I appreciated a comment made recently by a respected colleague who is the Provost at a well-known and highly regarded, private Christian institution. She pointed out that in many areas of higher-education, the pandemic has resulted in students now expecting in-seat courses to be offered online – and, perhaps even more significantly, on-demand. She also made an observation that, while demand is growing, the available resources are unable to keep pace.
These are very astute observations that highlight the rapid change that is occurring in higher-education’s marketplace. As she says, demand is growing. That is an encouraging thought when we are so often reading about enrollment declines, less demand for degrees, a shrinking population in our traditional demographic, associated pricing pressures, untenable student-debt, and more. The question is, why are we reading these things if demand is increasing?
I believe the answer lies in the fact that, like many industries, the pandemic has prompted an increasing share of the market to begin seeking higher-educational services through technology and online offerings. In other words, though demand is increasing, the type of services that are in demand are somewhat unconventional. Frankly, technology and online services is the world that many of our prospective students have grown up in, so it is no surprise that they would expect these types of services when it comes to their education. However, what would have unfolded naturally over the next five to ten years, has been accelerated by the pandemic for parents as well.
By the way, I realize that there is a whole topic around whether traditional-aged students have the discipline and maturity to handle virtual learning. That is outside of the scope of this article, so for now I will just say that there are new technologies and business models quickly evolving that should enable these students and their instructors to perform well together.
Reading between the lines of the comments made by this Provost, the good news is that students are still turning to traditional higher-education institutions. They are placing their expectations there rather than searching for services elsewhere. This can be interpreted to mean that our institutions still carry great credibility and are still the default choice when it comes to professional education and learning. Most students and parents realize that it is preferable to have a degree from a reputable institution on their resume. They also recognize that the residential experience, though in some ways a “right of passage,” is also an important part of the educational process. In other words, technology and online services do not necessarily preclude the residential experience. In fact, they likely enhance it. All of this is why you may have heard me say from time to time that:
The growing demand for education is “ours to lose” if we fail to recognize the trends in the marketplace and align with the growing demands within a reasonable timeframe.
The reality is that today, for the most part, our institutions are simply not set up to accommodate these demands, nor to keep up with the pace at which these market-priorities are now evolving. However, sensible changes can be made in our institutions that will enable them to very effectively address these evolving demands without diminishing their offerings, culture, missional goals, or budgetary models. And, fortunately, there is time. In a worst case scenario, it could even be multiple years. Launching and communicating an appropriate strategic initiative, and demonstrating yearly progress, will build excitement and confidence within the institution’s market. However, in order to safeguard their position in the marketplace, it is important that our institutions get started now and not defer until it is too late.
I think it is safe to say that we all recognize the importance of investing into the core offerings of our institutions – primarily (though not exclusively) in the areas of academics and student life. That investment could include an enhancement of offerings or the venues in which they are offered, increasing faculty, developing collaborative partnerships, enhancing campus and student-life experiences, and much more. We also recognize the importance of pricing in alignment with the market without diminishing profitability. Taking a lesson from other industries that have crossed this bridge sometime in their history, these things are quite possible by leveraging institutionally-based technology in the right way to become scalable in some areas of administration and customer service, and to enable student self-service in certain instances.
While this does not mean a reduction in staff, it does mean reducing the administrative staff-per-student ratio over time as enrollment grows. Not only does that free up funds to make strategic investments, but it does so without reducing the level of service to students and parents. In essence, it provides a pathway for an institution to move from their current business model to one that will accommodate the increasing demands of the marketplace, without exhausting available resources along the way.
This is the topic of a ninety-minute workshop that we deliver free-of-charge to an institution’s executive leadership team. It presents a solution, along with the methodology designed to accommodate the unique situation of each individual institution. Further, it shows how to make the necessary changes without incurring large incremental costs in technology, and staying within the unique budgetary constraints of each institution.
If you would like to know more about the workshop, or would like to schedule a time for us to present it to your leadership team, give me a call. The workshop is free and might just provide answers to some of the challenges that you are facing now and will face in greater measure as time goes on. We can deliver it in person or virtually through a webinar-like format.
You can reach me at 720-233-3227 or at mmc@mikemoroney.com.