Working Together to Strengthen Institutional Resilience, Efficiency, and Cybersecurity
A Moment of Reckoning
Higher education reached a quiet breaking point. On private college campuses across Virginia, leaders watched costs climb, cybersecurity threats accelerate, regulations intensify, and expectations for modern digital services outpace what small and mid‑sized institutions could deliver alone. Traditional belt‑tightening had run its course; incremental cuts could not fix systemic pressure. What these institutions needed was not a smaller version of the same approach, but a different way to work together.
How the Conversation Began
The Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV) already knew collaboration could work. Years earlier, its members had launched a shared employee benefits program and a multi‑employer retirement plan, proving that joint solutions could lower risk and deliver value at scale. Building on that confidence, presidents began asking a new question: could the same spirit of collaboration strengthen information technology across their campuses? At the direction of the presidents, CICV President Chris Peace initiated a structured process to find an experienced partner and explore what was possible. Moran Technology Consulting was selected to guide the CICV IT Collaboration Journey.
Reframing the Goal
CFOs and CIOs from participating schools formed an IT Collaboration Steering Committee and committed to act as co‑owners of the work. Early conversations surfaced a pivotal insight: cost avoidance is an outcome, not the north star. Savings would matter, but they could not be the value proposition. The group reframed the goal around capacity and resilience: shared services would expand access to expertise, reduce risk, improve compliance, and strengthen service quality across institutions. With that shift, collaboration moved from a savings exercise to a strategic investment.
The Principles that Kept Everyone at the Table
- Deliver tangible early wins to build momentum and confidence—practical outcomes like shared cybersecurity assessments and a common IT service catalog.
- Allow flexible participation so institutions can join when ready; inclusivity sustains the consortium over time.
- Invest in trust and relationships. Psychological safety among CIOs and IT teams made transparent conversations—and tough decisions—possible.
- Maintain transparency through clear cost models, open communication, and visible governance structures.
These principles kept the initiative grounded while leaving room to grow.
From Idea to Institution: A Three‑Act Journey
Act I — Establish the Core
The work began with listening. Moran convened workshops, engaged stakeholders, and surveyed institutional needs. The immediate objective was clarity: understand where collaboration could create the most benefit. The result was a shared picture of priorities and a baseline of trust among leaders who were committing to solve problems together.
Act II — Build the Scaffolding
With shared priorities in hand, the group constructed the structures that durable collaboration requires. They stood up an IT governance model to clarify decisions. They launched *Building Bridges*, a professional community designed for shared learning and mutual support. They created a common IT service catalog to standardize language and expectations. And they conducted structured cybersecurity assessments—including GLBA reviews and tabletop exercises—to map risks and strengthen controls. None of this was flashy. All of it would last.
Act III — Turn Collaboration into Operations
Trust and infrastructure in place, the consortium moved from planning to doing. Shared cybersecurity services began to mitigate risk and improve compliance across campuses. Participation in *Building Bridges* grew to more than seventy practitioners each month, signaling cultural change as much as operational progress. Teams continued to explore joint opportunities in purchasing, security, and technology—each initiative another proof point that collaboration could deliver value none of them could realize alone.
A Governance Model that Scales with Ambition
To keep momentum without losing clarity, the collaboration adopted a flexible, multi‑layered governance model. An IT Collaboration Steering Committee set direction. A Data & Information Security Collaboration Committee focused on risk and compliance. Purchasing Collaboration Committees and service‑specific working groups engaged practitioners closest to the work. The structure allowed new services to be added without reinventing how decisions were made.
What the Work Made Possible
Operational Capacity
Participating institutions reduced duplication, lowered per‑institution software and service costs, and—most importantly—gained access to specialized expertise they could not build alone.
Risk & Compliance
Shared frameworks, strengthened cybersecurity posture, and consistent documentation made audits more predictable and defenses more robust.
Talent & Well‑Being
Shared services opened access to specialized staff, reduced burnout for thinly stretched IT teams, and cultivated communities of practice that accelerated learning.
Innovation
By experimenting together, participating institutions have the potential to adopt new technologies faster and with less risk, piloting services collectively before scaling what worked.
What Leaders Learned Along the Way
- Be patient and deliberate; rushing undermines trust and staying power.
- Select leaders who think beyond their institution; collaboration demands a consortium mindset.
- Build structures designed to endure; governance and documentation should outlast any one person.
- Centralize coordination to provide continuity, reduce friction, and keep efforts aligned.
The Road Ahead
Shared services do not dilute institutional identity—they protect it. By gaining scale and resilience together, colleges can focus scarce resources on the mission‑critical work that defines who they are. The CICV experience shows that with intentional governance, trust‑building, and a phased strategy, collaboration becomes a durable competitive advantage.
Take the First Step
- Start the conversation with peer institutions—presidents, CFOs, and CIOs—about shared challenges and common ground.
- Ask your teams to assess gaps where shared services could expand capability, reduce cost, or lower risk.
- Commit to collaborative governance; appoint leaders who will advocate for the collective good.
- Invest in early wins—pilot a shared assessment, a joint procurement, or a security tool that raises everyone’s baseline.
- Champion the approach at the cabinet and board level as a strategic imperative, not just an IT initiative.
- Begin now. Waiting for perfect conditions only raises the cost of catching up.
The Council of Independent Colleges in Virginia (CICV) was founded in 1971 and currently operates as Virginia Private Colleges, a non-profit 501(c)(6) organization representing 28 accredited nonprofit independent colleges and universities in Virginia. https://cicv.org/
Moran Technology Consulting helps higher education leaders navigate complex technology decisions and institutional change. Our expert and trusted vendor-neutral advisors support strategy, planning, and execution across organizations, systems, data, identity, and security with practical sustainable solutions. As an employee-owned firm, Moran has partnered with more than 360 higher education institutions in the U.S., Canada, and beyond for over 20 years. https://morantechnology.com/