Larry D. Lauer

Last week I had the pleasure of working with a group of trustees committed to preserving the values and distinctions of a hundred year old institution. But they also understood that planning for the future will require using new communication tools and adapting to the needs of a generation that grew up with those tools.

We first discussed the increasing power of brand identity. In this digital media world people seem to affiliate with an institution as much for what it stands for and the total experience it delivers (values, culture, traditions, relationships, regional characteristics, consistency, program distinctions, etc.) as for its particular fields of study.

We also discussed how in an information cluttered world an authentic differentiated brand identity can actually achieve greater visibility, as well as greater distinction. And we explored how an authentic brand description can be adapted  to connect with different age groups and market segments, and how each segment will have its own preferred media platforms… some digital and some traditional.

At the heart of this institution’s educational experience has always been face-to-face conversations about social justice, gender, diversity, world religions, church and state, and more. So we discussed how all this can be preserved while adapting to the needs of new generations. Internet searches, easy to access media material, shorter talks in class, teleconferencing with experts from around the world, all can be used while preserving the added value of face-to-face conversations and forums.

What was most impressive about this group was that they could see how a contemporary vision for the future, and new methods of teaching, can remain grounded in its founding mission.