When Good Products, People and Partnerships Converge
Here’s a hypothetical… what if higher ed moved with the urgency of the moment instead of the weight of tradition? What if institutions and the technology meant to support students matched the urgency students carry every day — juggling school, jobs, clubs and orgs, families, life?
At Pima Community College, we stopped waiting for the perfect conditions to fix our digital experience — we acted when the cracks became impossible to ignore. Band-aid fixes and the whole “that’s just how it works” mindset weren’t cutting it.
Turning Crisis into Opportunity
We didn’t go looking for Pathify. When we first connected, we were a stressed-out college searching for a solution. Our legacy student portal, already hanging by a thread, turned an “eventually” plan into our top priority. Our urgency brought Pathify into the picture (truthfully, they weren’t on our radar before a frantic Google search for “student portal solutions” at a conference).
When we brought Pathify on board, they could’ve easily treated us like a standard vendor implementation — pass along some documentation, schedule a training session or two, call it done. Instead, they approached us as partners, which changed the entire trajectory of our project.
When you implement at lightning speed because your old system literally fell apart, white glove service and responsive support aren’t just nice — they’re imperative. What stood out then (and still today) comes down to how rarely you find a customer team like Pathify’s. They listened, they delivered with intention, they solved, they didn’t disappear after we launched. Their structure and attentiveness gave us the know-how and confidence to launch in a matter of months.
Accountability in Action
Pathify also came to the table claiming they could handle everything we threw at them — tight timelines, custom work, roadmap items, you name it. We decided to put that claim to the test. We’re not shy about using every inch of functionality Pathify offers — you say you can do all these things? Prove it because we’re going to use it all.
We like to think of it as mutual accountability — we’ll hold you to your promises if you hold us to ours. Pressure like this could’ve easily soured a typical vendor relationship. Instead, it took on an “iron sharpens iron” dynamic, if you will. They delivered on every promise, and we pushed Pathify to be a better platform, delivering more for us… and every other customer.
Moving Fast, Moving Smart
Let’s be clear — Pima isn’t a typical institution. We’re aggressive in the best way. We’ve got a brilliant, top-tier IT team and a bias toward action. When we decide to move, we move. And while we didn’t make every popular decision (yes, we moved some people’s cheese along the way), the impact made it all worthwhile. Real disruption drives real change, even if it ruffles some feathers at first.
Ultimately, success isn’t about following a playbook — it’s about having the right elements come together. The right product, the right people and the right partnership. You can’t fake any of these components, you either have them, or you don’t. And when you nail all three? You’re no longer chasing success — you’re setting the pace. We’re incredibly passionate about Pathify because it’s truly transformational.
Few systems offer the kind of flexibility Pathify brings to the table. You can go big, like we did — launching the full platform with all the bells and whistles — or you can start small, with a lighterweight build and scale up over time. Either way, you’re not locked into one approach. You’re building something tailored to your institution’s needs.
The Exponential Gap
Here’s an uncomfortable truth — higher education drags its feet while the pace of change exponentially speeds up. Schools stuck at yesterday’s pace won’t keep up.
If more institutions (and vendors) took the approach of challenging convention, defining their goals and thinking like visionaries, higher ed wouldn’t be left scrambling. The same goes for vendors who need to start building real partnerships — with good products, good people and trust. Pathify proves that when institutions and vendors align around urgency, transformation happens quickly.
About Anna Becker
Anna Becker is an IT solutions expert with over 25 years of experience helping healthcare organizations and higher ed institutions optimize efficiency, security and compliance. Passionate about secure and scalable IT solutions, Anna works to enhance productivity at Pima Community College. When she’s not optimizing systems, you’ll find her whipping up recipes in the kitchen, playing the piano or dancing her way through a Zumba class.
About Isaac Abbs
Isaac Abbs is currently the Assistant Vice Chancellor for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer at Pima Community College. In his roles, he oversees the day-to-day activities and sets the strategic direction for the Information Technology department. In addition to higher education, Isaac spent nearly ten years working in local municipal government. Outside of the office, he enjoys spending time with his wife and two daughters, as well as catching a good soccer match on TV.
