When the Show Must Go On: Rebuilding Communications for an Ivy League Department
When an Ivy League academic department lost its sole communications staff member to an unexpected medical leave, More Canvas stepped in — running 110+ events per semester, producing newsletters and social media, building a 44-page communications handbook, and hiring and training a permanent replacement. What started as emergency coverage became a nearly two-year engagement that left the department fully equipped to operate independently.
Some engagements start with a clear scope and a clean timeline. This one started with a phone call and an urgent problem.
An academic department at a leading Ivy League research university found itself in crisis. The sole staff member responsible for all communications (event promotion, newsletters, social media, website updates, faculty relations) had gone on an unexpected medical leave. There was no backup. There was no documentation. There was no playbook. And there were more than 110 events per semester that still needed to be promoted, on time, to the right audiences, without missing a beat.
More Canvas was already embedded with the department in a strategy and operations capacity. That relationship made us the natural call. We said yes, and we got to work.
What does it look like when a department's communications depend entirely on one person?
The honest answer is: it looks fine, until it doesn't.
When that one person is present and experienced, institutional knowledge held informally can sustain a department for years. Event promotion happens. Newsletters go out. Faculty get what they need. The system works because one person holds it together through memory, habit, and relationships.
When that person is suddenly gone, the gap is total. There are no documented processes to fall back on. No templates. No system for tracking which events need what materials by when. No record of how the newsletter is structured, who the contacts are, or how the website gets updated.
That was the situation we walked into. And the department couldn't wait for a search process or a slow transition. The work had to keep moving.
How does More Canvas step into an unfamiliar communications operation and keep it running?
We started by listening and learning. Before we changed anything, we spent time understanding how the department actually worked: talking to faculty, reviewing past materials, mapping the informal systems that existed even if they weren't written down. This wasn't a time to impose a new approach. It was a time to absorb what existed and keep it alive while we built something better underneath it.
Within weeks, we had taken ownership of the department's full communications operation. That meant:
Event Promotion at Scale: We managed promotion for 110+ events per semester across newsletters, social media, and direct faculty communication. Each event received consistent, equitable treatment: no more ad hoc requests with inconsistent results. We built a centralized dashboard and file organization system to track every event, every deadline, and every deliverable, so nothing slipped through the cracks regardless of volume.
Newsletter Production: We produced bi-weekly and monthly newsletters from scratch, writing and designing each issue to reflect the department's voice, highlight its programming, and serve both internal and external audiences.
Social Media Management: We ran the department's social media presence, developing content that showcased the breadth and quality of the department's work to students, faculty, alumni, and the broader community.
Website Management: We built/maintained an interim information hub for students, faculty, and staff; building it as a rapid-response solution when the existing website couldn't keep pace with the department's real-time communications needs. We later supported the transition to the department's full website relaunch, taking ownership of the events and news sections throughout.
Standardized Marketing Materials: We built clear, reusable marketing packages so that faculty and student event organizers had a consistent, professional path to getting their events promoted without having to reinvent the process every time.
Stakeholder Relations: We managed relationships with dozens of faculty, event leads, graphic designers, the ticketing office, and performers, replacing scattered, informal coordination with one clear, reliable process that everyone could depend on.
What did we build while keeping everything running?
Running the operation was only half the job. The other half was making sure the department would never find itself in this position again.
While managing the day-to-day, we were simultaneously building the infrastructure that had never existed. The most significant output was a 44-page communications handbook: a comprehensive, usable document that captured every process, every template, and every protocol the department needed to operate its communications independently. A practical guide written to be used during day-to-day operations.
We also developed a blog and social media campaigns, writing and coordinating with faculty contributors to publish pieces that told the department's story, highlighting mentorship programs, student achievements, and the depth of the academic community. This was a strategic effort to position the department's communications as something worth reading, not just a broadcast channel.
Throughout, we maintained a philosophy we bring to every long-term engagement: the goal is always independence, not dependency. Every system we built was designed to be owned and operated by someone other than us.
How did More Canvas hire and train the right person to take over?
As the engagement extended (renewed twice by the department's director in response to strong, consistent results) we shifted increasing focus toward a permanent solution. We defined the department's long-term communications needs, wrote the job description for a new Engagement Manager role, participated in the hiring process, and selected the right candidate.
Once hired, we didn't hand over a folder and disappear. We onboarded the new Engagement Manager using the 44-page handbook we had built, walking them through every process, every relationship, and every system. We then stayed on in a limited advisory capacity for eight months: available for questions, reviewing their work, and ensuring the transition was real and lasting, not just nominal.
By the time we stepped back, the department had something it had never had before: a trained, equipped, documented communications operation that could run without us.
What were the results of a nearly two-year embedded communications partnership?
What was meant to be short-term emergency coverage became a two-year engagement. The department's director renewed our work twice in response to what she observed firsthand.
By the end of the engagement:
110+ events per semester were promoted consistently, equitably, and professionally across every channel
A 44-page communications handbook was delivered — a living document the department continues to use
A new Engagement Manager was hired, onboarded, and supported through an eight-month transition
The department's relationships with campus and off-campus partners were stronger and more consistent than before
A marketing/communications infrastructure was in place that was built to outlast any one person's tenure
As the department's director reflected:
"Engaging More Canvas has been transformational for our department, which has undergone significant changes in administration and operations in recent years. From partnering with key stakeholders to develop strategic initiatives in alignment with our core values, to executing high-level functions within the department, More Canvas has provided effective expertise and advice in the areas of strategy, operations, marketing, and executive coaching. We are grateful for our ongoing collaboration with More Canvas and have made significant progress as a result of their contributions to our department and our community."
— Jacqueline A., Department Director
Is your department or organization one unexpected absence away from a communications crisis?
Most are. The systems that keep communications running in academic departments and mission-driven organizations are often more fragile than they appear: held together by institutional knowledge that lives in one person's head rather than in documented, transferable processes.
More Canvas specializes in stepping in, stabilizing operations, and building the infrastructure that makes organizations resilient. We don't just cover the gap. We close it, permanently.
Whether you need emergency communications support, a long-term embedded partner, or help building the systems and team your organization needs to operate independently, we'd love to talk.
