University restores trust after B-school rankings fraud was discovered
Situation:
A large public university had initiated an investigation into allegations that its business school had deliberately fabricated data for years leading to one of its programs being consistently rated #1 in US News and World Report. BMCG was engaged after the privileged investigation had concluded but before university leadership had made decisions on how to address its findings.
Actions / Recommendations:
Guided President, Provost, and rest of the leadership team in a decision-making process to identify the risks, benefits, dependencies and supporting messaging of two competing options to support effective decision-making and proactive identification of risks.
Developed college-specific strategy and broader institutional response including the launch of a “Data Integrity Initiative” to protect broader reputational risks.
Created a “play-by-play” roll out communications plan to announce results of findings and decision, including messaging framework, hard Q&A, community letter, media strategy as well as a “data integrity” microsite
Provided on-going support and advice as issue progressed relative to litigation and accreditation issues
Results:
While significant damage to the business school’s reputation was unavoidable due to the Dean’s actions, the broader institutional impact was limited as a result of both proactive decision-making and the detailed, targeted communications strategy and implementation.
