Beyond the Ivory Tower

S1E8 The Strategic Plan Problem

Your strategic plan might be polished, inspiring, and endorsed by everyone, and still be doing almost nothing. We start with a simple challenge: if most colleges list the same priorities, can any of…

S1E7 What The NFL And Women’s Sports Can Teach Higher Education About Growth

The most dangerous assumption in higher education right now is that demand is gone. A better question is whether demand is hidden, suppressed by friction, and made invisible by how we package,…

S1E6 The Talent War Universities Don’t Realize They’re In

A 19-year-old with a camera and a comment section can shape how students think about money, careers, and even identity faster than a world-class faculty. That idea sounds outrageous until you look at…

S1E4 Does Higher Ed Have to Build New Things to Grow?

Higher ed growth shouldn’t feel like digging a brand-new well every time we want to expand, yet that’s exactly how many colleges and universities operate: launch another program, rebuild another…

Why Learner Lifetime Value Changes What an Alma Mater Should Be

S1E3 What If Higher Ed Learned Before It Committed?

Universities aren’t slow because people inside them don’t care. They’re slow because they’re built to protect expertise, quality, and legitimate process, and that operating design makes fast change…

S1E2 What Higher Ed Leaders Can Learn From the Trust Collapse

Trust in institutions hasn’t just declined.It has collapsed.In this episode of Beyond the Ivory Tower, I explore what that collapse actually means for higher education and why most institutions are…

S1E1 Introducing Beyond the Ivory Tower

Imagine a room full of highly experienced university leaders.There are millions of dollars on the line. Entire academic programs. The futures of students.Everyone has data. Everyone has strong…