Fluent in Every Corner of Higher Education.
Most advisors know one side of the business. We know all of them.
Oliver6 is a higher education advisory and fractional leadership practice built for organizations that need more than a consultant; they need an operator. Nearly three decades. Every corner of the higher education ecosystem: institutions, EdTech companies, private equity, venture capital, and early-stage ventures. Oliver6 was built on that breadth, and it shapes everything we do.
We work across the full ecosystem: with EdTech companies and commercial vendors competing for institutional business, with colleges and universities navigating strategy and transformation, and with investors making bets on the sector's future. That perspective, institutional, commercial, and operational, is rare. Most advisors live in one camp. We've operated across all of them, which means we understand not just what clients want, but how decisions actually get made and how strategies actually get executed.
Every engagement is hands-on, outcomes-focused, and built around the specific context of the client, not a templated approach.
David Daniels is an education executive who has spent nearly three decades building technology-enabled managed services businesses and long-term partnerships at scale. He began his career in academic publishing, working directly with faculty to transform ideas into textbooks, and went on to lead market-shaping digital products and services across some of the most consequential companies in higher education.
His work is guided by a simple ethos: do well by doing right, hire exceptional people, and keep experimenting toward what will serve learners and institutions best. In addition to his executive roles, David launched Oliver6, an advisory practice working with commercial clients, private equity firms, and university partners on strategy, growth, value creation, and transformation across the higher education ecosystem.
Outside of work, David is a husband and father of six, which keeps him grounded in why this work matters. Building educational and workforce pathways that genuinely change lives isn't a mission statement. It's personal.
Operators, not consultants.
Stormi Shafer, MBA, PMP brings over 15 years of project management experience across education technology and curriculum development. She began her career at Pearson, advancing from Operations Coordinator to Lead Project Manager over six years, managing curriculum projects for university, government, and corporate clients. Since 2014, she has worked as a fractional project manager, partnering with EdTech and curriculum providers, including Oliver6, 2U, and Synchrony, to plan, scope, and deliver complex projects on time and on budget.
Dr. Bob Paxton brings four decades of experience in higher education leadership, including service as president of multiple institutions. He currently serves as Vice President of Education Solutions at American College of Education, leading partnerships that expand access to continuing education for adult learners. Prior to ACE, he advised colleges and universities across the U.S., Russia, the UAE, and Canada through his own firm, Dynamic Higher Education Solutions. He also teaches and mentors in ACE's doctoral program.
Andy Gates has spent more than three decades in higher education and EdTech commercial leadership, including senior sales and partnership roles at Pearson, Cengage Learning, Academic Partnerships, and Renaissance Learning. He served as Chief Revenue Officer at BARBRI Global from 2019 to 2023, and most recently led business development at Gray Decision Intelligence, helping university leaders adopt data-informed program evaluation and enrollment strategy. He now works independently as a go-to-market and revenue strategy consultant, helping organizations sharpen their sales models and market positioning.