Leaders play a crucial role in revolutionizing education on a global level. Education is the foundation of any society, and it is essential that the education system is constantly evolving and adapting to the changing needs of society. Leaders in education must be visionaries who are able to anticipate the future and develop innovative solutions to the challenges facing the global education sector.
They need to motivate and inspire their team members to work towards a common goal and create an environment that fosters creativity, critical, thinking and collaboration. With globalization and the increasing demand for a highly skilled workforce, leaders in education must also be able to adapt to new technologies and create learning environments that prepare students for the rapidly changing job market. By nurturing a culture of innovation and lifelong learning, leaders in education can significantly impact our world’s future.
Michael E. Spencer, Founder and CEO of Global Expansion Strategies, is one of the seasoned leaders and experts in edtech global expansion and business development. With over 30 years of experience, Spencer has embedded K-12 solutions in a variety of blended/hybrid models in private and public-school systems, making him a sought-after advisor, board member and investor for several edtech companies worldwide.
As a leader, Spencer’s unique set of talents and knowledge enables him to solve specific problems for a particular group of people. He understands that blended/hybrid learning models must be optimized in the post-pandemic world to achieve better student outcomes.
Spencer’s involvement in the edtech investment community and his participation in international conferences and associations reflect his commitment to staying current with the latest industry trends and developments. As a result, he has successfully leveraged blended/hybrid learning technology to implement global programs that achieve both learning outcomes and economic benefits globally.
A Journey of Innovation and Impact
Michael E. Spencer, a seasoned professional with an MBA from the prestigious Monterey Institute of International Studies, started his career in the fast-paced world of Silicon Valley. He helped startups sell their computer peripherals through large retail distributors across the US and globally generating significant revenue for these companies.
However, Michael’s professional journey took a turn when he co-founded a company that developed a portable word processor and typing tutor, which found a market in schools looking for a low-cost, efficient solution for teaching writing composition. The success of the company allowed Michael to transition into the education software industry, where he discovered his passion for helping companies establish a presence both domestically and globally.
Having lived in various countries around the world, Michael is uniquely equipped to develop global strategic channel partnerships for education companies, allowing them to expand their reach without the expense of a global sales team. For the past 30 years, Michael has been focused on configuring technologies for different blended and hybrid learning environments, and the solutions in the Global Expansion Strategies portfolio have reached more than 30,000 schools worldwide.
Michael’s professional journey has been one of innovation and impact. He has utilized his expertise from the tech industry to help education companies grow and scale globally. His story is a testament to the importance of following one’s passion and leveraging unique experiences to make a meaningful difference in the world.
Overcoming Challenges in Global Education Expansion
As a global growth, strategy, advisory and investment firm working with edtech companies, Global Expansion Strategies (GES) faces its fair share of challenges. One of the most common hurdles they encounter is that many of the companies in their portfolio are in their early stages and may need to be prepared to scale beyond a few thousand students. Additionally, the international school operators they work with can sometimes provide more student enrolments than their portfolio companies can handle with their current financial or human resources.
Despite these challenges, GES is determined to help these companies scale and improve learning outcomes for countless students worldwide. For the past 30 years, Michael Spencer has been working towards this goal, and over the last 15 years, GES has been investing in selected companies to support their expansion efforts.
GES’s journey has been one of determination and resilience. By overcoming the challenges of global education expansion, they have helped edtech companies make a meaningful impact on the lives of students worldwide.
Empowering Learning
Global Expansion Strategies (GES) have significantly impacted the edtech industry by improving student outcomes. Through their portfolio of solutions, GES impacts instruction and learning directly in areas such as English as a second language, social-emotional learning, teacher enhancement, productivity tools, and career preparation/acceleration solutions. Their solutions have been implemented in numerous blended / hybrid learning models globally, resulting in academic and economic gains for schools.
GES implements methodologies that contribute to new growth opportunities. One of their key strategies is addressing the professional development gap for teachers inexperienced in online learning. They have prioritized providing various delivery modalities, including in-person, blended/hybrid, and fully virtual, in preparing their portfolio companies’ solutions for global markets. This approach frees up teachers’ time to focus on teaching rather than struggling with the logistics of teaching online. It also benefits schools economically by allowing them to increase enrolments by recruiting students to attend virtually.
GES’s impact on education has been significant, empowering students, teachers, and schools to achieve better outcomes. Through their innovative approaches to growth opportunities, GES continues to shape the edtech industry and pave the way for a brighter future for students worldwide.
Driving Student Outcomes
As the CEO of Global Expansion Strategies (GES), Michael E. Spencer has been driven by his passion for improving teaching and learning outcomes since the beginning of his career. For him, the mission is to ensure that the goals of education companies he works with are realized, and that means helping them to generate revenue from the early stages and subsequent stages of growth.
