This study examined the assessment needs of faculty and assessment practitioners in higher education. Sergiovanni's (2000, 2004) lifeworld-systemsworld framework (LSF) and Clandinin and Connelly's (2006) commonplaces of narrative inquiry (CNI) were the theoretical lenses to investigate this topic. Through 20 in-depth, semi-directed interviews (15 assessment practitioners and 5 faculty), six themes were identified between two research questions: (1) meaningful assessment work takes time; (2) assessment should not interfere with academic freedom; (3) assessment work requires resources; (4) assessment has a long-term orientation; (5) assessment responds to external stakeholders; and (6) assessment was impacted by the pandemic. The discussion spotlights the practical, policy, and theoretical implications of our findings within the broader higher education assessment literature.