Universities: Spend Less, Deliver More
Photo by micheile henderson on Unsplash
Universities and Transformations
Over the past decade, UK universities have embarked on journeys that have included complex IT and curriculum transformation programmes with varying degree of success. This period of substantial investment followed the introduction of higher tuition fees, which provided universities with unprecedented financial resources.
However, the landscape has shifted dramatically since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to financial constraints and a growing concern that AI might result in the mass redundancies of academics.
The Era of Abundance and Investment
The seven years from the introduction of fees in 2012 in UK higher education, like the increase of wheat predicted by the biblical interpreter of dreams, Joseph, were prosperous:
Figure 1: Source of income for higher education providers
Universities used these funds to modernise their campuses, enhance digital learning environments, and adopt cutting-edge technologies aimed at improving educational delivery and administrative efficiency. They also brought in more consultancy companies when these ambitious projects often resulted in delayed implementations and failed to deliver on their promises.
The Post-COVID Financial Squeeze
The COVID-19 pandemic brought about an abrupt halt to this era of abundance. Universities now face significant financial pressures due to the decline in the value of a capped fee, increased operational costs, and the necessity to shift rapidly to online learning:
DATA HE Chart — The unit of resource per Full-Time UK student is nearly at the lowest level
This has forced many institutions to reassess their spending and operational strategies. Amidst these challenges, there is a growing fear that AI could lead to significant job losses among academic staff.
Indeed, as universities continue to invest millions in system and curriculum transformations, they are also rolling out redundancy programmes. Many institutions have introduced voluntary schemes, while some have resorted to compulsory measures. This dual approach of investing heavily in technology while reducing human resources raises critical questions about the priorities and strategies of HE institutions.
A Radical Thought: Simplified Transformation
In the face of these complexities, a radical yet simple solution presents itself:
avoid spending millions on elaborate systems and instead adopt effective, straightforward solutions.
Reflecting on past experiences, particularly those shared with my colleagues at Future Horizons Education, regarding learning development and system innovation, we have found that small and simple changes can yield high impact.
During our time working on innovative projects since the 1990s, we consistently observed that minimalist approaches could lead to substantial improvements. For example, we implemented open-source learning management systems, tile-based mobile student portals, online enrolment, marks upload with automated exam spreadsheets and attendance monitoring systems at very low cost with small development teams and streamlined decision-making processes.
These systems provided significant enhancements in student engagement and educational outcomes without having large project budgets.
After achieving these transformations at low cost at a small post-92 institution, I was employed by some very large universities as an interim manager tasked with rescuing failing multimillion pound transformation programmes. As I looked at how these projects had been set up, it was clear that the fundamental problem lay in the initial decision to try to change everything in one big bang.
In these situations, I sometimes felt a bit like the captain of the Titanic, if he had been parachuted onto the ship after it had hit the iceberg. The expectations of rescuing projects that were mired in complexity, dissatisfaction, politics and leadership reputations was unrealistic. Unlike the Titanic nobody died, but I could not believe the waste of resources.
One of my strongest memories was at a prestigious Russell Group University when I had to take a revised project plan to the University’s finance committee for approval of an increased budget, after several million pounds had been spent without progress before I joined.
As someone who had worked for many years for a VC who had demanded an explanation for every penny spent from far smaller budgets, I was expecting a grilling. Instead after presenting a brief outline for the programme changes, I was told this was sufficient and I could leave. As I stood up to go, the chair of the finance committee said:
I should probably ask you how much your new project budget is?
to which I replied
Twenty Million
He responded
Oh yes, that’s fine
and waived me out of the room.
At another University I was asked to assess a project where the organisation had already spent over one million pounds on a marks entry system with a major IT supplier that could not be integrated into the current IT system.
This was nearly twenty years after I had been the subject matter expert (SME) on an identical implementation at my own University. When I looked at the system it was clear that little thought had been given to integration, and the end result was a system that could not be used, despite the expense, so the University had to continue to use manual systems to bring marks together.
The Path Forward
Universities need to reconsider their future approach to IT and curriculum transformations.
Rather than pursuing grandiose expensive projects, they should focus on:
1. Modular Solutions: Implementing smaller, structured IT solutions that can be scaled and adapted as needed can reduce initial costs and allow for gradual improvements.
2. Open-Source Technologies: Accessing open-source software can provide robust functionalities without the high licensing fees associated with proprietary systems.
3. Community Engagement: Involving the academic and student community in decision-making processes early ensures that the solutions adopted meet the actual needs of both staff and students.
4. Training and Support: Providing adequate training and support for new technologies ensures smoother transitions and better utilisation of resources.
5. Continuous Evaluation: Regularly assessing the effectiveness of implemented technologies can help universities make data-driven decisions and avoid unnecessary expenditures.
By adopting this strategy, universities can navigate the financial constraints post-COVID and harness the potential of AI without resorting to mass redundancies
Simplifying IT transformations not only conserves resources but also fosters an environment where both technology and human talent are valued and optimised.
Most now recognise that the best utilisation of AI and new technologies is as a co-pilot to human capabilities, not a replacement of them.
Future Horizons Education has been formed by people who have implemented low-cost solutions in Higher Education since the 1990s.
As a team with strong backgrounds in academic delivery, course development, quality management and IT student lifecycle systems we understand how to use simple delivery processes to achieve high impact.
We are now harnessing the power of AI and Machine Learning to build new solutions for the student experience, curriculum design and graduate employment, applying our experience of doing this at low cost for 30 years.
Contact us if you want to avoid the black hole of expensive curriculum and lifecycle implementations.
