Case Study: ThoughtExchange Helps Reshape Hiring Strategies at Springfield Public Schools
- Credible
- Feb 17
- 3 min read
This case study was written by Credible’s Head Consultant, Uju, during her time at ThoughtExchange. It showcases her approach to customer storytelling, capturing how Springfield Public Schools used employee insights to craft an authentic hiring campaign that tripled email clickthrough rates and nearly eliminated a 50–75 position custodial deficit.
Springfield Public Schools (SPS) is the largest school district in Missouri, serving more than 24,500 students. A pillar of learning and academic excellence since the 1800s, SPS is deeply committed to shaping the next generation through dedicated staff and a values-driven educational community.
THE CHALLENGE
Navigating Unprecedented Staffing Shortages
Like many school districts across the United States, SPS was facing unprecedented staffing shortages that required innovative thinking to overcome. The district needed to attract passionate individuals who understood the importance of their roles in shaping students’ lives.
Ren Luebbering, Coordinator of Marketing & Digital Strategies at SPS, knew the team’s challenge lay in crafting a hiring campaign message that would resonate with potential employees who aligned with the district’s vision. But first, she needed to understand — in her colleagues’ own words — what drew them to working at SPS.
THE APPROACH
Turning to ThoughtExchange for Employee Insights
Using ThoughtExchange, Ren engaged with the core teams facing the highest turnover rates and most immediate recruitment needs: the custodial, food services, and transportation departments.
Her Exchange posed a simple but powerful question: “Why do you work for SPS?” To spread the word and ensure accessibility for team members without regular computer access, Ren included a QR code linked to the Exchange on posters across the district. Team leaders also encouraged staff to participate on school computers before or after their shifts, emphasizing the value of their voices.
As the responses rolled in, Ren was pleasantly surprised by the consistent themes that emerged. The thoughts weren’t about wages or paid time off — they centered around a sense of belonging, the value of time spent with family, and the meaningful impact their roles had on students’ lives.
With these insights, Ren crafted messages for the district’s hiring campaign that authentically reflected employees’ positive associations with SPS. Whether it was accommodating family schedules or providing the opportunity to celebrate holidays with loved ones, the campaign’s messaging was genuine and compelling.
THE RESULTS
From Insights to Tangible Results
3x Email Clickthrough Rate | ~95% Custodial Vacancies Filled | 4-Year High Bus Driver Staffing |
The results of the hiring campaign were astounding:
The clickthrough rate for emails tailored to applicants in SPS’s hiring database tripled.
The team’s Facebook ad cost-per-click decreased.
Organic Facebook posts drove significant traffic to a landing page used to hire nutritional services staff.
The custodial department, previously grappling with a deficit of 50 to 75 positions, was reduced to just five vacancies.
SPS reached its highest number of bus drivers in the last four years.
The key to these successes? Strategic collaboration across the human resources, transportation, and communications departments, paired with the powerful messaging developed by engaging with staff members through ThoughtExchange.
And it hasn’t stopped there. The team at SPS continues to utilize ThoughtExchange to build a stronger, more unified educational community that thrives on shared values and aspirations.
"Instead of spending significant resources to host a traditional focus group, we were able to conduct an informal focus group with ThoughtExchange. Employees anonymously shared responses that helped craft authentic, effective ad copy that fuelled a successful recruitment marketing campaign. ThoughtExchange’s dynamic rating tool, as well as intuitive data-driven reports, helped us understand the why behind our employees’ work, encouraging more support staff to eventually join the team."
REN LUEBBERING, Coordinator of Marketing & Digital Strategies
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