ASU Chief Information Officer Lev Gonick shared the mission of Enterprise Technology remains focused on human-centered experiences, but also challenged colleagues to place “the machine” at the center of strategy.
“We are continuing our commitment to innovation in a way that’s consistent with our principles,” Gonick said. “There is no cookbook for it just yet… (but) what an important and critical role that each of you play in this journey.”
Principled innovation: Innovation done with a purpose
The theme of Engage 2024 was “Innovate. Impact. Inspire.” As such, all three tenets were top of mind for team members.
For Gonick, leading with innovation was intentional.
“Innovation at ASU is the air we breathe,” he said. “It is both a mindset and a way of actually designing, intentionally, the outcomes that we want to pursue. Innovation is not just about shiny new objects. Innovation is about tackling really hard problems and trying to find new ways of going at it.”
Gonick spoke at length during his opening address about the concept of Principled Innovation, which he described as the framework that enables the Enterprise Technology team to responsibly and knowledgeably support communities with cutting-edge digital tools.
“We have dozens of projects and programs underway here, which will differentiate and distinguish ASU. We have an inordinate amount of exciting work underway right now in AI activity, we’re building digital twins as an education program, and all kinds of improvements in ways in which we are leveraging the cloud. All of these are examples of an innovative approach to improve student success,” he said.
Inspiration from Dr. Bridget Burns
Many Enterprise Technology team members left Engage 2024 inspired after Burns delivered her featured keynote speech.
Burns is the founder of University Innovation Alliance, a coalition of public research universities that strives to increase graduation rates and the diversity of those graduates.
Burns said she herself was a higher education success story. Her path from a low-income family and a low high school GPA to her current position is a testament to the power of education.
Her inspiration for her work continues to be students who remind her of her own path.
“They’re the ultimate inspiration,” she said. “Every time you meet a student who’s had a heart-wrenching story, and you see the incredible things they’re working on, and just how much higher education is awakening this broader sense of purpose in them, there’s nothing like it.”
In that spirit, Burns commended ASU and Enterprise Technology’s commitment to upholding the university’s charter, where progress is “measured not by whom it excludes, but whom it includes and how they succeed.”
“Other institutions are watching you, learning from you and emulating you,” she said.
Limitless impact
The expected impact of many of the projects highlighted at Engage is far reaching.
In fact, nearly every pursuit at Enterprise Technology aims to have a positive impact not just on ASU’s campus but also on the broader community.
Erin Carr-Jordan, CEO of the Institute for Digital Inclusion Acceleration (IDIA), said the impact she seeks focuses on equity.
“My hope for impact is radically disruptive,” she said. “It is reaching folks who would have previously been excluded and making sure that all of this stuff that is available in the world of technology, education and workforce, that they’re included and that they are drivers and digital agents of this whole big journey.”
Carr-Jordan’s work with IDIA, a non-profit organization partnered with ASU through the Maricopa County Broadband Initiative, has made great strides in bridging the digital divide. She found being surrounded by like-minded and equally passionate colleagues at Engage 2024 served as a reminder of her greater purpose.
“Being a small cog in a thing that results in that innovation, participation and disruption, that’s really cool,” she said.