Several years before the pandemic, I was in a regular meeting with University of Georgia President Jere Morehead when our vice president for government affairs relayed a conversation with a key supporter—an entrepreneur excited about Blockchain. It wasn’t a formal pitch, but it sparked a discussion: Should we explore Blockchain for transcripts? Could Bitcoin be a future payment method for tuition?At the time, Blockchain was everywhere—on stage, in headlines, and in every vendor pitch—but based on past experience with hype cycle peaks, I expressed reservations. The tools were immature, the use cases speculative, and the chances of meaningful, near-term impact for our community felt low. Investing limited resources that early would likely yield little payoff and come at the expense of the strategic priorities we all agreed were urgent and important. We chose to hold off, and many years later, that decision has held up—Blockchain and crypto remain niche in higher education.In today’s Dispatch, we explore how CIOs can navigate the tension between innovation and resilience—when it makes sense to consider investing in emerging technologies, and when a more prudent, cautious approach better serves strategic goals.

Episodes

Balancing Caution and Innovation