Case study
Western University
Reframing a Toronto presence into a strategic asset for institutional leadership and national impact
Client Context
Western University is one of Canada’s most significant research-intensive universities, with more than 40,000 students and a strong global reputation. A member of the U15, Western ranks among the top research universities nationally and within the top 1% globally, with recognized strengths in areas such as neuroscience, sustainability, and interdisciplinary research. The institution attracts global talent and plays an important role in Canada’s research, innovation, and talent ecosystem.
The Mandate
Western engaged Healy Consulting & Advisory to support the strategy for a new institutional presence in Toronto. The President’s Office brought in external support to reset the question, challenge underlying assumptions, and develop a clearer, more compelling strategic direction. While the engagement began as a discrete strategy assignment, it has evolved into a broader advisory relationship supporting senior leadership.
”Mark had the ability to push aside the distractions and get to the heart of the matter, and the seniority to bring together the perspectives and leaders needed from across campus. His prior experience leading and scaling Executive Education at Ivey Business School, combined with a track record of transformational strategy work, enabled him to quickly gain trust, reframe the problem, and convene the right voices across campus.
Office of the PresidentWestern University
A clear, differentiated strategic concept for its Toronto presence, aligned with Western’s research strengths and institutional ambition
The Work
- Direct advisory engagement with the President, Provost, central leadership team, and four Deans
- Strategic reframing of the Toronto presence, starting with first-principles questioning of purpose, role, and ambition
- Ideation-led strategy development focused on clarifying what the initiative is, and what it is not
- Development of a new conceptual model positioning the Toronto presence as a think-and-do tank focused on the future of Canadian prosperity, rather than a traditional continuing studies or satellite campus
- Integration of academic, research, programming, governance, and external-facing considerations into a coherent institutional proposition
The work centred on cutting through red herrings, aligning senior perspectives, and reframing the initiative so that it meaningfully advanced Western’s institutional mission and national relevance.
Outcomes
As a result of the engagement, Western achieved:
- A reframed initiative positioned as a strategic asset for Western – and a novel institutional model within Canadian higher education – a multi-million dollar, thorny-Canadian-prosperity-questions method of enquiry entity at the crossroads of Canadian business, policy and societal leadership
- A clear, differentiated strategic concept for its Toronto presence, aligned with Western’s research strengths and institutional ambition
- Alignment across senior leadership and participating faculties around purpose, scope, and direction
- Increased confidence in how the initiative is presented internally and externally, including to partners and stakeholders
- A foundation for ongoing advisory support as the initiative moves from concept to implementation