Why Colleges Need CDOs
The enrollment cliff is no longer a distant projection but a present reality, and AI is reshaping how colleges operate. Institutions that treat data as a strategic asset will be better positioned to sustain enrollment and strengthen student success. The case for a Chief Data Officer is not about reducing education to numbers but ensuring accuracy, governance, and transparency so that decisions rest on fact rather than anecdote. Faculty concerns about overreliance on metrics are valid, yet without organized data colleges risk drifting blind into major demographic and technological headwinds. The task is not to replace mission with measurement but to harness information in service of mission. In this context, programs like the CDAIO program I am attending take on greater importance, preparing leaders to bridge data and mission in higher education.
