EarlyBirds has some advice for Deans and Vice Chancellors (VCs) of higher education facilities that may help get their growth back on track during the global pandemic. The company realises that all types of businesses have been impacted financially by the ongoing virus crisis and colleges, universities, and other types of higher education facilities are no exception. They want the Deans and VCs of these learning institutions to note that somewhere in the chaos caused by the virus also comes opportunity and disruptive innovation is likely the key to unlocking this opportunity.

EarlyBirds Industry Advisory Board member, Phillip Cenere, says, “So many organisations have been impacted by COVID-19 and one of the most affected sectors has been higher education. In an effort to stop the spread of the virus many universities and colleges stopped holding in-person classes and switched to online delivery or paused conducting learning sessions altogether. Many of these higher education facilities have come up with plans to adapt to operating during a pandemic and would like to see their growth trend upwards again. We here at EarlyBirds believe that prioritising disruptive innovation holds the key to making this a reality. Platforms like our ‘Innovation Ecosystem’ could be the catalyst that helps any type of higher education facility’s enrolment and growth pick up again.”

Mr Cenere, who is also the Managing Director of the education consultancy edXperts, went on to say, "experts tend to agree VCs and Deans of higher education institutions will not see growth in their industry by taking a business-as-usual approach." He also reminded, "despite the problems created by the pandemic education is still a key export market. This is because there remains a strong desire among people of all ages, especially those who have recently graduated from secondary school, to use education as a means to give them more opportunities in life. It’s also true that most universities and other types of higher learning institutions in developed countries have a lot of international students that want to get their education back on track." Mr Cenere said, "when the leaders of higher learning institutions ask themselves what their options are for growth, they would be wise to strongly consider using disruptive technologies to get enrolment trending upwards again."

According to Mr Cenere, "disruptive tech is one that will help a college or university think outside the box to come up with a way to grow again. It basically means that a higher education facility will need a new system to increase enrolment by doing something that has never been done before to attract students. The problem is how do advanced learning centers find a ground-breaking solution that can change enrolment in the future." He says, "often this solution is very hard to come up with in-house and that’s where using EarlyBirds platforms and programs can play a key role in helping higher learning facilities find the breakthrough enrolment solutions they desire."

Leaders of colleges, universities, and other types of higher learning institutions may wonder how EarlyBirds can help them. The answer lies in the effectiveness of their ‘Innovation Ecosystem’. They have created such platforms as their Early Birds Platform. This platform is a dedicated ecosystem that can bring together the leaders of higher education facilities with tech innovators, early adopter leaders, and SME consultants. This then facilitates the ongoing collaboration and exchange of actionable innovation between these parties to come up with a ground-breaking growth solution for a higher learning institution.

Mr Cenere says, "when the EarlyBirds Platform is combined with their Challenger and Explorer programs that is led by Independent SME consultant’s higher education facilities will be able to find the suitable growth solutions they are seeking. The programs proactively solve business challenges with innovative solutions and exposes businesses to the latest disruptive technology solutions."

Leaders of higher education institutions who would like more information about how EarlyBirds can help them grow even under difficult circumstances, can call EarlyBirds or visit https://earlybirds.io/.