Dr. David Willows is Co-founder and Strategic Director at [YELLOW CAR], the world's leading experience strategy training and consultancy firm for schools. Between 2005 and 2022, he was Director of Advancement at the International School of Brussels, Belgium. During this time, he grew to be widely regarded as one of the most innovative practitioners in the field, helping to shape and define the future of Advancement (admissions, marketing & communications, fundraising & alumni relations) in schools. He was recently listed as one of the world’s Top 10 Global Educational Influencers. An author and regular keynote speaker and trainer at international events around the world, David is passionate about helping schools advance in ways that are relevant to today’s educational landscape.

Suzette Parlevliet is Co-founder and Experience Director at [YELLOW CAR]. With a background in hospitality management, she worked at the International School of Brussels for nearly a decade, where she oversaw the school’s brand development, communication strategy, web design, content production and, ultimately, the school's family experience. Today, Suzette brings expert insight and supports school leaders to design and implement experience strategies in ways that demonstrate impact across the organization.

David and Suzette Quoted

“There's also something completely one dimensional and unidirectional about it [Net Promoter Score], and if you dig a bit deeper, you realize that there's not much below the NPSs apart from just whether families, students, or employees are willing to recommend their school to others…It doesn't tell us anything else.”

“When it comes down to it, we are in the experience business, and the experience is rooted in human relationships. …You can't reduce it to a single number.”

“With [Yellow Car], we're in the business of experience strategy.”

“We did a survey [of] several hundred of our alumni community… to try and understand these people [and see if] we could come up with … a wavelength of nostalgia.”

 What was the peak of the school year? The outer circle is linked to six elements that we came up with that make up school life: happiness, connection, belonging, understanding, confidence and gratitude.

What you’ll learn

• Questions to ask your constituents:

  • Do you feel like this school is a place where you belong as parents?

  • To what extent do you feel confident that this is the right school for you?

  • Is this time well spent?

• 90% of the work of a survey is after the survey is completed

• What the 6 elements are that make up school life

• What is unidirectional versus two-dimensional communication

• Why our schools are so siloed

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