As a leader, Spencer’s vision is to leverage technology to provide a path to improved student outcomes and to accommodate everyone in the education process. He believes technology can be a powerful tool to serve students and all other stakeholders and that edtech companies prioritizing education and learning outcomes should be the focus of GES’s efforts.
At the core of GES’s values is a commitment to improving student outcomes, and the team works tirelessly to help companies in their portfolio scale to reach a tremendous number of students worldwide. By providing various delivery modalities, including in-person, blended/hybrid, and fully virtual, GES helps schools to address the professional development gap and frees teachers’ time to focus on teaching rather than struggling with the logistics of teaching online.
Look into Global Expansion Strategies
For over 30 years, Michael Spencer has been at the forefront of the edtech industry, providing advisory, strategic growth, and early-stage investment support to companies with a focus on improving learning outcomes for students around the world. As a leader in the industry, Michael E. Spencer, the founder of GES, is passionate about helping edtech companies achieve their global expansion goals and establish themselves as leaders in their respective categories.
GES’s mission is to help founders of edtech companies realize their goals of improving teaching and learning outcomes for students. They do this by providing support to generate revenue from the early stages throughout subsequent stages of growth, helping companies scale and support their growth through capital raises and investments, and preparing solutions for global markets by providing delivery modalities that best it the academic and economic objectives of large international school operators.
As a firm that sees technology as a tool to serve students and other stakeholders, GES is preparing for the next significant shift in the industry, which will be a greater reliance on blended learning models. By configuring its portfolio of solutions to be delivered in any number of blended/hybrid learning models, GES is positioned to help edtech companies adapt to this change and achieve their goals.
GES’s achievements have been noticed. Michael E. Spencer was named The Most Pioneering CEO Revolutionizing Global Education to Watch in 2023 by Education View, multiyear Global Education Leader, Finalist and Winner, of The Edtech Awards by Edtech Digest, 10 Best CEOs in Education by Industry Era and Top 10 Best Education Leaders by Industry Era. Michael Spencer has also won Top Influencer and EdTech Cool Tool Awards in edtech by EdTech Digest and top 10 solutions provider by Education Technology Integrator.
Looking towards the future, GES’s goals are to help their portfolio companies achieve their global expansion goals by securing subsequent capital raises and investments, achieving multiple successful exits, and launching a second edtech fund. With their focus on improving learning outcomes for students and their expertise in the industry, GES is poised to continue making a significant impact in the edtech industry for years to come.
Leading Towards Success
As an experienced leader in the edtech industry, Michael has a few pieces of advice for the next generation of aspiring leaders. He says, “Make sure your product is addressing a need that exists not only today but will continue to exist into the future, build it for multiple grade levels and leverage AI where possible.”
“Be prepared for long sales cycles ranging from 10-18 months and sometimes longer. Use strategic channel partners both domestically and internationally to diversify geographic revenue streams. Understand your cost of acquisition and leverage in-country channel partners as a means to reduce both cost and risk,” he continues.
He adds, “Understand and train your customers on the various blended/hybrid learning models in which your solutions can be implemented. Provide additional professional development if needed. Leverage in-country channel partners to provide ongoing marketing to all stakeholders in the decision making process. This is to include school directors, administrators, teachers, parents, students.”
“Raise capital when you don’t need it and not when you need it. Make sure you align your goals and expectations with investors who believe in the same mission of the company,” he states.
By keeping these pieces of advice in mind, the next generation of leaders can better navigate the everchanging edtech industry and lead their companies towards long-term success.
The Key to Success in the Post-Pandemic Era
Michael believes that his unique set of talents and knowledge sets him apart from other leaders in his field. With over 30 years of experience embedding K-12 solutions in a variety of blended/hybrid learning models in private and public-school systems globally, Spencer understands the specific needs and challenges of this particular group of people.
Spencer is actively involved in the edtech investment community to maintain his edge. He serves on the board of several edtech companies across the globe and participates in key international conferences and associations, keeping his finger on the pulse of the industry and staying up to date with the latest trends and developments.
Spencer supports responsibility in his global team by ensuring that everyone is aligned with the corporate mission to expand edtech companies globally. By constantly interacting with his team and ensuring that their goals and long-term objectives are aligned with the mission, Spencer empowers his team to take ownership of their roles and become more self-directed, with clear outcomes for everyone.
In the post-pandemic era, Spencer believes that blended/hybrid learning technology is the key to success in improving academic and economic outcomes for global education institutions. By leveraging this technology, Spencer has successfully implemented programs that have achieved positive student learning outcomes and economic benefits for institutions. In a world where the pandemic has accelerated the shift towards online learning, Spencer’s expertise is more important than ever before.
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