In a March 2025 interview, Birkbeck interim CIO Sean Green described a familiar university challenge: improving students’ digital experience while funding core services, security, and buildings from constrained income. His account covered plans for more interactive Hyflex teaching, a virtual reality lab, gradual replacement of inflexible legacy systems, and renewal of the network those services depend on. The interview records priorities and targets at that time—not confirmation that the plans were later completed.
Why technology investment is difficult for universities
Green told Computer Weekly that student income shapes the university’s ability to invest in technology: “Student income drives our ability to spend money needed to invest in tech, but there is less money.” He linked the pressure to demographic changes, alternative education routes, and visa restrictions affecting international students. Green said international student numbers after Covid were up to 30% lower; that is his statement in the interview, not an independently verified sector-wide statistic.
The interview described Green’s remit as covering IT services, information governance, library services, and digital education, which connects academic teaching staff with technology. Computer Weekly reported that he led 150 IT staff at a university with about 10,000 students. Those figures describe Birkbeck as reported in 2025, not current verified totals.
The financial challenge was not simply whether to fund new digital projects. Green described technology investment as competing with essential obligations, including safe, maintained buildings. Leaders also have to preserve cybersecurity and business continuity while improving students’ digital experience.
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What Birkbeck planned for Hyflex teaching
Green described Hyflex as a way to make classroom and remote participation more interactive, using multiple screens and cameras. Rather than treating remote attendees as passive viewers, the setup was intended to connect them with in-person teaching and discussion.
In the March 2025 interview, Green said Birkbeck was investing to give three-quarters of its classrooms Hyflex capability by autumn, and that all of his classes would be able to use it by the middle of the following year. These were targets reported at the time; the interview does not establish whether either milestone was subsequently met.
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What the proposed virtual reality lab was for
Green said Birkbeck was building a virtual reality lab to create course-specific experiences. He also said the university might use off-the-shelf academic content. The interview did not identify a headset, platform, supplier, or specific course content, so it does not support a recommendation of particular VR equipment or products.
Why bespoke legacy systems can become a burden
Green described in-house systems—including timetabling and service management tools—that had been tailored to the university’s needs. Their custom fit could be economical on licensing, but he said they were becoming less flexible and more burdensome to maintain.
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Replacing them was presented as a gradual exercise, not a simple switch to a new platform. It requires planning resources and making a business case, while ensuring essential services continue to work. The trade-off is between retaining systems that fit existing processes and paying the operational cost of maintaining them, versus moving toward alternatives that may offer greater flexibility but require investment and change.
Why network renewal remained a priority
Green called the ageing network the “backbone” of IT operations and identified infrastructure renewal as a priority. A reliable network underpins teaching, library access, administrative systems, and other digital services; new classroom capabilities or systems depend on that foundation. The interview does not specify a network replacement schedule or budget.
That makes prioritisation a portfolio problem rather than a choice between “old” and “new” technology. Network renewal, cybersecurity, continuity, student-facing improvements, and estate maintenance all demand attention. The interview illustrates how a university CIO must weigh those operational risks and competing needs alongside ambitions such as Hyflex and VR, rather than treating digital transformation as a stand-alone technology purchase.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the interview establishes—and what it does not
Computer Weekly’s 24 March 2025 interview documents Green’s account of Birkbeck’s challenges and intentions at that point. It establishes the priorities he discussed and the rollout targets he reported, but it does not independently validate his explanation of sector-wide pressures, confirm later delivery, or name vendors and products. It is best read as a snapshot of how one university leader described balancing future-facing teaching with constrained resources and core operational responsibilities.
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