Block at UCISA Leadership Conference 2025
Block exhibited at the 2025 UCISA Leadership Conference – inspiring and enabling outstanding leadership in IT on the 18-20th March at Brighton Centre. Here were some of the key themes covered:
Smart campuses offer a plethora of opportunities to transform institutions, optimising the physical workspaces, related assets and resources.
Over the last year, we have seen more challenging times for the sector, both technically and financially. So, attracting students and giving them the best university experience is paramount to the university’s continued success.
How campuses are run from the moment a student starts should be as seamless and stress-free as possible.
Security
- How can universities keep their campuses safe on both a physical and at a technological level?
- With the advent of IoT services, lines between old-school estate’s equipment are now blurred. How do universities address the security concerns inherent to this progress?
- The provision of apps to track and safeguard students.
- Securing campus data – everything from the CCTV to research.
Sustainability
- The carbon emissions produced by universities are increasingly under the spotlight. Current and prospective students expect transparency, accountability and – most importantly – action to address this.
- How can universities measure and achieve our net zero ambitions in a smart and transparent way?
- How do universities monitor and manage our buildings, collecting and modelling data to improve energy efficiency?
Student experience
The student experience is key, and engagement can be greatly improved through a greater digital focus. With this focus, universities can empower students to:
- Register their devices for Wi-Fi and access from the moment they’re accepted on a course.
- Immediately access library resources, book desks and view available transport links live.
- Virtually participate in live classes from off-campus and catch up on demand.
- Influence the design of their timetables.
- Provision all levels of kit from standard windows to high-end graphics stations, even from off-campus.
The conference shared these ideas and questions, looking at how universities can all learn from each other to improve our already great environments.
Block is a technology partner that helps universities create a better digital future. We combine industry insight with technical expertise to drive meaningful change. By listening and understanding your challenges, we align investments with strategic goals, solving problems quickly to benefit the people who matter most—students, staff and faculty.
