University of Oxford

Christine Jeffery, Director of Development Services in the University’s central development office, explains:

“What started in 2000 as a survey of 13 colleges has become an annual project involving all 38. Basically, it enables them to develop best practice by comparison to each other. They value the opportunity enormously. Over 11 years, More Partnership really has helped to raise standards by helping the colleges to realise their potential.

“The questions range from the obvious (“How much money have you raised?”) to the more subtle (“How is your office structured?”). They’ve changed over the years as the colleges’ interests and needs have shifted. Today too, the colleges are divided into comparable groups, so that they can make realistic comparisons. The same donor continues to fund the survey. And More Partnership still supplies the expert, objective, external analysis. It also provides the mentorship and training that individual colleges can request as part of the project.

“I’ve only become directly involved in the last few years. Over that time, I’ve come to share the trust that the colleges have for More Partnership. As well as deep knowledge and understanding, the firm has provided a huge sense of continuity. The report always strikes the right balance in that the feedback is always constructive and the long-term trends emerge from the day-to-day detail.

“The practical benefits have been immense. College development directors use the data to lobby for new resources. The central development office uses it to complete the annual Ross CASE Survey – on which HEFCE-matched funding depends. And the same figures are helping us to measure the impact of our current ‘Oxford Thinking’ campaign. In fact, it’s hard to imagine life without benchmarking.”