Reflecting on 2022, it is with a sense of apprehension that you realise that although we would like to think that things are returning 'back to normal' after two and a half years of COVID-19-related disruption, somehow, things will never be the same again. We question what 'normal' means after lockdown, and we find ourselves going about different routines than we were used to in 2019.

The literature review commences by interrogating the concept of strategic drivers, where after the discussion will turn to the importance of technology, the 4IR and collaboration for HEIs, especially in the light of recent disruptive events that have occurred.