Cassie Mathes

• Appointed as the college's first CMCO, I combined three previously separate units (Communications/Media Relations, Web Services, and Creative Services/Marketing) as the rebranded Office of Marketing and Communications. Established successful strategic planning, project integration, budgeting, and performance metrics.
• Created a multi-year integrated marketing and communications plan that elevates reputation, institutional selling points, and growth in key academic programs. Engaged with multiple stakeholders to collect and discuss the data driving the plan, and led the team in developing new creative for all marketing platforms. (This supported a 6% enrollment increase for spring 2025.)
• Monitored marketing analytics to identify trends, adjust strategies as needed, and maximize return on investment.
• Through collaboration and communication, built a stronger system-wide understanding of institutional brand identity and the role it plays in decision making, experience and messaging. Analyzed existing perception research and used those insights to develop the college's first brand platform and the launch of a refreshed brand guide and brand campaign.
• In alignment with the college's 2023-2028 strategic plan identifying the institutional goal of an improved student-focused website, I led the college through a website audit and redesign, which included significant improvements to web governance and maintenance.
• Established new three-year unit strategic plan goals in alignment with the institution's strategic plan.
• Created a strategic marketing consultation and intake process for campus and implemented a new office project management system and digital asset management system.
• Strengthened the unit's cohesion and effectiveness with its ad placement agency, conducting strategy conversations and improving the unit's synergy with admissions, academic program directors, deans and divisions.

SERVICE AND LEADERSHIP

• Institutional Strategic Planning Council | Innovation Task Force (Sub-Committee Chair) | Website Steering Committee (Co-Chair) | Enrollment Management Committee | Alliance for Healthcare Education Marketing Committee | Student Affairs Leadership Committee | Advancement Leadership Committee | College Operations Committee | Administrative Services Committee

• As a member of the institution's 10-person Executive Leadership Team, provided leadership in the areas of university communications, marketing, and brand strategy.
• Reorganized and expanded the Division of Communications and Marketing, providing leadership to 24 full-time employees as well as part-time and student support staff. The division went from an entirely flat reporting structure to include the following teams: Communications/Editorial (internal and external communications, university magazines, social media, media relations, emergency communications and Freedom of Information Act requests); Creative Services (graphic design, photography, videography and livestreaming); Marketing (marketing strategy, recruitment communications, college and departmental asset development, paid placement, performance analysis, web content, university sponsorship/special event support); a student-focused Podcasting Laboratory; and WUTC-FM Radio, Chattanooga's NPR affiliate (station employees also provide advisement for the university's student radio station).
• Frequently collaborated with colleagues in other divisions including Enrollment Management and Student Affairs (EMSA), Diversity and Engagement, University Advancement, Information Technology, Academic Affairs, Finance and Administration, Graduate College and Research, Athletics, and the Chancellor's Office on all matters of university operations.
• As the university's chief communications and marketing officer, worked regularly with counterparts across the system including the UT System Office, as well as campuses in Knoxville, Memphis, Martin, Nashville, and Pulaski. The system brand is 'Everywhere you Look, UT,' which ties the campuses together while allowing for some brand uniqueness.
• Initiated the university's first brand discovery/positioning project, working with Yes& Lipman Hearne to conduct qualitative and quantitative brand research on university awareness and perception, developed a new brand platform and key messaging, and developed new creative expression to improve recruitment communications and increase enrollment.
• Founded UTC's inaugural Brand Council and Integrated Marketing Committee, created new partnerships with marketing and communications colleagues from across the university in order to collaborate and align around university brand, marketing strategy, communications, and paid placement.
• Partnered closely with colleagues in Enrollment Management and Admissions to restore the involvement of the Communications and Marketing division in the development of recruitment materials and strategy and worked to develop, launch and align a new complementary marketing campaign, resulting in a 53% increase in web traffic and a 13% increase in applications for the Fall 2023 semester.
• Recognizing the immediate need to support several colleges and academic departments in their efforts to assist in student recruitment, established central marketing positions that could guide units in marketing strategy development, asset creation, and serve as a bridge between those units and Admissions.
• Led the division in the development of its first performance metric report, working with each unit to identify and establish baseline KPIs that could be measured and improved into the future.
• Worked with university leadership to significantly increase the institution's ad placement budget and to measure and report the return on investment, securing the same commitment for year two. In total, managed approximately $3 million to support the division (institutional funds, grants, fundraising and chargeback system).
• Led the RFP process in the search for a marketing agency to develop and execute the institution's first paid placement plan, introducing the university to new, effective traditional and digital marketing strategies including display, social media, streaming, AdWords, and content marketing. These marketing efforts drove prospects to new landing pages with appropriate CTAs, significantly expanding the recruitment funnel. In just a few months, the campaign resulted in more than 62 million ad impressions, 480,000 click-throughs to landing pages, and over 65,000 conversions. Web sessions increased by as much as 240% over the prior fall.
• To address the issue of an overwhelming amount of mass campus email, worked with the Communications team to set new parameters for email approval, to develop and launch a new Campus Weekly newsletter, and to divert emails about events to the appropriate places, including the university online calendar (also working with IT to migrate campus to a new calendar system). Mass email to students and employees decreased more than 70% during this time.
• Initiated a professional website audit project with the partnership of Information Technology, bringing together a full web team including a digital content manager and copywriter (new roles), web developers, and an advisory committee to address an array of website needs and opportunities including organic SEO, user-friendly website navigation, and branded content.
• Worked with the university radio station to establish new underwriting and membership support goals, to study Nielsen performance ratings and improve programming, and to seek grant opportunities and explore collaborations with other public media.
• Represented the university on a regular basis at university and community events, and collaborated with media partners as well as colleagues representing major industries, the Chattanooga Tourism Co., and the Chamber of Commerce.
• Supported division culture and engagement, recruited speakers and organized mini-retreats to promote employee mental wellness, team building, and professional development.
• Selected as one of 24 participants across the UT System to participate in the Class of 2023 Executive Leadership Institute. This unique opportunity included exposure to national higher education experts through presentations and writings, bi-monthly sessions at UT institutions across the state, individual professional development, and executive coaching.

