Calls to adopt proactive advising as a student success strategy are common, but evidence on what this entails is scarce. We present results from a national survey on the conceptualization and institutionalization of proactive advising at four-year U.S. colleges and universities. Examining differing views among advisors and administrators, we identify advising practices, implementation strategies, and technologies deemed absent but necessary to institutionalize proactive advising. Through multilevel modeling, we estimate that absent-but-needed implementation strategies have the greatest effect on respondent impression of institutionalization, and that the effects of absent-but-needed technologies depend on respondent role. Summarizing findings from regression and content analyses, we propose a comprehensive definition of proactive advising and recommend successful institutionalization through coordinated rather than decentralized efforts.