Larry D. Lauer

Last week I attended a strategic planning meeting at the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). Those attending described the organization as “the collaborative integration” of professionals in marketing and communication, fund-raising, alumni relations, government affairs… all focused on advancing education.

CASE has long been a truly international organization with offices currently in Washington, London, Singapore, and Mexico City… and now with growing activities in Africa. This planning exercise is taking a new look at the rapidly changing international education landscape.

The arrival of a new CASE president in Washington from Australia, and the appointment of a new international vice president based in London, has made this project particularly timely, relevant and exciting.

It was agreed early in the planning process that CASE’s basic aspirations are to be “bold, agile, and innovative.” And strategic goals were described as producing collaborative thought leaders; identifying, developing, and managing high potential talent; and engaging members worldwide in the planning discussions by making maximum use of technology.

I believe the daily work of these professionals positions them perfectly to scan the scene, recognize strong trends, keep constituents informed, and help their institutions determine the best way forward. In fact, I can see many of them assuming new leadership roles because finding new funding resources, adjusting brand identity, revising marketing plans, cultivating the help of international alumni and parents, and relating to governments in new ways, will be major challenges.

One CASE strategic goal that stood out to me is to act as “the voice of the industry.” This goal is especially relevant to my fellow professionals in marketing and communication. Indeed, we simply must prepare our external constituents (and in many cases even our top executives, administrators, faculty and students) to effectively address growing societal and political threats at home and abroad … as well as to identify and seize the many new and exciting opportunities that internationalization offers.

Just imagine the possibilities of a truly global education industry: Better cross-cultural understanding. Serious world problem solving using university experts. And the effective development of global leaders with a truly international perspective!