2020 conference paper
A Lean Manufacturing Initiative to Streamline the Advising Process
2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition Proceedings. Presented at the 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition.
Event: 2019 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
open access via peer.asee.org (publisher PDF)
Source: Crossref
Added: August 25, 2024
Abstract In this paper, we describe a novel advising process, based on the Lean Manufacturing Framework, that employs student Peer Mentors (PM) to enhance the operational efficiency of academic advisors. A “Lean manufacturing” framework is used to classify all activities as value-added or non-value-added ones. By applying this framework to our current advising process for freshman students within the School of Engineering, only activities requiring faculty expertise, such as guidance and mentorship, are considered value-added and are performed by the faculty advisor. There are other frequently-performed advising activities, such as navigating the course management system, that do not require the expertise of a faculty member. These tasks are deemed to be non-value-added tasks when defining value from a faculty’s perspective. As such, these tasks are handled by the PM, a senior in the major. The PM meets with the student for a pre-advising session. S/he compiles an executive summary of this pre-advising session and provides it to the faculty advisor prior to the faculty advising session with the student. This framework is analogous to healthcare environments where a nurse meets with a patient first inquire on the patient’s symptoms and to measure the vitals. The notes are then passed on to the medical provider as a high-level summary in order to save the medical provider’s time. After running a first semester pilot of this ongoing study, the proposed process has resulted in shorter and more streamlined advising sessions. It has also resulted in higher advisor and student satisfaction.