Robin Oliver serves as the Vice President for Communications and Marketing at Ohio University, located in Athens, Ohio. She leads a group of highly talented professionals in communications and public relations, digital content and social media, photo and video, creative and design, media planning and buying, web design and development, and enterprise marketing strategy. The team is charged with elevating the marketing and branding of the institution and ultimately driving reputation in the marketplace.
Robin possesses more than 20 years of experience in marketing and communications in various industries, with former positions at Western Carolina University, Big Communications, and the Birmingham Post-Herald. She received the American Marketing Association’s Higher Education Marketer of the Year award in 2018.
She was named as Ohio University's first Vice President for University Communications and Marketing in July 2019, arriving to great expectations. In just under three years in this role, Robin has instituted momentous change at the University. To name a few accomplishments – Robin has developed and launched a new brand, centralized communications and marketing at the institution through a strategic reorganization, created and defined strategic university initiatives with other University leaders, and partnered with Diversity & Inclusion to implement a diversity brand and initiative promoting diversity and respect – all while navigating a global pandemic and a social justice movement. Throughout her tenure, the University Communications & Marketing department received dozens of awards in the higher education and marketing industries.
Outside of work, Robin manages to find time for many hobbies, including owning and operating a Pygora goat farm with her family.
In the weeks following the COVID-19 pandemic, OHIO's President asked leaders to come forward with any and all solutions that could help rebalance a crashing budget picture. Robin responded with a revised realignment proposal for marketing and communications – cut most distributed staff in the academic colleges, advancement, and student affairs and build (and manage) a central unit with the talent and expertise to do it all. The solution not only would save the institution $1.3 million annually in salary costs but would also bolster resources in key focus areas including social media, web design and development, search engine optimization, and paid digital media. The benefits were obvious but such a “rip off the band-aid” approach was almost unheard of in higher education. Nonetheless, Robin was approved to move forward with the understanding that she would handle the HR logistics, the change management, and the internal communications needs associated.
When Robin arrived at the University in 2019, the decentralized University Communications & Marketing (UCM) department was comprised of a staff of 16. Through this major reorganization, she developed a comprehensive department of six teams with proven leaders and centralized communications and marketing services at the University, breaking down college-level and divisional-level silos. Through this change, she created a more comprehensive and streamlined workflow for marketing and communications at the University.
With other University leaders, Robin created and defined strategic University initiatives. She serves as the chair for the committees to Elevate Marketing and Branding and to Catalyze Strategic Enrollment Strategy for Lifelong Learning.
Within her first months at Ohio University, Robin began work to develop a unifying brand message strategy. This complete overhaul of the University brand was informed by market research and stakeholder engagement.
This brand, Forever OHIO, reflects the reworked, authentic brand position for Ohio University – which resonates with prospective students, current students, alumni, and the University community alike:
Ohio University doesn’t simply deliver a degree. It offers an experience that becomes a part of who you are and what you’ll be forever.
Learn more about the Forever OHIO brand development in Robin's Ohio Today magazine article.
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In partnership with the Division of Diversity & Inclusion, Robin worked to create and implement the VISIBLE brand, which is centered around uniting the University's work to build an inclusive community. VISIBLE is about shining a light on all of it – the good work, the hard truths, the differences we easily embrace and those that make us uncomfortable, the barriers, the opportunities, and most of all of the people who are or strive to be a part of our Bobcat community.
Robin was also involved in developing of the 'Make Respect Visible' initative that promotes diversity and respect, with expectations for engaging across differences.
