In Part 2 of this Pulse Check series, Dan Giroux sits down with Melissa Fincher and Shanna Hocking for a compelling look at how advancement marketing and communications teams can adapt to today's climate of fiscal uncertainty, evolving talent needs, and constant change. This episode dives deep into how higher ed leaders can rethink team structures, integrate AI responsibly, and develop talent that drives long-term value. Whether you're leading an advancement team or building one, this is a must-listen conversation for navigating the next era of higher education marketing.

Resources provided by Melissa:

• WittKieffer Open Searches in Marketing, Communications, & Strategy: https://wittkieffer.com/positions?excellence=227
• WittKieffer Interim Talent Network: https://wittkieffer.com/form/interim-talent-network
• WittKieffer Insights: https://wittkieffer.com/insights
• WittKieffer Executive Searches on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/showcase/current-executive-searches/

Resources provided by Shanna:

• HBR “5 Qualities to Look for in a New Hire”: https://hbr.org/2024/03/5-qualities-to-look-for-in-a-new-hire
• BOLD Blueprint for Women in Advancement: https://www.hockingleadership.com/research-study

Guest Names: 
Melissa Fincher, Principal and Practice Leader, Marketing & Communications, WittKieffer
Shanna Hocking, Founder and CEO, Hocking Leadership

Guest Socials:
Melissa: [email protected]
Shanna: [email protected]

Guest Bios: 
Principal Melissa Fincher serves as the Marketing & Communications Practice Leader for WittKieffer's Education Market. She has partnered on 170+ executive searches with a wide variety of mission-serving clients. Her varied experiences make her uniquely qualified to support institutions with their short and long-term talent strategies and solutions. She started her career at Rutgers University in undergraduate admissions. She then served Johns Hopkins, first as a member of the Development & Alumni Relations senior leadership team and then as the inaugural talent acquisition consultant. Prior to joining WittKieffer, Melissa was a talent and organizational development consultant at The Ohio State University.

Shanna (rhymes with Donna) is a nationally recognized expert in higher education advancement and nonprofit leadership, and the author of One Bold Move a Day (McGraw Hill). She is the founder and CEO of Hocking Leadership, a strategic advisory firm that helps universities and academic medical centers strengthen their leaders, build high-performing teams, and develop workplace cultures that increase retention and grow philanthropy. Shanna spent more than 20 years as a fundraising executive, leading teams and raising transformational gifts at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the University of Alabama, and Duke University. Today, she partners with chief advancement executives and their teams to solve their most complex leadership challenges.

She is a LinkedIn Top Voice and her expertise has been featured in Harvard Business Review, Fortune, Fast Company, and The Wall Street Journal.

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Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea 
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea

About The Enrollify Podcast Network:
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