General Sessions

3:30 PM - 4:30 PM

Opening Keynote
(Location: International Ballroom)

Scaling Online & Building the Online Enterprise

Bharat N. Anand

Bharat N. Anand is the Henry R. Byers Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School, and the Senior Associate Dean and faculty chair of HBX, the school’s digital learning initiative that he helped create.

Professor Anand is an expert in digital strategy and corporate strategy. He created Harvard Business School’s first executive program on digital strategies for media companies. He has written over fifty articles and case studies, many in the top journals in economics, strategy, and marketing. His research and case writing has received various awards, and his work has been profiled in numerous media outlets. He has served as faculty head for the required strategy course in the MBA program, and currently serves as faculty chair of various other executive programs at the school.

Professor Anand received his B.A. in economics from Harvard College magna cum laude, and his PhD in economics from Princeton University. He is a recipient of the Greenhill Award for outstanding contributions to Harvard Business School. He has advised leading organizations and entrepreneurs worldwide. He is a renowned teacher, and a two-time winner of the “best teacher award” at Harvard Business School. 

His book, The Content Trap: A Strategist’s Guide to Digital Change, was published by Penguin Random House in October 2016. It was named as one of Fast Company’s top ten business books of 2016, and Bloomberg’s “Best Books of 2017”.

Surprise! The Brain Science Behind the Actions We Take

Even though we think we’re in total control, science has proven that up to 95% of decision-making takes place in the subconscious mind. In order to conserve mental energy, humans routinely rely on decision defaults – automatic, reflexive behaviors. And that means leaders need to know the triggers that prompt these hardwired behaviors, so you can get online students and prospects to take desired actions.

Nancy Harhut, Chief Creative Officer of Nancy Harhut and Associates, will share the proven principles of psychology that impact how people notice and respond to information. For instance, did you know that humans are instinctively drawn to images of faces, particularly a person’s eyes? Did you know that researchers have identified the word ‘because’ as a compliance trigger? When people see or hear it, they often start to nod yes without fully processing what comes next. You’ll leave this session with an understanding of the behavioral science behind some of the automatic actions people take – and a new perspective on how behavioral science can impact your institution’s online marketing communications.

Nancy Harhut

Nancy Harhut is passionate about the impact behavioral science can have on marketing. A Hatch Top 100 Creative Influencer, Online Marketing Institute Top 40 Digital Strategist, and Social Top 50 Email Marketing Leader, she has creative directed integrated campaigns for some of the world’s biggest brands. She and her teams have won over 200 awards for digital and direct marketing effectiveness. Harhut is known for her interesting and actionable insights that focus on the application of behavioral science to marketing. She’s been quoted in publications ranging from Chief Marketer to Education Week to Rachael Ray Every Day. A top-ranked speaker, she's wowed audiences from the US Department of Defense to Moscow marketers to SXSW attendees. Organizations seeking an added advantage tap her for campaign development, consulting and content creation. Follow her on twitter at @nharhut

Federal Policy Panel: Economic Competitiveness and Online Learning

Join panelists from leading organizations as they discuss the intersection of the knowledge economy, online learning, and higher education along with a host of other federal policy topics. As legislators work through the reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, we see signals that legislation could be more inclusive of non-traditional education providers, which may provide different or new pathways and skills for workforce development while also having interesting financial aid implications. At the same time, four-year institutions continue to make headway in a domain previously dominated by community colleges via non-degree credentials and other competency-based training. Attendees will leave with greater familiarity on the future of workforce development and other federal policy issues.

• Diane Auer Jones, Senior Advisor to the Assistant Secretary of Postsecondary Education
  Department of Education

• Scott Cheney, Executive Director
  Credential Engine

• Iris Palmer, Senior Policy Analyst, Education Policy Program
  New America

• Van Ton-Quinlivan, Executive Vice Chancellor for Workforce and Economic Development
  California Community Colleges

Moderator: Joel Simon, CAEL

Making Online Learning Addictive

Adam Alter

Adam Alter is a bestselling author who studies how we think. In his new book, Irresistible, he explores how tech companies design games, apps, and experiences with predictable human psychology in mind—and how you can direct, and command, attention.

Alter is an Associate Professor at New York University’s Stern School of Business, with an affiliated appointment in the New York University Psychology Department. His academic research focuses on judgment and decision-making and social psychology, with a particular interest in the sometimes surprising effects of subtle cues in the environment on human cognition and behavior. His research has been published widely in academic journals, and featured in dozens of TV, radio, and print outlets around the world. He is currently on the World Economic Forum steering committee, investigating the future of virtual and augmented reality technologies, and how they will both improve and potentially hamper our well-being. Click here to learn more about Adam.