2024 – USA INDEPENDENT SCHOOL MARKET

“CCIS had the pleasure and honor of hosting Dr. Stephen Holmes for a well-attended and compelling workshop on Reputation today. His depth of knowledge and engaging delivery style made complex concepts accessible and thought-provoking. It’s clear he is an expert on the subject matter! Dr. Holmes adeptly navigated the intricacies of reputation management, blending theoretical insights with practical advice. There is much interest in collaborating for additional work within our regional consortium. I look forward to working with Dr. Holmes again!” 

“Ashley Hall has been privileged to work with Stephen Holmes of 5Rs Partnership in our strategic planning process. What attracted us to Stephen’s work is his focus on building reputation, a concept that is easily understood by every member of a school community. Through his desktop analysis of all of the materials that we use to represent Ashley Hall both externally and internally to his time on campus with large numbers of our constituents to a well-crafted survey digging deeper on salient issues, Stephen has developed quickly a deep understanding of our school and presented with clarity those areas on which to continue to build and those where we need focus and discernment. Our team is excited about the emerging direction and the possibilities he is helping us discern and articulate.”

“At the beginning of this strategic plan, I was not sure what to expect having never participated in one before, but Stephen and his team set out a road map which was essential. Then, he set to work really getting to know the school, its stakeholders, views, goals and dreams, as well as its blind spots. In the end, Stephen offered a detailed plan based on what he heard and saw, combined with insights from his wealth of knowledge of other local and schools from around the world. For any school, new or old, I see now how important it is to do a strategic plan especially under the direction of Stephen who is a genuine expert, hard-working and good person making the whole process thoroughly enjoyable.” 

“Dr. Holmes’ presentation on reputation management provided extremely valuable insights that led to strategic changes at our school. His emphasis on benchmarking and building authentic evidence enabled our Board to make more informed decisions to shape our school’s future.”

“Stephen Holmes recent work with us represents the rare consultant that understands both the financial and managerial data, as well as the perennial driving goals of the client organization. His research uncovers hard to find trends that encompass market capture, pricing determinations, essential family values that are at the core of what independent schools need to deliver, and a host of other factors vital to consulting intelligence.” 

“Dear Stephen,

I wanted to reach out and thank you for sharing your time, energy, and expertise with our educators and school leaders during the Educating Girls Symposium in NYC. You provided so much food for thought and brought a fresh perspective around everything from strategic planning to reputation building- brilliant!.”

“Dr Stephen Holmes presented a hugely impressive data-driven workshop at the ICGS conference in Cleveland Ohio in June, attended by heads of school and marketing managers from girls’ schools from the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the UK. His messages were of absolute and vital relevance across these educational jurisdictions. Stephen’s years of professional and unique practice as regards placing reputation in a highly nuanced framework of marketing were generously shared in a compelling yet compressed delivery of radical marketing and reputational strategy. He rightly had many of queuing to engage him for further bespoke work in our schools.”