KOI Direct Recruit Team — Strategy & Initiative Report 2026

00Background

A structural shift in Australian international education.

The federal government's ban on commission-based agent payments has disrupted a 25-year-old international recruitment model. Onshore agents no longer facilitate transfers under incentive structures, so the pipeline once reliably channelled through that network can no longer be taken for granted.

60% of KOI's current recruitment depends on onshore transferring students — the epicentre of this shift. Commissionable recruitment continues as business-as-usual through existing agent channels, but KOI cannot afford to leave that 60% exposed. KOI must own its recruitment future.

A dedicated DRT lets KOI sustain enrolments while cutting commission expenditure — improving net revenue even where volumes adjust modestly. Fewer students recruited at lower cost can outperform higher numbers burdened by commission. Those who move first to internalise recruitment will define the new competitive frontier.

"Reducing agent dependency is not a risk — it is a strategic opportunity to own the student relationship from first enquiry to graduation."

60%EXPOSED

Onshore transfer exposure

60% of recruitment sits in the onshore-transfer segment now hit by the commission ban — the risk the DRT is built to cover.

Agent vs direct — the shift we're driving

Moving enrolment volume from agent-dependent to directly owned channels.

Agent-driven enrolments (today)98%

Direct enrolments (today)1.6%

Marketing's direct target10%+

🎯 By the end of the March 2027 intake

💸

Lower cost

Reduced commission expenditure per enrolment

📈

Higher net revenue

Fewer students at lower cost can outperform commission-heavy volume

🥇

First-mover edge

Internalising recruitment defines the new competitive frontier

↳The Strategy at a Glance

Eight pillars. One owned pipeline.

Our response to the commission ban is anchored across eight initiatives that work together — from team and channels to events, AI and advocacy. Select any pillar to jump to the detail.

👥

Team Structure

A restructured, dedicated Direct Recruit Team.

View detail → 🌏

New Recruitment

Offshore in-country representative model, piloting in Indonesia.

View detail → 🏛️

Open Days

Dual conversion model — offline & virtual.

View detail → 📍

Community Booth

On-ground engagement where students live.

View detail → 🎬

Digital Outsourcing

Specialist for short-form video & growth.

View detail → 📡

Digital Capability

Advancing in-house channels & tools.

View detail → 🤖

AI Smart Live Chat

Always-on AI with DRT human handover.

View detail → 🤝

Alumni & Ambassadors

Lifetime, trust-based recruitment channels.

View detail →

01Pillar One

Team structure — a restructured workflow.

The Marketing team has been restructured around two dedicated specialists forming the Direct Recruit Team — focused entirely on sourcing, engaging and converting prospective students through direct channels.

Aarati Pandey

Direct Student Engagement Specialist

Direct student applications — end-to-end
Marketing Hub phone inquiries
CRM & database management
Off-campus information sessions & community booths
Student enrolment — CoE pipeline

NepalIndiaPakistanSri Lanka

Zendy Dimaculangan

Digital & Outreach Coordinator

Facebook / Instagram social media & ads
Digital advertising campaigns
Off-campus information sessions
OL student enrolment pipeline
Reporting & analytics — to Director Marketing & SEG

PhilippinesAll LATAMSelected markets

1bTask Allocation

Who does what — the DRT workflow.

Filter the full task map by owner or category.

Category	Task	Freq.	Aarati	Zendy

Showing 0 tasks. Source: Direct Recruitment Team.xlsx.

02Pillar Two

New recruitment — an offshore in-country representative model.

With the transfer commission ban reshaping how students are recruited, KOI can no longer rely on the agent-led transfer pipeline. Marketing proposes piloting an offshore in-country representative — commencing with Indonesia — to move from a reactive approach to a proactive, relationship-driven offshore strategy.

📣
Build KOI & KOI-C brand presence through direct engagement with students, schools, institutions and ethical education agents.
🌱
Create awareness before students arrive in Australia — attending events, visiting institutions and running information sessions on the ground.
🔗
Indirectly strengthen confidence and word-of-mouth among existing offshore networks who may later progress to KOI through compliant pathways.
🤝
Identify and onboard reliable new agents, manage existing relationships and support student conversion — without frequent travel from Australia.
🗺️
Provide a cost-effective regional presence that can extend across South-East Asia for diversification and long-term sustainability.

