Inside the Provost’s Mind: A New Look at Academic Operations

The university president is often synonymous with the voice of the university, the visionary, the chief fundraiser, the relationship builder, and more. But with their numerous responsibilities, they must delegate the day-to-day operations of their institutions to their cabinet members. When it comes to the functions that support the delivery of the academic experience, the provost most frequently oversees the areas known as academic operations.

While the public and students are rarely privy to the academic machinery behind the scenes, these functions are becoming more and more important as forces such as workforce alignment, AI, and declining enrollment shape how institutions operate. To understand how university leaders are rethinking academic operations, a recent survey by Hanover Research and Coursedog heard from 200 chief academic officers and provosts. The survey aimed to understand the pain points, priorities, and technology driving academic operations.

Less Than a Third of Institutions Report Integrated or Strategic Tech Stacks

We’ve all heard the groans. Where is that spreadsheet? Who needs to approve that form before I can sign off on it? Which one is the most recent version? Unsurprisingly, manual workflows and spreadsheets were the number one pain point provosts reported in their academic operations (33%). This doesn’t just lead to inefficient and time-consuming processes, but also leads to other challenges highlighted in the survey. Twenty-nine percent of provosts pointed to unreliable or untimely data as a top pain point, followed by lengthy curriculum approval processes (27%).

While institutions once accepted these manual processes as routine, there’s growing awareness of their limitations. Thankfully, very few provosts described their academic operations technology as ad-hoc (4%); however, the majority described their academic operations technology as fragmented (23%) or siloed (43%). Just under a third reported more advanced methods of running their academic operations, with 29% reporting an integrated approach and just 1% a truly strategic tech stack. There’s no doubt that staff running academic operations are working hard, but the survey shows they lack the connective capabilities that turn individual tools into a coherent system.

Institutional Priorities Driving a Push for AcOps Modernization & New Capabilities

Unsurprisingly, provosts reported that enrollment growth (72%) and curriculum alignment (69%) are the top institutional priorities for the next 24 months. While this was expected, they report that these priorities are also the top factors guiding how they approach their academic operations. However, how will institutions ensure their course schedule, curriculum, and assessment practices evolve to make meaningful progress on these priorities?

Only two percent of provosts called academic operations modernization and consolidation a major priority over the past three years. However, that number jumps to 85% looking ahead to the next three years. While it is undoubtedly easier to call something a priority for the future, these numbers still tell a story of changing attitudes. Course schedules that meet student needs, curriculum that evolves with industry needs, and intentional feedback loops don’t happen by themselves. Provosts realize they need to equip staff with the right data, insights, and transparency to make timely, informed decisions.

Accordingly, data and analytics capabilities are key factors that provosts consider when evaluating academic operations technology. Analytics and predictive insights (47%) and data transparency and access (46%) top the list, followed by workflow automation (37%) and interoperability (35%). Provosts want a clear, trustworthy picture of what's happening across the institution.

The AI Illusion: Why Adoption Looks Lower Than It Is  

Eighty-seven percent of provosts say AI is integral to the future of academic operations; yet only 21% say they're actually using AI in their academic operations today. However, that number may be higher than leaders think. Ellucian’s Annual Higher Education AI Survey, published earlier this year, found that 90% of higher ed professionals now use AI. Conference presentations, publications, and any given informal conversation between staff reveal use cases from AI summaries to data crunching to transfer evaluation.

So where does higher ed actually stand with AI usage? Individual use is unquestionably high. Staff use AI for their own projects; a certain team in one office uses it for a specific use case. What’s missing is AI usage at scale. Leaders perhaps assume AI isn’t used because usage is confined to hidden, uncommunicated corners. However, just as AI is evolving rapidly, so are institutional use cases. Seventy-eight percent of provosts expect AI usage in academic operations to grow over the next 24 months.

With these advancements come both hesitancy and opportunities. On the AI front, provosts are primarily concerned about data privacy/security (61%) and ethical considerations (55%). On the flip side, they’re hopeful about how staff can reinvest saved time into strategic areas. They would like to see staff rededicate time to enhanced student support (38%), operational agility (27%), and compliance and accreditation (22%). The goal is to redirect saved time toward areas that actually move the needle for students.

Six Guiding Questions to Assess Your Academic Operations

Higher ed leaders understand the real need for academic operations that run efficiently, move quickly, and meet student needs. However, reimagining multiple functions takes time and coordinated effort. To assess where your institution stands, consider asking the following questions to assess your current state and decide what comes next.

1. Does your tech stack give you the data and visibility needed to drive modernization and growth?
2. How quickly can your curriculum adapt to shifting student and workforce demand?
3. Where do your academic operations cause friction points for students?
4. Do you have the right academic operations data to inform resourcing decisions?
5. Do you have the data infrastructure to make AI meaningful and scalable?
6. Which academic operations analytics and insights would have the greatest impact on student retention?

For presidents working with their provost, consider starting with your institutional priorities and then asking how your academic operations both help and hinder these priorities. The leaders willing to ask these questions and take action are the ones best positioned to transition academic operations from a matter of routine to a strategic advantage.