University Business - September 2012 - (Page 48)

Technology changeS everyThing her is people who get college degrees and go right into a life of politics without having done anything else first. There’s a need to think in specifics, no matter what the topic. And educators, and parents, need to “get these kids out there, you’ve got to stretch these kids”—the geeks of the world. Grandin’s mother did that for her, and just look at her now. Innovate or Else Fundamental change is coming to higher education, says Henry J. Eyring, and rather than something to be feared, this disruptive innovation is necessary for colleges and universities to survive and thrive. Eyring, vice president of advancement at Brigham Young University-Idaho, and coauthor of The Innovative University: Changing the DNA of Higher Education from the Inside Out (2011, Jossey-Bass), discussed the subject in a keynote called “It’s Your College: Innovate or Else.” Institutions need people who understand the its strengths as well as its weaknesses, he said. “How can we provide the help that the institution needs?” The answer, he said, is in disruptive thinking, or finding the best ways to increase innovation within established organizations. Using the example of the nation’s railroads, he illustrated how institutions can adapt to new technologies and thrive. Rail48 | September 2012 roads, he said, faced extinction when new forms of transportation came along to challenge their supremacy in cargo hauling. Using the initials “FPI,” Eyring explained how the railroads came back: • Focus. Figure out what they do very well. In the case of the railroad, its leaders realized no one could beat them when it came to long-haul travel over land. • Partner. The railroad began to work with overseas shippers to find new ways to transport shipping cargo containers easily on rail. • Innovate. Railroad leaders also came up with new switching stations that could move the containers easily from one track to another and even stack them two-deep to reduce cost. The result? The railroads still do longhaul transport across land better than anyone. “They ain’t dead,” Eyring said. Could something similar happen in higher education? Yes, he said, and we’re beginning to see it now with things like the Khan Academy, and more recently with edX. LinkedIn and Facebook also help Eyring’s institution connect students with mentors in their chosen careers throughout the country. Higher education is exploring how to use technology to enhance the way people learn, he said, customized to their own particular learning styles and needs. Eyring likened it to the way Amazon offers book recommendations based on what one has purchased or searched for previously. These advances, he said, “change everything, but don’t destroy everything. They allow colleges and universities to do more of what society needs them to do most.” The Big Apple In the closing keynote, Slate magazine technology columnist Farhad Manjoo spoke on four companies “that will rule your future”—Apple, Google, Facebook, and Amazon. He covered how each one—especially Apple—has a power over people. Take mobile devices, for example. Smartphone and tablet-type devices will be used more than the standard PC in the near future, Manjoo predicts. Apple is one of the top smartphone providers, with its large variety of mobile devices like the iPhone, iPad, and iTouch. These companies “want people to do everything” on mobile devices. With Apple, consumers can buy music and apps, as well as go through other merchants on the web on their Apple mobile device to make a purchase. Then there is the data collected from these companies through the devices. Facebook and Google will collect more data through what a user will “like” on Facebook or search with Google. Recommendations are made for products customers may like after making a purchase universitybusiness.com http://www.universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - September 2012

University Business - September 2012
Contents
Editor’s Note
College Index
Ad Index
Behind the News
Viewpoint
Independent Outlook
Financial Aid
Virtual Viewbooks: Ready? Or Not?
Technology Changes Everything
Connecting Learners, On Campus and Off
The Changing Face of the CIO
Efficiency Greats
The Administrator's Bookshelf
Oceans of Data
Education Innovators
Internet Technology
End Note

University Business - September 2012