SERVICE AND LEADERSHIP

• Executive Leadership Team | Brand Council (founder and chair) | Integrated Marketing Committee | UT Executive Leadership Institute Class of 2023 | Information Technology Advisory Council

• Reporting to the university president, served as the chief communications and marketing officer for the institution and an advisor to administration on all matters of brand management, marketing and communications.
• Provided oversight and management of the central University Relations team (17 full-time employees and eight part-time/student staff) and leadership to the extended campus marketing and communications community of 40+ total employees.
• Worked closely with peers including vice presidents, administrative directors, and deans to assess a broad range of institutional opportunities and challenges and to make appropriate decisions about university direction.
• Collaborated with colleagues on the Senior Leadership Team on budget matters, securing an increase to the university's marketing budget (grew to $3 million) in order to hire talent, conduct outreach, place marketing assets across the state of Iowa and neighboring states, and fund ongoing brand research.
• Led the institution's brand mission and its new Brand Development and Management Committee. Guided a large, decentralized marketing team through a brand discovery, development, and launch project, and worked to coalesce campus and constituents around a new, cohesive brand vision (partnered with two nationally known agencies). This extensive institutional rebrand involved the development of a new brand platform, hierarchy, vision and promise, as well as new messaging, updated visual identity and logo, new marketing and communications materials, and a website redesign. (Team received multiple CASE and ADDY awards for their work.)
• Restructured the Office of University Relations, establishing leadership roles to ensure the campus had trained and efficient support in the areas of branding, communications, marketing and outreach, creative development, digital experience, website content and design, social media, trademark licensing and management, public information responses, and crisis communications.
• With the team, developed a new departmental strategic plan (in alignment with the institutional strategic plan) and established specific goals and KPIs designed to support the priorities of the institution. Introduced a regular marketing and communications performance reporting process to guide team leaders in setting benchmarks and monitoring the successes and needs of various teams.
• Developed crucial relationships with Enrollment Management, Admissions, Institutional Effectiveness and Planning, Information Technology Services, and University Advancement to build closer collaborations with these units and influence enrollment growth and university engagement. (New freshman numbers and private giving increased despite the pandemic.)
• As a member of the CRM Steering Committee, served in a leadership role as the university built and introduced a new CRM system (Salesforce). Worked to ensure the adoption and training of university marketers and communicators in order to create recruitment communication journeys that worked in concert with messaging from Admissions.
• Introduced consistent, aligned, traditional and digital marketing to the university, and studied/reported performance analytics for earned, owned, and paid platforms. With administration, designed a system to identify the university's key programs and worked to integrate intentional promotion of those programs.
• Partnered with administration on policy development including marketing and communications policies and workflows, and served in an institutional policy approval role with senior administration. Worked with colleagues to assess the university's accomplishments toward its strategic plan and future visioning goals.
• Worked closely with the president's office and university legal counsel to stay informed of potential and actual university litigation and to manage university reputation. Served as the university transparency officer and as a member of the institutional Threat Assessment Team, working with leaders across campus to address university threats. Provided leadership and communications planning/execution throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Expanded community outreach efforts through the department's creation of a 'street team' designed to increase exposure of the brand and enhance the university's presence in schools and at regional and state events. Led the planning and execution of the university's revived Homecoming parade, refocusing and relocating the event to meet community outreach goals and involve more areas of the institution. Developed and led the team to establish a new Business and Community Fair designed to connect the campus community to area businesses.
• Served in a leadership role for the institution in terms of external affairs, building relationships with the regional Chamber of Commerce, with city and media representatives, and serving as a board member for the local College Hill business sector and Iowa Public Radio.

