Hi there,
I attended the American Council on Education annual meeting last month, and my head was spinning with all of the challenges and changes facing the industry right now. To name a few:
- Political turmoil
- Declining public trust
- Labor issues
- Unclear value narrative; calls for clear ROI
- Shifting student demographics
- Increasing calls for “smaller units of knowing,” i.e., credentials rather than degrees
- Major changes to student search
It’s clear to me that higher ed must transform dramatically within the next 10 years. Yet I fear we’re looking at this pivotal moment like Blockbuster, when we should be thinking like Netflix. The reasons we bundled skills into degree programs split into semesters no longer serve the marketplace, and the public is making that clear. Higher ed needs to adapt its packaging and delivery to meet the market that’s growing—people who need further education to better their lives and careers regardless of their age or year of high school graduation. Instead we cling to the scary “enrollment cliff” of declining numbers of high school graduates, just like Blockbuster clung to its card-carrying in-store rental customers.
I became an adult in the Blockbuster vs. Netflix decade (2000). As I recall, Blockbuster’s big innovation was offering DVDs in addition to VHS tapes. Over 10 years, Netflix launched disruptive innovations:
- Removing friction from the customer experience. In 1999 they offered DVD rental by mail, without a due date, in an easy-to-use pre-paid envelope. They even recommended what movie you should watch next. So much easier than going to the store and paying late fees.
- Streamlining purchase terms. Pay a monthly fee, rather than a per-movie cost. (Can someone tell me why a credit hour is still relevant to consumers?)
- Reinventing packaging and delivery. In 2007 they removed packaging altogether by launching a streaming service that leveraged newly established distribution methods.
In the five years that followed this 10-year innovation, Netflix released original programming (unheard of outside of TV networks and premium cable) and enhanced their personalized recommendation approach on the streaming platform. Over time, they developed niche content serving the needs of unique segments of their audience. Meanwhile, Blockbuster filed for bankruptcy 10 years after laughing at the Netflix business model.
Netflix disrupted the industry with new packaging, delivery, and ultimately a new product because it centered on the experience of the customer. It creates original programming based on what customers consume or search for. It’s not wistfully drawing from memories of Blockbuster for inspiration in the name of tradition or asking employees at legacy media companies what they should do. It’s creating and curating content centering on Black lives, the LGBTQ+ community, Asian creators, Latin America, and more—with over 4,000 personalized genres on the platform. Coincidentally, that’s about how many colleges and universities there are in the United States.
This is our Netflix moment. What are you willing to do that’s radically different from the status quo and your competitors to deliver a product that better meets the needs of students in 2025, 2030, and beyond? I believe the answer lies within our current and future learners. All we need to do is listen.
.png?upscale=true&width=320&upscale=true&name=My%20project-1%20(18).png)
