Transformation of Open Distance Flexible Learning at the intersection of national reform of Vocational Education and Training

When the realisation of transformational change to an education organisation’s system of open distance flexible learning (ODFL) becomes a significant factor in the radical reform of a national network of VET (vocational education and training), the intersection of these two factors becomes a game changer in innovating the way New Zealanders access vocational higher education. // Open Polytechnic of New Zealand (OPNZ) is a specialist provider of ODFL with a history that spans more than 70 years. In a strategically determined way the polytechnic has gone about transforming itself into a fully digital, online provider of ODFL. Key factors in this transformation have included: investment in the development of its own digital learning management system; the translation of print-based courses and programmes into digital education resources; and, the disaggregation of activities that strengthens the value chain and facilitates the offering of ODFL component services to learners and other external stakeholders.