Lesson 1.1: Your Role in the System
Duration: 10 minutes
💡 Key Takeaway: Your job is to follow proven workflows, not to become a compliance expert.
What This Job Actually Involves
Welcome to your new role! Let’s be clear from the start: you’re here to help students through their education journey, not to memorize regulations.
Your Daily Reality
- Responding to student inquiries using templates
- Processing applications through our guided system
- Managing enrollments with automated checklists
- Following up on system alerts and notifications
- Escalating complex issues to the right people
How Your Work Fits Into the Bigger Picture
Think of our organization as a three-tier system:
Tier 1: You
Front-line operations – Following workflows and using systems to serve students efficiently
Tier 2: Supervisors
Handle escalations, complex cases, and provide guidance when workflows don’t cover a situation
Tier 3: Compliance Team
Design systems, ensure regulatory compliance, and manage ESOS obligations
Here’s the magic: The workflows you’ll learn are designed by Tier 3 experts. When you follow them correctly, compliance happens automatically. You don’t need to understand every regulation – you just need to follow the steps.
The 3-Tier Model: Where You Sit
| Your Responsibility | NOT Your Responsibility |
|---|---|
| ✅ Follow the workflow exactly | ❌ Interpret regulations |
| ✅ Use provided templates | ❌ Create compliance policies |
| ✅ Complete required fields accurately | ❌ Decide what’s compliant |
| ✅ Escalate when the system alerts you | ❌ Handle exceptions on your own |
| ✅ Ask questions when unsure | ❌ Guess or improvise |
What Success Looks Like
You’re Doing Great When:
- Students get quick, accurate responses from you using templates
- Applications move smoothly through the system
- You escalate appropriately – not too early, not too late
- Nothing falls through the cracks because you check your dashboard
- You feel confident because you know exactly what to do next
Warning Signs (Don’t Worry, We’ll Fix These!):
- Feeling like you need to “figure out” what’s compliant
- Writing emails from scratch instead of using templates
- Proceeding when you’re unsure (instead of asking/escalating)
- Missing system notifications or alerts
- Trying to memorize rules instead of following workflows
🎯 Your North Star Principle
“When in doubt, follow the workflow. If there’s no workflow, escalate. Never guess on compliance.”
Quick Reflection
Before moving to the next lesson, think about:
- What tier are you in, and what does that mean for your daily work?
- What are you responsible for? What are you NOT responsible for?
- What does success look like in your role?
These aren’t trick questions – just things to keep in mind as we move forward!
✓ You’ve completed Lesson 1.1! Next up: Your Digital Workspace Tour