Higher Ed

How Policies Delayed the Adoption of Cloud Solutions
We often think that internal processes or business decisions influence an institution to choose a cloud solution over on-premises software. After all, cloud solutions are cost-effective, reliable, and almost always available and comply with local security and data protection regulations. Despite the many advantages, challenges exist for cloud solutions. Adopting the Patriot Act in 2006 ... How Policies Delayed the Adoption of Cloud Solutions Read More
What is the Role of Technology in Delivering Postsecondary Value?
The question of the value of postsecondary education has increasingly become top of mind for many people, especially given rising tuition costs and the impact of COVID-19 on college students. For example, the Gates Foundation and others have devoted much effort to defining “postsecondary value” and how institutional leaders might deploy strategies to improve it ... What is the Role of Technology in Delivering Postsecondary Value? Read More
When Do Leaders Retire Their Existing LMS?
Those interested in education technology often want to get insight into when institutional leaders are likely to replace their technological solutions to make better predictions about future trends, or inform sales and marketing efforts. The most common approach to gain this understanding is to look at the average time between acquisitions and retirements of products ... When Do Leaders Retire Their Existing LMS? Read More
Three Enrollment Trends Impacting Education Technology Markets
Where students go, what they study, and how they learn impact edtech markets. This post focuses on three trends in undergraduate enrollment that are unfolding across US higher education and how those trends will impact specific education technology segments. Big Schools Are Getting Bigger. The higher education landscape, through the lens of the number of ... Three Enrollment Trends Impacting Education Technology Markets Read More
Was Christensen Right?
Known for his disruptive innovation theory, Clayton Christensen said in February 2013, “15 years from now, maybe half of the universities will be in bankruptcy… including state schools.” Four years later, in 2017, he even claimed it would take less than a decade, “probably nine years,” for this to happen. At the time, to support his idea, he mentioned ... Was Christensen Right? Read More
How School Closures Impacted Anthology’s Client Base
Last week, James and I attended Anthology Together, where I got the chance to meet with some Anthology executives, clients and service providers. During one of these meetings, I had an interesting discussion on school closures and their impact. When I returned to my hotel room, I looked into Anthology’s clients to better understand the situation. ... How School Closures Impacted Anthology’s Client Base Read More
Another Update on the Definition of (Tech) Peer Institution
Many institutional leaders seek to understand which technology other similar institutions have implemented before partnering with a specific vendor. In a previous post, we revisited our approach to determine institutional peers, intending to inform this institutional decision-making, leveraging many variables from the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), such as institutional sector, enrollment size, etc. But can ... Another Update on the Definition of (Tech) Peer Institution Read More
Gaining Deeper Insight into Implementation Trends
Most people love looking at implementation trends. For example, many of us pore over trends, such as how our favorite sports teams have done over the past ten games or how the stock market has performed this year. Those of us in the world of education analyze student success metrics (retention rates, etc.), institutional revenues, ... Gaining Deeper Insight into Implementation Trends Read More
Justin’s Thoughts on Ellucian Live 2023
Almost a month has passed since my return from Ellucian Live 2023. I am still processing everything I saw and the announcements that Ellucian made. I must be honest: Ellucian Live 2023 was my first Ellucian conference. My first impression: it was big, almost as big as Educause. A little over 5,000 participants gathered in New ... Justin’s Thoughts on Ellucian Live 2023 Read More
Understanding Technology Bundles
We often receive questions from institutional leaders and vendors about which bundles of technology institutions have implemented. Institutional leaders ask this question to inform decision-making about which technologies to implement. Vendors often want to gain insight into these bundles to understand how institutions arrange their technologies and see where their products might fit. But is ... Understanding Technology Bundles Read More
Non-Degree Programming and the Second SIS
Following our December post on product implementations and online learners in the SIS market, we received feedback that we didn’t mention the solutions to manage students’ journeys through non-degree programs outside the “traditional SIS” model. We wrote about these solutions in January, calling them continuing education SIS. In this post, we will explore the continuing education SIS ... Non-Degree Programming and the Second SIS Read More