From Fragmented to Collaborative: Organizing Social at Large College

This blog post has been interpreted from a 2021 #PSEWEB presentation.

If you’ve ever inherited a patchwork of social accounts that all “sort of” represent your institution, you know the challenge: lots of channels, lots of energy, not a lot of cohesion. When I joined Fanshawe College as Social Media Communications Officer, that was our starting point—and this is how we built alignment and momentum.

Where I Started with Social Media

When I arrived, central brand channels were mostly reactive. There was a relatively new policy in place that no one was really aware of, so anyone who thought they needed social launched an account. Branding, content quality, and cadence were inconsistent.

Step 1: Get a Clear Picture

Before I was hired, the college brought in a third party to audit every account, benchmark against other Ontario colleges, and recommend a path forward. Their playbook boiled down to three moves:

1. Create a social media policy to govern creation and use

2. Be strategic about which platforms we use and how we use them

3. Hire a dedicated resource to lead corporate channels and the broader strategy

That last point became my role.

Step 2: Access Without Anxiety

One of my first jobs was gaining access to as many brand channels as possible. If you’ve done this, you know it can trigger worry: “You’ll change or delete my account,” “I don’t need help,” and so on.

What worked:

• Lead with support, not control. Ask about goals first, then offer help to reach them.

• Use the “won-the-lottery” scenario. If you suddenly stepped away, who keeps the lights on? Shared access protects your work.

• Offer analytics and recommendations. “Let me review what’s working and what isn’t—and send you ideas to improve.”

Not every conversation is easy. When I hit resistance—especially with inconsistent or abandoned accounts—I found partners who were ready to try something new. We ran simple A/B tests (their channel vs. the proposed channel), proved the lift, and used those wins to influence others.

Step 3: Listen for Pain Points

As our network of social managers grew, a pattern emerged. For most people, social was an “other duty as assigned.” I heard:

“I don’t have time.”“I’m not trained for this.”“I grabbed an image from Google because it was faster.”“We don’t want to look like everyone else.”

Those comments told me we didn’t just need rules. We needed a system that made good work easier.

Step 4: Build the System (Tools That Actually Help)

We focused on four categories:

• File sharing for assets (photos, video, logos, templates)

• A community hub where managers could talk and learn together

• A planning space to see the big picture

• A management suite to schedule, collaborate, and respond efficiently

Depending on your stack, that might look like OneDrive/SharePoint or Google Drive for files; Microsoft Teams, Slack, or Discord for the hub; Planner, Trello, or Airtable for planning; and tools like Hootsuite, Sprout Social, Brandwatch, or Social Hub for publishing and engagement.

Inside Our “Social Media Toolkit”

Our shared drive became a one-stop shop for anyone touching social:

1. Social Media Manager’s Starter Kit Policy, corporate strategy, brand guidelines, writing style guide, and a contact list for all social managers.

2. Training and Workshops Decks and recorded sessions so new managers can self-serve and veterans can upskill.

3. Platform Guides Quick-reference docs for major (and a few minor) platforms, built by our co-op students.

4. Resources and Assets Strategy and content plan templates, logos, fonts, GIFs, and ready-to-use design elements.

5. Active Content College-wide, reusable content with messaging and assets—fee deadlines, registration, open house, orientation, etc. It started as my folder; now multiple teams contribute.

This toolkit saved time and raised quality without adding bureaucracy.

From Channels to Community

We tried Slack early on, but adoption lagged. When our campus standardized on Microsoft 365, we moved to Teams and it clicked: built-in access, fewer logins, better fit for how people already worked. Now managers have a place to ask questions, swap ideas, share wins, and get updates that don’t get buried in email.

Step 5: Make Strategy Practical

We gave everyone the corporate social strategy, then coached them to build department-level plans:

• Set audience-specific, platform-specific SMART objectives

• Translate objectives into a content plan

• Start with the “always-happens” of higher ed: recruitment cycles, program promotion, faculty highlights, student spotlights, field trips, guest speakers, competitions, and events—mapped to a calendar so nothing gets missed

My role is to stay close: check in, clear roadblocks, share resources, connect teams that can help each other, and keep professional development flowing.

What Moved the Needle for our Social Media

• Make social accessible Train everyone on brand and writing style. Shared knowledge compounds.

• Invest in content skills From video basics to Rush/Premiere, and design with Canva or Adobe Express. Provide templates so less-confident designers can still produce on-brand work.

• Stock the library Photography, logos, fonts, color palettes, motion assets, and “campaigns-in-a-box.”

• Communicate consistently Remind people what content is available, what formats you need them to create, and what PD opportunities are coming up.

• Centralize management If you can, adopt an enterprise publishing/engagement tool so teams can schedule, collaborate, pull from a content library, and route messages to the right subject-matter expert.

If You’re Starting Your Own Journey

• Get everyone on the same page with baseline training—then make onboarding repeatable.

• Keep training continuous. Don’t let orientation be the last touchpoint.

• Give people what they need to succeed: access, assets, and templates.

• Stay in touch. Support is a habit, not a memo.

• Remember most social managers do this on top of their primary role. Make it easier, not heavier.

Where Our Social Media is Now

I'd like to say we’re not “done”—social never is. We’ve built a collaborative, confident network that shares tools, knowledge, and ownership. The outcome isn’t just stronger metrics; it’s a healthier system and a better experience for students and staff. I am sad that I won't be able to continue to lead this incredible team

moving forward, but I hope what I built over the last ten years will provide a strong foundation for what is yet to come.

If you’re working through a similar shift and want to swap notes, I’m happy to connect.