Proposed Candidate

Irfan Sukma

Offshore In-Country Representative

Strong regional recruitment experience with direct background in student recruitment, agency development, market expansion and education-sector partnerships. Current and previous roles with Australian education providers and recruitment platforms position him well for KOI's offshore growth.

Regional Experience

IndonesiaMalaysiaPhilippinesCambodia

Target Markets

★ Indonesia — pilot base Philippines Vietnam

🎓

Closer to studentsDirect, local engagement

🤝

Closer to agentsEthical, managed relationships

🌏

Closer to source marketsOn-the-ground intelligence

🚀

Closer to opportunityEmerging offshore growth

03Pillar Three

Open Days — a dual conversion model.

An always-active funnel pairing on-campus Open Days with a monthly Virtual Open Day — building face-to-face trust, converting warm leads, and reducing dependency on agents as the conversion touchpoint.

🎯Why Open Day?

Build face-to-face trust & brand credibility
Convert warm leads who need in-person reassurance
Reduce dependency on agents as the conversion touchpoint
Showcase KOI's campus, culture & student life directly

📋What to expect

Course & scholarship information sessions
Fast Track Assessment — instant offer feedback
Exclusive incentives & campus tours
Live Q&A and 1:1 counselling

📍Logistics

Frequency: 2–3× per year
Proposed: First week of September 2026 · 2027 TBA
Audience: Prospects, friends & parents of students, walk-ins
Location: KOI Wynyard Green Campus, 11 York St, Sydney NSW 2000

📣How we promote & prepare

Website pop-up screen · CRM/SMS · Spotify ads
Social media & student referral campaigns
Agent office promotion
Branded booth · Admissions on-site for same-day applications

📝 Sample — KOI Open Day (Offline)

Branded Open Day event page; attendee details are captured and fed into the CRM for follow-up.

↗ Click to open full size

🗓Format

Frequency: Monthly — every last Friday, 3:00 PM
Why 3pm: To accommodate different time zones
Audience: Predominantly offshore — onshore students welcome too
Access: Direct enquiries invited via EOI link

📚What's covered

Course info, fees & scholarships
Student support & application checklist
Hybrid learning demo
Live chat Q&A

📣Promotion

All direct enquiries invited via EOI link
CRM campaigns & reminders
Social media advertising

📝EOI capture

Name, email & WhatsApp
Nationality & current location
Course of interest & preferred study mode
Intended intake & referral source

📝 Sample EOI form — KOI Virtual Open Day

Registrants receive their Virtual Open Day invite link automatically; details are logged in the CRM.

↗ Click to open full size

Expected impact → Higher direct applications· Improved offer-to-enrolment conversion· Faster intake filling· Stronger brand visibility

04Pillar Four

Community Engagement Booth — on the ground.

Many prospective direct students live outside the Sydney CBD and can't travel in for counselling. With the commission ban, they no longer receive guidance through traditional agent offices — so KOI Marketing goes to them, meeting students where they live and work.

High-footfall community locations maximise walk-in engagement from untapped student populations, with on-site Admissions support enabling same-day applications.

🧭

1:1 counselling

Course selection & scholarship advice by DRT staff.

🎁

KOI giveaways

KOI koala plush, branded caps & merchandise to draw students to the booth.

🎥

Videos & interviews

Capture on-the-ground content — student vox-pops and short interviews.

🔁

CRM follow-up

Every lead captured is nurtured through the CRM.

Priority locations

Selected from enrolment-database analysis of where direct students live.

📍

Parramatta

Parramatta Central Square

📍

Rockdale

Southern corridor — growing Nepalese community

➕

More TBA

Confirmed via enrolment-database analysis

Session format

Branded booth at high-traffic community & shopping venues · 1:1 counselling · on-site Admissions for same-day processing · collateral with QR codes & scholarship flyers · full CRM follow-up for every lead.

On the ground

ParramattaParramatta Central Square

RockdaleSouthern corridor — Nepalese community

05Pillar Five

Digital media outsourcing — a social media specialist.

KOI manages its digital marketing in-house, working effectively across Facebook and LinkedIn — and these remain central to our strategy. To accelerate short-form video and high-engagement platforms, KOI has engaged an external specialist who works alongside the DRT, focusing on content and platform growth so the team can focus on direct conversion.

🎬

TikTok

Short-form student-life videos, course explainers & viral trends.

