What Is Online Program Enablement?

Online program enablement is a flexible, modular approach to building, growing, and managing online programs. Because many institutions reach a point when standard Online Program Management (OPM) no longer fits their strategy, culture, or long-term goals, enablement offers a viable alternative. Instead of outsourcing end-to-end control to a single vendor, you select the services you need, keep ownership of your programs, and adapt over time as your priorities change.

Online program enablement offers a different path—one built around flexibility, modular support, and institutional control.

Further Defining Online Program Enablement

Online program enablement supports your institution as you design, launch, market, and scale online programs without handing over control of academic, financial, or operational decisions.

At its core, enablement is a partnership without dependency. You receive expertise, technology, and execution support, but your institution remains the decision-maker and owner of the program.

Online program enablement typically includes modular services such as:

• Market research and program viability analysis
• Enrollment marketing and demand generation
• CRM, marketing automation, and data infrastructure
• Student communications and funnel optimization
• Analytics, reporting, and performance insights

You can engage one service or several, adjust scope as conditions change, and integrate support into existing teams and workflows.

How Traditional OPM Models Work

Classic OPM agreements bundle services together. A single vendor manages marketing, recruitment, technology, and sometimes student support. In exchange, the vendor receives a large percentage of tuition revenue, often over contracts lasting 7 to 10 years.

This structure lowers upfront risk, but it also introduces long-term tradeoffs:

• Limited institutional control over strategy and data
• Difficulty adapting as enrollment goals evolve
• Revenue-sharing obligations that persist even after programs mature
• Challenges transitioning programs in-house later

As schools, colleges and universities build more internal digital and enrollment expertise, many institutional administrators and executives question whether long-term revenue-share models align with financial sustainability and institutional mission.

The Difference Between OPM and Online Program Enablement

The most important difference between OPM and enablement is structural, not tactical.
Traditional OPM centralizes control with the vendor. Enablement shifts control back to the institution. Other differences exist around:

Ownership and Governance

With enablement, you retain ownership of:

• Academic decisions and program design
• Student and enrollment data
• Brand voice and institutional positioning
• Technology platforms and system integrations

This matters because with enablement, you remain accountable for academic quality, regulatory compliance, and student outcomes regardless of external partnerships.

Modularity Instead of Bundling

Enablement breaks services into discrete components. You might already have strong instructional design capacity but need enrollment marketing support. You may want CRM architecture without recruitment services, or analytics without a full operational overhaul.

This modularity allows you to:

• Address specific capability gaps
• Avoid paying for bundled services you do not need
• Change partners without rebuilding your infrastructure
• Scale support by program, credential type, or enrollment cycle

Rather than locking into a single model, you shape support around your institution’s actual needs.

Long-Term Capacity Building

Enablement focuses on strengthening internal teams, not replacing them. Transparent reporting, shared systems, and collaborative execution help institutions build durable expertise over time. This approach aligns with broader digital strategy trends in higher education, where leaders prioritize internal capability development alongside external partnership as part of long-term transformation efforts.

Why Institutions Are Shifting Toward Online Program Enablement

Several forces are accelerating interest in enablement models.

First, institutional sophistication has increased. In the throes of COVID, schools had to learn online delivery on the fly. But today, many colleges and universities have experienced marketing, enrollment, and IT teams. What they need is targeted reinforcement, not full outsourcing.

Second, enrollment volatility demands flexibility. Demographic shifts, program saturation, and economic uncertainty make long-term, inflexible contracts riskier. Enablement allows institutions to adjust strategies faster as conditions change.

Third, leadership expectations continue to rise. Presidents, boards, and governing bodies increasingly expect transparency, access to data, and financial clarity across all external partnerships.

What Online Program Enablement Looks Like in Practice

Enablement often begins with a specific challenge rather than a full-scale launch.

Institutions may start by:

• Validating market demand for a new online or hybrid program
• Improving inquiry-to-enrollment conversion performance
• Unifying fragmented marketing, admissions, and CRM data
• Testing new credential formats such as certificates or stackable pathways

From there, services expand or contract based on results. Success depends less on a predefined package and more on alignment between institutional goals, internal capacity, and external support.

Choosing the Right Approach for Your Institution

Online program enablement does not replace every OPM use case. For institutions launching their first online programs, bundled models may still reduce short-term risk.

Enablement tends to be a stronger fit when you:

• Want strategic control and transparency
• Plan to build long-term internal capability
• Need flexibility across programs or markets
• Desire partnerships that evolve as conditions change

The real question is not whether enablement is inherently better than an Online Program Manager. It is whether the model supports where your institution is today and where it needs to go next.

Considering a More Flexible Approach to Online Growth?

Online program enablement gives you more control over how you scale, but it also raises important strategic questions. Which capabilities should stay in-house? Where does external support create the most leverage? And how do you design a model that works now without limiting future options?

These are the questions institutions are actively working through as they reassess long-term OPM commitments and build more adaptable online strategies.

If you are evaluating how enablement could fit within your existing structure, Magellan Learning Solutions works with educational institutions to map options, pressure-test assumptions, and design approaches that align with your institutional goals.

Email us today to learn more.