If higher education could learn anything from the companies in Silicon Valley, it’s the power of the user.
The University of Chicago Booth School of Business last week opened its 59th Annual Management Conference with a keynote panel on “The Economics of Social Media.” And while panelists didn’t specifically address issues specific to higher education, the insights offered couldn’t be more applicable.
Panelist Rishad Tobaccowala, VivaKi’s chief innovation and strategy, spent part of last week touring tech companies and shared with the panel three observations of successful companies operating in Silicon Valley. They included:
Fixation on the end user
Successful Silicon Valley companies are obsessed with the end user and driven to enhance a user’s experience notwithstanding the costs, Tobaccowala said. They recognize the future of these social startups rests with consumers, not the businesses themselves.
Audacious long-term plans
These same successful companies also make “audacious long-term plans.” They draft lengthy plans for their products … and they aren’t simple plans. It’s an optimistic future, yet a necessary one to survive Silicon Valley and claim success.
Don’t care about Wall Street
Wall Street often plays a heavy hand in the success of most big companies. Those in social media circles don’t seem to care. The most successful Silicon Valley companies, Tobaccowala said, “don’t give a damn about Wall Street.” Instead, they bring their focus back to the experience of the end user.
The result is a social media revolution upending the way people interact with businesses and each other. “People have always wanted to connect and create,” Tobaccowala said, “and now they can connect and create without technology getting in the way.”
Imagine if higher education could operate with the same aggressive energy.
Most colleges and universities claim to put the end users, or students, first. The reality is more challenging. Wall Street gets in the way.
Envision a university that doesn’t give a damn about its U.S. News & World Report rankings or the number of stories it places in the national media. Picture a school that doesn’t care what helicopter parents have to say and ignores state lawmakers who politicize education.
Instead, imagine a university that fixates on its students and everything it can do to enhance the learning experience. Silicon Valley wouldn’t be the only one claiming success.
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