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Colleges and universities are under increasing pressure to rethink costs, but many chief business officers say they lack the insight needed to make difficult decisions. 

Only 13 percent of CBOs say their institution understands per-student costs by program or activity very well, while relatively few institutions have undertaken major cost restructuring in recent years, finds the newly-released Inside Higher Ed/Hanover Research 2026 Survey of Colleges and University Chief Business Officers. 

Based on survey findings and an expert panel discussion, this live webcast will examine how higher ed business and finance leaders are responding to today's financial realities, including:

  • Their institution’s current financial health and outlook over the next one, five and ten years
  • The structural changes needed to ensure long-term financial viability, and what stands in the way 
  • How their institution has addressed affordability concerns over the past year
  • The impact of the second Trump administration’s policies on their institution’s financial outlook
  • The trends and forces they predict will have the greatest impact on higher education by 2030

Can't attend the webcast? You should still register—all registrants will receive a recording of the webcast and a copy of the presentation slides.

Wednesday, August 12, 2026 | 2 p.m. E.T.

Sustained Disruption Ahead: What's Keeping Chief Business Officers Up at Night in 2026

MODERATOR

Colleen Flaherty
Senior Editor of Special Content at Inside Higher Ed

Colleen Flaherty, senior editor of special content, previously served as Student Voice editor for Inside Higher Ed. Prior to joining the publication in 2012, Colleen was military editor at the Killeen Daily Herald, outside Fort Hood, Texas. Before that, she covered government and land use issues for the Greenwich Time and Hersam Acorn Newspapers in her home state of Connecticut. After graduating from McGill University in Montreal with a degree in English literature, Colleen taught English and English as a second language in public schools in the Bronx, New York. She earned her M.S.Ed. from City University of New York Lehman College as part of the New York City Teaching Fellows program.