For Kassie Burkholder, Executive Director of Corporate & Continuing Education and Product Development at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), digital transformation means reimagining how education is delivered, administered, and experienced.
Burkholder, along with other deans and directors representing Continuing Education units across Canada, reflected on this topic in CAUCE’s Executive Guide 12 Key Pillars for Success: A Canadian Continuing Education Perspective on Postsecondary Transformation.
“It’s really just a fancy way of saying, let’s work smarter and not as hard,” Burkholder said in a recent episode of the Illumination by Modern Campus podcast. “It’s not just about moving things online. It’s about thinking differently—rethinking who we serve, what they need, and how we meet them where they’re at.”
We move fast because we have to. We listen to our learners and our industry partners, and we adapt quickly. That freedom to experiment—fail fast, fix fast—is part of our DNA.
— Kassie Burkholder
Make It Easy to Do Business With You
One of NAIT’s primary goals in its digital transformation is to be “easy to do business with.” That includes students, employers, associations, and community partners. Whether someone is registering for a course or looking to partner on a workforce solution, they expect a frictionless, intuitive experience.
“People expect the same seamless digital experience in education that they do from Amazon,” Burkholder explains. “If we create unnecessary barriers, they’ll walk away. We can’t afford to make it harder for people to engage with us.”
Cut the Red Tape, Embrace the Experiment
But transformation isn’t easy—especially in higher education. Burkholder points to one of the sector’s biggest obstacles: an attachment to process.
“Our process sometimes gets in the way of progress,” she says. “There’s fear around change and systems that have been around for decades. Meanwhile, the world moves forward without us.”
Continuing Education (CE) divisions like Burkholder’s often avoid this trap because they don’t have the luxury of overthinking. “We move fast because we have to. We listen to our learners and our industry partners, and we adapt quickly. That freedom to experiment—fail fast, fix fast—is part of our DNA.”
Want to learn how CE divisions are cutting through bureaucracy to lead institutional innovation?Download the executive guide:
👉 12 Key Pillars for Success: A Canadian Continuing Education Perspective on Postsecondary Transformation
Aligning with the Labour Market—In Real Time
Unlike traditional academic departments that often follow multi-year curriculum cycles, CE units are wired to respond to real-time labour market needs.
“We don’t build anything unless there’s demand,” says Burkholder. “If a product or program isn’t filling a workforce gap, we don’t launch it. And if it stops working—we shelf it.”
Digital tools enable this agility. With data-driven insights and scalable online delivery, CE teams can quickly respond to changing employer needs. Whether it’s AI, microcredentials, or stackable pathways, CE is leading the charge to create responsive, learner-centered programming.
A Blueprint for the Broader Institution
Because of their agility and entrepreneurial mindset, CE divisions often act as innovation labs—testing new ideas that can eventually scale across the broader institution.
“We’re like the concept car of the institution,” Burkholder laughs. “We try things, break them, rebuild them. And if something works well, it can inform credit programming or institutional policy.”
She envisions a future where institutions don’t start by asking if an idea belongs in credit or non-credit, but rather ask: Where can this idea gain traction fastest?
That student-first mindset—focused on pathways, access, and outcomes—requires a level of collaboration across silos that digital transformation can enable and amplify.
Final Advice: Get in Trouble for Putting Pucks in the Net
Burkholder closes with a powerful reminder to her colleagues in CE and across postsecondary institutions: “Try the thing and see what happens. What’s the worst that could go wrong? If it fails, you iterate and do it again. But don’t be afraid to test. Get in trouble for putting pucks in the net.”
💡 Want more ideas on how to lead with agility and build student-centered systems?
Download the executive guide now:
📥 12 Key Pillars for Success: A Canadian Continuing Education Perspective on Postsecondary Transformation