January 14, 2021
by Dr. Bill Hudson, Head of School
We begin a new year with new hopes and resolutions and with optimism that the end of the pandemic is in sight. We begin a new year complete with new understandings of ourselves, our family, our society, and our values after an extremely challenging year. Our task will be to take what we have learned, put it to good use, and work for lasting change.
You may remember that in December, parents were invited to participate in our annual Net Promoter Survey. I was more than pleased with the incredibly high level of participation—a whopping 78% of our parent community completed the survey. If you are familiar with the Net Promoter Survey, you know that is commonly used in business to measure customer service. Similarly, MPA uses the Net Promoter Survey to measure parent satisfaction and solicit feedback for use in continuous improvement in order to make data-driven decisions. The survey and score is also important because word of mouth referrals are the greatest source of admission inquiries and the best predictor of new enrollment.
Survey respondents are grouped as follows:
- Detractors (score 0-6) are unhappy customers.
- Passives (score 7-8) are satisfied but unenthusiastic customers.
- Promoters (score 9-10) are loyal enthusiasts.
Subtracting the percentage of Detractors from the percentage of Promoters yields the Net Promoter Score, which can range from a low of -100 (if every customer is a Detractor) to a high of 100 (if every customer is a Promoter).
Fred Reichheld, author of The Ultimate Question, found the average Net Promoter Score among the companies he surveyed was 10 to 15 percent. It follows, then, that if a score is north of 15 percent, it is above average, and could expect a company to grow at a rate faster than the economy. A small handful of companies have achieved a Net Promoter Score of at least 50 percent, which Reichheld defines as “World Class.” According to Survey Monkey, the average 2020 Net Promoter Score was 27 across 124,420 organizations.
Not only was parent participation at an all-time high, so was our score. I am pleased and proud to share that our NPS this year is 74 (compared to approximately 60 the last four years). According to the NPS methodology, 79% of our parents gave the school a score of either a nine or 10. The open-ended responses were incredibly affirming, and I appreciate your vote of confidence and your kind words. Considering how challenging the last 10 months have been, the responses mean a great deal to our teachers and staff.
The results of the survey are both humbling and inspiring, motivating all of us to continue to work diligently to live up to our mission, to the expectations of our parents, and to the needs of our students. At the same time, I spend a great deal of time reflecting on the feedback from those who are less than satisfied. I am fully cognizant that there are times and instances that we are not our best, not serving our parents or students particularly well and not meeting our high standards. Know that I and the rest of the administrative team take your feedback to heart.
Fred Reichheld of Bain and Company, creator of the Net Promoter Survey, said “It’s not the score that matters; it’s what you do with it to make promoters that really counts.” My new year’s resolution to you, as head of school, is that MPA will remain steadfast in our commitment to continuous improvement. I am not content to rest on our laurels and am not satisfied with the status quo. As an institution, and as individuals, we must model for our young people that we value diverse perspectives and feedback and that we are capable of improvement and growth.
As we begin a new year, let us all commit to carry forward the lessons learned in 2020 to realize the promise of this new year. Let us harness hope and strengthen our resolve to continuous improvement and lasting change in our school, community, society, and world.
