Higher Education: Examining the Themes of Transformation, Resilience and the Common Good
By Kim Fisher
EDUCAUSE 2021 is underway and while I’m not there personally this week, I’m watching closely what is rolling through Twitter with the hashtag #EDU21. As always, our great higher education community benefits when those attending post glimpses of what they see. It’s always an important conference, but I have to think that any talk about the future of higher ed and how IT can anticipate institution needs has never been more important.
EDUCAUSE picked three key themes to focus on this year and they align perfectly to the conversations I’ve been having with Higher Ed CFOs. Let’s quickly touch on the themes and what my #highered customers at Allitix are telling me.
Transformation: This theme includes the words “Digital Transformation” which are well worn by now, but it also brings “Innovation” and “Cultural, Personal and Organizational Change.” Innovation and change are what CFOs are talking about. I’m hearing presidential level review of the institution and its role in a community, a region and in the world. What programs do we need to change or add? What do we want to be known for in the next 2-3 decades? What should our student experience look like and what do we need to do to get there? Then CFOs embrace the challenge of “resourcing” transformation. It’s exciting to hear first-hand about their conversations around campus that help them prioritize how to fund that transformation.
Resilience: I love the words under the category of Resilience. In part, it’s because these words mean different things to a CFO versus a CIO or Provost and that’s why it’s so important that they all sit at the same table and bring their perspective to the conversations. The words “Recovery, Continuity, Sustainability, Adaptability and Affordability” so perfectly represent the challenge higher ed leaders face. In my work with CFOs, all these items are vital but Adaptability and Affordability are what I think CFOs wrestle with most and where the power of financial models and scenarios comes into play. While the CIO works to ensure that the technology is in place to give the institution adaptability to meet every student, staff and faculty on every device, CFOs are determining how to make the institution itself adaptable to the demands of society in a timely fashion, the changing expectations of students and parents on the value of education and how to remain affordable in the short-term and long-term as the enrollment cliff draws closer.
My takeaway? When Allitix works with CFOs in higher ed, CFOs tell me they become even more aware of the drivers and levers that will impact the future in 3 years and in 10 years. The goal is to keep adapting models so that all leaders at the table have a look out into the future and can understand those drivers and levers. Scenario planning empowers strategic decisions.
Common Good: The role higher ed plays in changing the world for the greater good of the future is why I am so passionate about this field and so privileged to partner with its leaders. We must raise learners (students, faculty and staff and the community around all of us) to value and take responsibility for all items under this theme. DEI, Social Justice, Accessibility… all of these items in this theme mean we embrace each other as valuable humans in society. We seek to bring the best out of every student and every employee. We teach them to impact the world around them. We work with deep integrity. That integrity is why I chose to come to Allitix. I trust my peers at Allitix to empower my peers in higher ed to achieve the lofty goals in this category. In this mission, we must all work together.
For higher ed to be ready for change at the pace the world is demanding, we must be looking forward into the coming decade and anticipating the change. Let’s talk scenario planning today and what we, at Allitix, can do to help.
Higher education IT is facing a sea change. Said in a meeting: we're no longer in local markets, we're in a national market. Attrition is high and salaries are going up. Those who wish to retain staff are fast embracing remote and hybrid work. #edu21