How online learning can boost innovation, revenue and recruitment

Maintaining a reputation for excellence

Professor Sir Steve West started the conversation by framing online learning as a true addition to a university’s excellence: “We've got extraordinary universities that have done amazing things for decades, sometimes centuries. We cherish that reputation. We really kind of want to lean into it. Want to protect it, we want to enhance it.”

A key part of that is understanding that online learners are not simply campus students studying at a distance. They are a fundamentally different audience. At UWE Online the average learner is 37, with 94% in work, and many have caring responsibilities. This changes everything. Universities cannot copy campus practices and expect them to work online. The entire student journey - how courses are marketed, how applications are designed, how admissions and support are handled, and how learning is delivered - needs to be rebuilt around adults who learn flexibly, often asynchronously, and across different time zones. Institutions that succeed are the ones that recognise this difference and redesign their operating models around it.

Understanding the why

The panel also stressed the importance of having a clear purpose as the foundation of any online strategy. Leaders need to be able to answer “Why are we doing this?” in a way that resonates with staff and aligns with the institution’s mission. When the motivation is only to generate extra income, resistance grows and progress stalls. But when the purpose is linked to widening access, lifelong learning, global reach, or serving new groups of learners, it becomes easier to build momentum and make coherent decisions. A strong sense of purpose also prevents the instinct to copy competitors and instead encourages universities to build online offerings that reflect their own strengths, values, and identity.

UWE Bristol’s experience highlighted how transformative the right partnership can be. Early attempts to build online programmes in-house led to small cohorts and limited growth, largely because the team tried to replicate the campus experience online and lacked the capability to scale. Bluntly, Professor Sir West said, “we hadn’t paid enough attention to the market.” Working with Skilled Education allowed UWE to accelerate development, tap into specialist expertise, avoid common pitfalls, and bring new perspectives into the organisation. Crucially, UWE and Skilled Education operate as one team, with trust, shared purpose, and a strong understanding of the university’s ethos. This approach has helped shift culture, build capability, and bring academic and professional staff into a more agile way of working.

Move with pace

The conversation also reflected on the cultural and operational shifts needed for online learning to thrive. Universities need to move at the pace of the market rather than at the speed of traditional academic cycles. This involves shortening programme development timelines, streamlining bureaucratic processes, and raising service standards - especially in admissions - so that decisions and communication meet the expectations of learners in a competitive global environment. Leadership plays a crucial role in modelling the openness, decisiveness, and adaptability needed to establish online learning as a mainstream part of the institution.

Looking ahead, demand for lifelong learning is accelerating across sectors and industries. This is opening opportunities not only for degrees but also for micro-credentials, short courses, modular learning, and rapid upskilling. If universities do not step confidently into this space, other providers will. The message for leaders was clear: understand your purpose, design for a distinct audience, build the right partnerships, and treat online learning as a strategic pillar for long-term growth and relevance.