This presentation was used as a discussion catalyst at a Boston
College seminar. Portions of this presentation were modified by John
Gallaugher from original by Blake Ives. Notes on some slides were
also added by Gallaugher. To view notes, select ‘Notes Pages’ from
‘View’ menu. Any errors are entirely attributable to Gallaugher.
Original notice for Blake’s outstanding work follows...
Power point presentation describing the technology driven threats to
business education marketplace. Includes auto timings. Can be used
or modified by others, with acknowledgement to Blake Ives and
Center for Virtual Organization and Commerce.
Original Presentation Available at:
http://isds.bus.lsu.edu/cvoc/projects/virtualeducation/html/
Internet-Based Education:
Opportunity, Threat, Fad
John Gallaugher
Jim Gips
Pete Wilson
A discussion catalyst for the Boston College Excellence in Teaching Seminar Series
Related Materials at: http://www2.bc.edu/~gallaugh/neted.html
Portions of this presentation were liberally adopted from an earlier work by Blake Ives of
LSU. See the great work he & others are doing at CVOC (the Center for Virtual
Organizations & Commerce) at:
http://isds.bus.lsu.edu/cvoc/projects/virtualeducation/html/ [ESC to exit]
The Internet is Rewiring Society
and Redesigning Industry
How will it disrupt the
B-School Markets?
“You know, you're in an industry which is
worth hundreds of billions of dollars and
you have a reputation for low productivity,
high cost, bad management, and no use of
technology. You're going to be the next
health care: a poorly managed nonprofit
industry which was overtaken by the profitmaking sector.”
Anonymous entrepreneur as quoted by
Arthur Levin in the NY Times
Market Snapshot
• Adult Education is a $225-300 billion a year
business
– By 2002, Exec. Ed. will be a $7.1-billion industry
• Web-based learning will surpass 5 million
users by 2002
Users of Web-Based Training
6,000,000
5,000,000
4,000,000
3,000,000
2,000,000
1,000,000
0
1999
2000
2002
“Universities won't survive. The
future is outside the traditional
campus, outside the traditional
classroom. Distance learning is
coming on fast.”
Peter Drucker
“I think it [online education] is going to
be the joke of the 21st century. I don't
see anything that these people are
offering that you can't get better on
Carole S. Fungaroli, Adjunct Prof. of
campus”
English, Georgetown
“We strongly believe in the superiority
of facilities-based schools”
Andy Rosenfield – UNext.com
The Question is Not:
Is Virtual Education Better than
Traditional Teaching?
The Questions Are:
Is Virtual Education Improving Faster
and at What Rate?
Will it be Good Enough for Our
Customers?
Managing Sustaining Technologies
As we currently provide
Quality
Of
Education
As our current students expect (we hope)
Yesterday
Today
Tomorrow
“Breakthroughs” in Technology
for Classroom Education
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Dustless Chalk
Text Book
White Board
Overhead Projector
Telescoping Pointer
Light Dimmer
Laser Pointer
PowerPoint ???
Breakthroughs in Technology for
Non-Traditional Education
•
•
•
•
•
•
Ubiquitous Web Access and Use
Bandwidth
Display Quality
Multimedia
Collaboration Technologies
Economies of Scale
Managing Disruptive Technologies
As we currently provide
Quality
Of
Education
As our current students expect (we hope)
When
Yesterday
Today
Tomorrow
?
The Question is Not:
Is virtual education better for
our students?
The Questions Are:
•For whom is it better?
•Who is serving them well?
Centers of Innovation
• More than one-third of US Universities already
offer some sort of accredited degree online.
– By 2002 estimates are 4 out of 5 will.
• Peterson's 1997 Distance Learning guide listed
762 CyberSchools
• The players, models, and offerings are diverse
– Traditional Players
– Alliances
– New Rivals
Geographically Fragmented Industry
But for How Much Longer
Brand Extension
A ubiquitous inexpensive distribution
channel permits taking an existing
brand into new markets.
"We are a reasonably small
university stuck in a very expensive
real estate site in the middle of
London with few or no possibilities
of expansion."
Dean of the London School of Economics
Substitute London for Boston
Traditional Players
Premium Prices for
Premium Brands
AACSB Approved
Online MBA
Early Action Students Take Online Classes for
Credit Before Setting Foot on Campus
Alliances & Innovators
Founder of Reel.com
Partners with Real Universities
Using our facilities
for Dual Degree Net Offering
Graduate Telecom Courses
Targeted at 30,000 IEEE Members
Morningside
Ventures
For Profit Divisions
Creating a CyberUniversity
with Leading HigherEd Brands
Partners in creating an
Executive MBA for Corporate Teams
Development, Distribution, and Sales Partnerships
Boston, MA
Strange
Bedfellows
Announces an Online
Journal on Virtual
Education
With a Provider of
Online Education
New Rivals
Geeks
Content Changing too
Fast for Traditional
Education
Book
Publishers
Harvard Law Professors Rebuked for
Taping 10 Hr. Lecture for Kaplan’s Concord U.
“We always thought our new
competition was going to be
'Microsoft University'. We were
wrong. Our competition is our
own faculty.”
President of an ‘elite Eastern University, quoted in the NY Times
“E-Commerce Comes to the Quad” Feb, 13, 2000
The First
Accredited Virtual
University
The AAUP
Goes Crazy
Over 8,000
online students
paying
$1,460/course
Some May Fail...
Struggling
Efforts?
The Internet
has Changed the
Players
The Internet
has Disrupted
the Rules
Products Under Siege?
vulnerability
Highest?
Boston College
US News
Program
Rank
Part-Time MBA
19
Full-Time MBA
40
Undergrad. Business Programs
32
Among National Universities
39
So What Do We Do?
• Run down the same path
– undercapitalized
– competing on ‘church’ time
• Do we have underutilized (latent) sources of
competitive advantage?
– CEO lecture series
– voraciously loyal alumni
• Shall we experiment? If so, how?
Cultivate, Encourage, &
Provide Resources for
Life-Long Learning
Align IT: Link IT to B-School Strategic Plan
or
IT Impact: Establish an IT-Enabled Mission
IMPACT: New Markets
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Managing a Disruptive Technology
Target Non-Traditional Customers
Establish Arms-Length Innovation Center
Focus on Distinctive Competencies
Seek out Distribution Partner(s)
Partner with Faculty
Look for Economies of Scale / Versioning
ALIGN: Traditional Students
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Provide ubiquitous access
Strive for best practice in online support
Acquire library of knowledge tools
Motivate their use
Integrate technology in functional areas
Use IT-related cases & examples heavily
Use WWW for Marketing, Alumni, Student
portfolios - give stuff away.
Let the Conversations Begin!
[ESC to exit]