Higher‑education technologists argued institutions should "build backward"—designing registration, advising and degree‑planning systems around student workflows rather than institutional silos. The prescription: involve students in product decisions, reduce handoffs between systems, and prioritize interoperability to reduce friction in registration and completion. A companion piece outlined cost‑optimization for HyFlex classrooms, noting that high‑quality hybrid delivery requires upfront investment in AV, scheduling and staffing to be sustainable. The HyFlex playbook recommends targeted use of HyFlex where enrollment and retention gains justify ongoing operational costs and stresses centralized scheduling and faculty training to limit overruns. Taken together, the reports advise campuses to prioritize student‑centered system design and disciplined cost models for hybrid delivery to improve persistence, reduce administrative load, and stabilize budgets amid enrollment uncertainty.