Optimizing the student experience for the University of California: recent Genesys-Carahsoft webinar

By: Jackie Brown. On October 24, 2023, Genesys and Carahsoft hosted a virtual webinar, “Optimizing the Student Experience for University of California,” featuring industry experts, Donald Cole and Mike Hawkins, as hosts. This event explained technology-driven solutions and strategies aimed at improving the student experience at the UC system. Genesys, as a key player in this transformation, outlined their approach. The speakers included Khalil Yazdi, chief strategy officer of Crossroads Innovation Group, Trevor Kelly, principal solution consultant at Genesys, and Steve Boberski, public sector chief technology officer at Genesys.

Insights into student experience transformation

Each week, there are an estimated 140 million student help desk conversations in the University of California’s ecosystem. 

Kahlili Yazdi, the chief strategy officer at crossroads innovation group, laid the foundation for the event by highlighting the driving factors behind enhancing the student experience.

Factors driving an improved student experience

1. Being customer-centered
2. Using fact-based analytics
3. Responding on a real-time (immediate) basis
4. Ensuring on-going adaptation to change

Trevor Kelly, principal solution consultant at Genesys, presented key use cases for leveraging Genesys solutions in the context of the student experience. These use cases included those listed below. Kelly emphasized the importance of omnichannel communication, routing calls to the most suitable agents, and ensuring student satisfaction with the support they receive.

Genesys use-cases

1. Financial aid help desk
2. Student dorms help desk
3. General help desk

The core objectives of these solutions

1. To enhance the overall student experience
2. Streamline university operations
3. Scale and adapt to student needs
4. Foster more engaging interactions

Genesys aims to meet students on their preferred communication channels.

Students’ preferred communications channels

1. Phone
2. Chat
3. SMS
4. Email

Proactive notifications and the accommodation of remote users, such as students studying abroad or calling in during late hours, were integral aspects of the strategy. Kelly presented the staggering statistic of 140 million weekly conversations in the university’s ecosystem. This immense volume of data requires streamlined data aggregation and automation, to enable outcomes predictions, call escalations, forecasting, and scheduling. 

Leveraging technology for student journeys

Steve Boberski, public sector chief technology officer at Genesys, addressed the ecosystem of applications and the journey of a student from start to finish. He emphasized that the student’s journey is the central focus of all efforts including managing touchpoints. Genesys aimed to leverage technology to speed up transactions, emphasizing that AI, which is often seen as a buzzword, has always been an integral part of their strategy. 

One innovative approach was the use of AI to augment understanding. Within the Genesys system, the university system can be easily updated, and Genesys offers 100 pre-built integrations to optimize operations. They focus on customization and accessibility regardless of the user’s technical proficiency. Boberski discussed the use of generative AI and the distinction between human-trained models and machine-trained models. Genesys expressed their commitment to ethical AI implementation.

Speakers

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