Over the last few years, maker technologies, in which I include 3D printing and scanning, virtual and augmented reality, and robotics, have made some of the biggest waves in higher education. The rapid expansion of the academic maker space’s mis… [Read More...]

Choosing the right vendor in Higher Ed IT is essential to providing students, faculty, and staff with the technology and services they need. Selecting the wrong vendor could be disastrous for the longevity of your project, potentially putting you … [Read More...]

In just a few years, we have seen acceptance of public cloud shift fairly dramatically from concern and skepticism to eagerly embracing the opportunities afforded. Five years ago, many of our hosted clients wanted to know that Unicon (and indirect… [Read More...]

Although Higher Ed may be slow to adapt to new tech trends, it can be tough to keep up with every new technology or innovation─that’s where we come in. Let us save time out of your busy schedule with our list of the must-read Higher Ed IT arti… [Read More...]

The success of an IT project in Higher Ed relies heavily on the strength and organization of the team responsible for its completion. That being said, building a dream team of department employees and contractors will not necessarily guarantee tha… [Read More...]

As with any workplace, staff costs can make (or break) your budget. In Higher Ed IT, we are often asked to spin straw into gold; creating the most robust technology environment possible using minimal university resources. One way to produce under … [Read More...]

Sometimes, it can feel like Higher Ed IT moves at a snail’s pace; it can be slow to adopt new technologies, slow to get projects underway and slow to make key decisions on projects that go through multiple departments at an institution. While th… [Read More...]

With the new year in full swing, Higher Ed is busier than ever and it can be difficult to keep up everything going on in the university technology community. If you’re a CIO or IT director looking to get a quick glimpse at the best articles from… [Read More...]

As many of Optimal Partners’ articles point out, Higher Ed is different. My introduction to the field took place at Harvard University when I was working on projects in the area of Research Administration. Needless to say, I had a lot of learnin… [Read More...]

Being a Higher Ed CIO is a complex and often misunderstood job, as anyone who follows the blogs of any Higher Ed CIO can attest to. This misunderstanding has led to a few frequently propagated myths about the profession, myths that can be counterp… [Read More...]