📸

Instagram Reels

Behind-the-scenes campus, event highlights & student stories.

👍

Facebook

Event promotion, scholarship updates & community building.

▶️

YouTube Shorts

Open Day recaps, info-session highlights & testimonials.

📎 The specialist focuses exclusively on content creation and platform growth — assisting the DRT to concentrate on direct student conversion. Detailed scope & proposed workflow accompany this submission.

06Pillar Six

Advancing KOI's digital recruitment capability.

Instagram & TikTok are outsourced for trend-based, high-frequency content (Pillar 05). At the same time, KOI's in-house capability is strengthened — especially Facebook and LinkedIn, where internal management already performs well. Tap a channel for what we do now vs how we'll enhance it.

6.1Channels & Tools

The wider toolkit.

🔍

Google

Business profile posts · short activity videos (≤60s) · Google Ads for traffic & leads.

▶️

YouTube

Graduations & testimonials · more Shorts · repurpose Open Day highlights.

✉️

Email Marketing

Campaigns to web, FB & LinkedIn leads · news & student success · students, alumni, prospects & partners.

⬡

Landing Pages

Course-specific pages with detailed info & a direct application CTA. Live: marketinghub.koi.edu.au/master-of-tesol.

🤖

AI Live Chat

On the website & all landing pages · DRT monitors 9am–6pm for high-intent handover. See Pillar 07.

★

Working with KOISS

Capture event content · podcasts with KOISS & students · support the Alumni Network · showcase student experiences.

Combined goal: build an always-on, multi-channel presence that converts cold audiences into direct enrolments — reducing cost-per-acquisition over time.

07Pillar Seven

AI-powered Smart Live Chat.

Upgrade the KOI website live chat with AI capability, integrated with dedicated DRT human oversight during business hours — an always-on assistant with a human at the ready.

🤖 AI Chatbot Layer

24/7 answers on courses, fees & scholarships
Instant FAQ handling — cuts repetitive DRT workload
Smart lead capture (name, course, nationality) before handoff
Seamless escalation to a live DRT agent
CRM-integrated — every chat lead auto-logged

👩‍💼 DRT Live Agent Hours

Dedicated DRT staff monitor all live chats
Service hours: 9:00 AM – 6:00 PM, Mon–Fri
Warm handover from bot to human for complex queries
Real-time conversion — enquiry to application same session
Zero missed direct leads in business hours

Proposed platforms

Zendesk AI / Suite Intercom + Fin AI Agent

Polished chat experience, strong website messenger, multilingual help centre, workflows, inboxes and human handover.

Expected outcome → Faster response times· Higher enquiry-to-application conversion· Zero missed leads, 9am–6pm

08Pillar Eight

Alumni referral & student ambassadors.

Two trust-based channels build a recruitment engine that runs on real student experiences — activating graduates and current students as authentic advocates at a fraction of agent acquisition cost.

🤝

Alumni Referral

Lifetime recruitment channel

Activate KOI graduates as long-term advocates
Structured 'Refer a Student' reward program
Country-based alumni chapters, webinars & events
CRM-integrated referral tracking & DRT follow-up

🎓

Student Ambassadors

Peer-to-peer recruitment

Recruit current students to represent KOI
1:1 nationality matching with prospective students
Campus tours, Open Day support & social engagement
Referral activities that build authentic trust

Expected outcomes: lower acquisition costs and stronger global brand trust.

↳DRT Direct Recruitment Flow

One end-to-end pipeline, owned by KOI.

From first impression to enrolment — every pillar feeds this flow. Tap a stage to see the channels at work.

∑Strategic Advantages

What this delivers for KOI.

🛡️

Covers the 60% exposure

Builds a direct channel to protect the onshore-transfer segment most affected by the ban.

💰

Improves net revenue

Lower commission cost means fewer students can outperform commission-heavy volume.

🌏

Opens offshore markets

An in-country representative builds brand and pipeline across South-East Asia.

🔄

Always-active funnel

Open Days, virtual events, booths and AI chat keep the pipeline running year-round.

🤖

AI-powered efficiency

AI handles 24/7 volume while DRT focuses on high-value conversion 9am–6pm.

🎯

10%+ direct by Mar 2027

A clear, measurable target lifting direct enrolments from 1.6% today.

KOI Direct Recruit Team — building the future of student acquisition.

2026 & Beyond