Strategy & global reach
Fresh ideas from outside the sector, partners abroad, and the big structural choices ahead.
England's 18-year-old population peaks around 2030. The university brands that survive the decline are being built now.
After a decade of growth, England's 18-year-old population starts a long decline in the 2030s, and America's has already peaked. In a shrinking market, recruitment becomes a contest of reputation, and brand building takes years to pay back.
24 October 2026 · 2 min read
A third of English universities are in deficit. Your brand architecture is about to be tested.
Mergers, groups and shared services are moving from boardroom contingency to reality. Each one is a brand decision as much as a financial one, and most universities haven't prepared for it.
23 October 2026 · 3 min read
The best reputation ideas for universities aren't coming from universities
Hospitality, consumer brands and sport solved many of higher education's reputation problems years ago. Universities would move faster if they looked outside the sector more often.
13 October 2026 · 3 min read
Your international partners are your reputation abroad
Branch campuses, joint degrees and transnational partnerships are growing fast. In many markets they're the first, and sometimes only, experience people have of your university.
6 October 2026 · 2 min readEpisodes on this topic.
University Mergers Will Test Your Brand: Are You Ready?
A third of English universities are in deficit, and Kent and Greenwich have just become the UK's first university group.
23 October 2026 · 4:21
Your International Partners Are Your Reputation Abroad
For a student in Kuala Lumpur, Dubai or Hanoi, your partner is your university.
18 October 2026 · 4:32
The Best University Reputation Ideas Come From Outside the Sector
Higher education is very good at learning from itself, which is also why so many strategies look alike.
18 October 2026 · 4:25