical minds, not critical spirits.


Be a student. Study what’s working and examine what you do because of past practice rather than impact. Study it hard enough until you understand it. 


Stop the eye-rolling. 

Listen. Learn. 

Humble yourself.


A critical mind will figure out why certain things are working and why other things aren’t. A critical spirit shuts down all learning and will accelerate your expiration date. 


Stop being a critic. As a student, you’ll be far more likely to push against the gravitational pull of average, underperformance, and obsolescence. 


Change is inevitable. Irrelevance Isn't.


What’s your strategy to prepare for the future? What’s your strategy for leading change?


I’m on a coast-to-coast tour with the RECLAIM MOMENTUM {LIVE} Keynote. It’s a value-packed event where we’ll:

✅ Dissect the 6 Lead Measures of Building Irresistible Campus Culture 

✅ Equip your team with a framework to lead effective change with less resistance. 


Register Here

It’s time to get a framework for leading that change that doesn't tear your campus apart. 


Without a solid strategy, all you get is pushback, opposition, confusion, and anger.


With a proven strategy, you’ll become equipped to lead something bigger and more impactful than you might ask or imagine. 


Register for RECLAIM MOMENTUM {LIVE} HERE


Keep ‘er growing!




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By HPG Info April 29, 2025
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Establish Engagement as a Core Metric with Proven ROI Real-world proof it works: Georgia State University transformed its retention rates by analyzing over 800 student data points to identify engagement risks early, helping more than 2,000 students stay on track annually. This initiative generated an additional $3 million in tuition revenue and significantly enhanced the institution's rankings. 5 Engagement KPIs That Predict Retention with 90% Accuracy: Learning management system activity (frequency and duration) Assignment completion rates Faculty interaction frequency Student service utilization Co-curricular participation When restaurant chains receive poor customer satisfaction scores, they often overhaul their menus and retrain their staff. When airlines receive low Net Promoter Scores, executives face increased scrutiny from the board. Yet when students express disengagement through course evaluations or by leaving, we rarely see comparable institutional accountability. 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Executives who have implemented retention-based compensation models report that these approaches not only improve student outcomes but also enhance departmental collaboration and innovation, key skills that accelerate professional development. 3. Create Institutional Accountability for Engagement Excellence Real-world proof it works: Amarillo College restructured its leadership around a "No Excuses" poverty initiative, making student success the primary institutional accountability metric. This resulted in a tripling of graduation rates within five years. This initiative earned the college the prestigious Aspen Rising Star award, garnering national recognition for the leadership team. Valencia College's similar approach helped them win the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence, significantly enhancing the professional profiles of key administrators. Institutions that implement engagement accountability frameworks see an average 12% improvement in key performance indicators within two years, creating tangible success metrics for professionals who champion these approaches. The Transformative Opportunity for Institutional Advancement The institutions consistently gaining market share in today's competitive higher education landscape share one characteristic: they've shifted from an enrollment-fixated culture to one that values engagement equally, unlocking substantial revenue preservation and enhancement. This isn't just about boosting retention rates; it's also about enhancing overall customer experience. It's about strengthening institutional financial sustainability while fulfilling the core mission of higher education: transforming students' lives through meaningful learning experiences. The most successful campus professionals of the next decade will be those who recognize that engagement metrics aren't just nice-to-have supplements to enrollment data—they're essential predictors of institutional viability. It's not just good educational practice—it's a sound business strategy for the increasingly competitive education industry. Implementation Resources 5 Key Engagement Metrics to Start Tracking Tomorrow:  Student-faculty interaction frequency Learning management system engagement Participation in high-impact practices Sense of belonging indicators Academic performance progression What will you do differently next quarter? References: American Institutes for Research. (2023). The Overlooked Challenge of Second- to Third-Year Retention. Assunção, H., et al. (2020). University Student Engagement Inventory (USEI): Transcultural validity evidence across four continents. Frontiers in Psychology, 10, 1–12. Kahu, E. R. (2013). Framing student engagement in higher education. Studies in Higher Education, 38(5), 758-773. National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. (2024). Persistence and Retention. U.S. News & World Report. (2025). University Rankings by First-Year Retention Rate.
By HPG Info April 23, 2025
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Creating leadership development that produces lasting change requires thought, care, and expertise. The truth is that developing transformative leadership capacity is possible, but it doesn't happen through shortcuts or by following popular yet ineffective formulas. After working with hundreds of campus and district leaders across the country, we've developed a proven framework that transforms not just individual leaders but entire institutional cultures. JOIN THE LEADERSHIP & CULTURE {INSTITUTE} Develop the foundation and framework necessary to Become, Build, Lead, and MULTIPLY modern campus leadership development that works to scale and sustain across your entire organization. The Difference: Your people become YOUR GUIDES. Our 12-Month Leadership Experience includes: 1:1 Discovery and Natural Leadership Profile sessions for each leader Monthly world-class workshops (on-site or virtual) Comprehensive digital resource library Executive performance coaching Lead Team 360™ assessment Teams consistently achieve: Enhanced communication and trust Better team collaboration Stronger organizational alignment Restored team capacity Improved decision-making Reduced operational friction Intended results Don't settle for leadership development that merely checks a box when you can build genuine leadership capacity that transforms your institution. Ready to elevate your team's performance? Visit https://www.higherperformancegroup.com/lci to learn more about the LEADERSHIP & CULTURE {INSTITUTE}. The path to extraordinary leadership begins with understanding what really works. REFERENCES  Avolio, B. J., Avey, J. B., & Quisenberry, D. (2010). Estimating return on leadership development investment. The Leadership Quarterly, 21(4), 633-644. Beer, M., Finnström, M., & Schrader, D. (2016). Why leadership training fails—and what to do about it. Harvard Business Review, 94(10), 50-57. Conger, J. A., & Benjamin, B. (1999). Building leaders: How successful companies develop the next generation. Jossey-Bass. Day, D. V. (2000). Leadership development: A review in context. The Leadership Quarterly, 11(4), 581-613. Day, D. V., Fleenor, J. W., Atwater, L. E., Sturm, R. E., & McKee, R. A. (2014). Advances in leader and leadership development: A review of 25 years of research and theory. The Leadership Quarterly, 25(1), 63-82. DeRue, D. S., & Myers, C. G. (2014). Leadership development: A review and agenda for future research. In D. V. Day (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of leadership and organizations (pp. 832-855). Oxford University Press. Galli, E. B., & Müller-Stewens, G. (2012). How to build social capital with leadership development: Lessons from an explorative case study of a multibusiness firm. The Leadership Quarterly, 23(1), 176-201. Gurdjian, P., Halbeisen, T., & Lane, K. (2014). Why leadership-development programs fail. McKinsey Quarterly, 1(1), 121-126. Hess, E. D., & Ludwig, K. (2017). Humility is the new smart: Rethinking human excellence in the smart machine age. Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Kouzes, J. M., & Posner, B. Z. (2017). The leadership challenge: How to make extraordinary things happen in organizations (6th ed.). Wiley. McCall, M. W. (2010). Recasting leadership development. Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 3(1), 3-19. Petrie, N. (2014). Future trends in leadership development. Center for Creative Leadership.
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