Transforming university efficiency: smarter solutions, lasting impact

Transform your operations to drive efficiency and enhance service quality

The UK higher education sector is under significant pressure from the impact of rising costs alongside income challenges. SUMS Consulting empowers universities to optimise operations, streamline services, and secure long-term sustainability through efficiency-driven solutions. 

Empowering efficiencies in HE

 

Now is the time to rethink how universities operate. SUMS provides sector-specific expertise to help institutions become more agile, efficient, and financially sustainable.

Empowering efficiencies in higher education

At SUMS, we turn data, insights, and benchmarking into smarter decision-making. Our expertise helps universities cut costs, streamline operations, and achieve meaningful efficiencies. Our approach goes beyond internal analysis — we provide a sector-wide perspective, to highlight how your institution compares to peers — and where real opportunities for improvement lie. 

Where we deliver impact

Redesigning university operating models
  • Helping universities rethink their Target Operating Models (TOMs) to streamline services, boost financial sustainability, and enhance student outcomes.
  • At a modern university, we identified and evidenced multi-million-pound savings, strengthened leadership structures, and improved decision-making through investments in data quality and automation.
Operational effectiveness and cost-saving
  • Service maturity assessments, providing universities with the intelligence and benchmarking tools needed to make smarter financial and operational decisions.
  • At one university, our professional services transformation unlocked £15m in savings while improving service quality.
Smarter procurement
  • Delivering Procurement Value Assessments (PVA) to uncover inefficiencies and maximise value from non-pay spend.
  • At the University of Kent, our PVA revealed a 3:1 return on investment, leading to immediate cost-saving actions.
Optimising teaching, learning, and assessment
  • Supporting universities in refining academic delivery models to enhance quality, efficiency, and student outcomes.
  • We worked with University College London to assess curriculum complexity, providing a roadmap to a more streamlined, student-focused approach.

Explore how SUMS can help your university achieve efficiencies that deliver real impact.