SERVICE AND LEADERSHIP

• Senior Leadership Team | President's Council | University Council | Brand Development and Management Committee (chair) | University Strategic Planning Coordinating Committee | Enrollment Committee | COVID (Pandemic Management) Steering Committee | University Threat Assessment Committee | Emergency Management Committee | Community College Partnership Advisory Council | Homecoming Committee (co-chair) | CRM Steering Committee | Website and Mobile App Steering Committees | College Hill Partnership Board | Iowa Public Radio Board

• Reporting to the Vice President for Advancement and later the University President, worked closely with members of the university's leadership team to develop and lead comprehensive brand, marketing, and communications strategy.
• Served as a trusted advisor to the President and other members of administration regarding communication for a broad range of stakeholders including faculty and staff, alumni, students and parents, the business community, legislators, media, and general public.
• Envisioned and established an expanded, high-functioning University Relations team, going from an initial four employees to a 15-person team. This centralized model included writers, designers, videographers, photographers, social media content developers, and website programmers. (Team won multiple CASE and ADDY awards.)
• Oversaw and managed the university's $1.5 million marketing budget, prioritizing enrollment initiatives and driving integrated marketing campaigns. Worked closely with administration to increase this budget over time to support university priorities. Used survey data and online metrics to make informed decisions about marketing, messaging, placements, and timelines.
• Served as the university's chief spokesperson for media, developing and providing official statements, responses, and updates about the institution.
• Along with other campus leaders, developed and executed the university's crisis communications plan and utilized those strategies when necessary to protect the institution's reputation.
• Managed the development of the university's top publications including the award-winning university magazine (produced three times a year and distributed to more than 40,000 university community members) as well as a variety of other publications, consistent campus communications, and recruitment materials.
• Oversaw messaging and content for social media, the university website, campus announcements, press releases, and video/written feature stories. During these years, developed a much stronger emphasis on video and multimedia including brand storytelling and recruitment pieces.
• Led the university's brand management efforts, working with the creative team and administration to redevelop the institutional identity manual, logos, and lockups.
• Oversaw the university's trademark licensing initiatives, including licensing approvals and retail outreach (licensing revenue increased 52% during that time). Managed the mascot program and worked with Athletics to rebrand and promote the university mascot.
• Worked closely with Admissions and Foundation/Development leadership to create and execute a series of large-scale community outreach and recruitment events both on-campus and in the city, drawing thousands of prospective students and families to university-sponsored events and generating enrollment leads for Admissions.

• Working closely with the Associate Vice President for Marketing and Communications as well as the university web development team, served as the university's Web Content and Social Media Coordinator. Provided oversight of the online presence and content strategy of PSU's owned digital platforms.
• Created new, appealing content for a variety of departments and units site-wide, and worked with multiple website editors across campus to ensure branding and communications were consistent.
• Developed institutional social media standards, as well as social media content strategy and messaging.

• Served as the university's primary contact for members of the media, assisting reporters and editors with their story needs by locating subject matter experts, arranging interviews for reporters, and preparing administrators, faculty, and staff with talking points and guidance.
• Routinely met with faculty and staff from multiple academic and support areas across campus to learn about their programs, discuss potential story ideas, and develop those stories for a variety of purposes including press releases, social media posts, magazine articles, administrative presentations and editorials, and website features.
• Created weekly website features on alumni, faculty, and students. Served as an advising member of the Crisis Committee and worked closely with the Director of Public Relations, university photographers and graphic designers, as well as campus leadership.

• Served as a researcher and writer for various campus publications including the University magazine, as well as press releases and administrative presentations.
• Assisted in the planning and implementation of special events, including a presidential inauguration, building dedications, legacy traditions and ceremonies, press conferences, and anniversary celebrations.

• Developed comprehensive curriculum plans for effective lesson execution, resulting in improved student understanding and engagement.
• Utilized various assessment tools to evaluate the effectiveness of instructional methods, making necessary adjustments for optimal results.
• Assessed student progress regularly, providing constructive feedback and tailored support for individual needs.

• Served in a leadership role for the newsroom by researching stories, performing interviews, and selecting and providing assignments and deadlines to reporters and videographers. Oversaw the content of newscasts and productivity of the newsroom staff, and provided a finalized newscast each afternoon to evening producers and anchors.

• Worked as a full-time print journalist at the daily newspaper while completing bachelor's and master's degrees. Researched stories, conducted interviews, attended council and business meetings, and covered a variety of geographic and topic beats over the years.
• Earned three writing awards from the Associated Press and the Missouri Press Association for Excellence in Feature Writing.