Cloud Computing for Higher Education
Cloud Computing for Higher Education
The transformative power of cloud computing is being
utilized today by organizations large and small. It is
changing business models, cost models, and data centers.
Innovative CIOs and other business technology managers
are freeing up valuable resources for strategic activities
by deploying cloud applications that are less costly and
complex, yet more intelligent and user friendly, than on-
premise applications.
Higher education organizations, however, have unique
missions and strategic objectives. Given these differences,
can cloud computing be successfully deployed in higher
education? Can cloud technology help higher education
CIOs meet their stated priorities today and in the future?
The purpose of this document is to outline how cloud
computing can meet the needs of truly global higher
education institutions that employ faculty and staff
around the world and can handle everything from
complex payroll needs to multi-entity organizational
requirements.
What Is Cloud Computing?
Simply put, cloud computing is the set of disciplines,
technologies, and business models used to deliver IT
capabilities (software, hardware, people) as an on-
demand, scalable, elastic service.
The cloud refers to the Internet, and cloud computing
describes the transition from “organizations buy, install,
and maintain their own software and hardware” to
“organizations can access applications on demand through
the Internet.” Cloud computing offers significantly lower
costs and more scalable computing power because
computing resources are consolidated and shared by
organizations, delivering increased efficiencies while still
maintaining strict data security measures. Anyone who
has ordered a product or service off the Internet (e.g.,
Amazon) has accessed a public cloud.
Think of the way your organization does business today.
If you are utilizing a cloud solution, you are no longer:
• Using servers, racks, or hardware of any kind
outside of a PC or mobile device;
• Depending on CDs, DVDs or installation media of
any type;
• Needing to know or deal with which database or
operating system software you are using;
• Needing to manually apply an upgrade, a
maintenance pack, a patch bundle, or a bug fix.
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The Problem with Legacy Systems in Higher Education The maintenance for these legacy systems, also called

A recent survey by Gartner Group¹ states that two of “on-premise” infrastructure, is expensive. At a time when

the top priorities facing higher education CIOs today many colleges and universities are under significant

are improving technical infrastructure and reducing pressure to cut costs, most can no longer afford to

enterprise costs. Another Gartner report states that maintain an old, inefficient technology infrastructure.

more than 75 percent of the IT budget today is spent

Additionally, typical legacy administrative systems do
on maintaining and running existing systems and
not have the functionality universities and colleges need
software infrastructure.
to run their organizations. For example, legacy systems

A report by Educause provides further evidence that typically cannot handle complex payroll requirements or

higher education CIOs are interested in improving unique financial requirements such as fund accounting.

infrastructure and reducing costs. In Educause’s recent Many organizations badly need to upgrade their legacy

report, “Top-Ten IT Issues Facing Higher Education,” systems to take advantage of new functionality, but

funding IT and administrative/ERP systems concerns took upgrading on-premise technology is often cost prohibitive.

the top two spots. Clearly, many higher education CIOs

are feeling the pressure to reduce costs, and standardize
systems and resources via shared services initiatives.
Both are very difficult to accomplish with legacy
technology that is in use on many campuses today.

Why Now? Higher Education in Pain

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With the explosive growth of mobile and Web These inefficient legacy administrative systems force IT
2.0 technologies, institutions are in need of more staff to spend too much time on tactical activities—such
contemporary technology solutions that keep pace with as maintaining IT systems and processing transactions—
the times. Legacy administrative systems cannot keep and not enough time on more strategic work that
up with changing user preferences and organizational supports the mission and goals of the organization.
requirements of colleges and universities today. In
addition, limited analytic capabilities across multiple
siloed systems cause many universities to have difficulty
receiving and distributing timely and accurate financial
and operational information. This not only limits
efficiency and agility, but many organizations also
struggle to provide the necessary reports to funding
sources and other internal and external constituents.

Why Now?
Why now? Improving
Improving Infrastructure
Infrastructure and Cutting and Cutting
Costs Priorities
Cost Priorities in Education
in Higher Higher Education
Higher Education CIO Priorities
Ranking 2011 Change 2010 2009 2008 2014

Increasing enterprise growth 1 2

Attracting and retaining new customers

(students, partnerships and research) 2 4 5 2 3

Improving technical infrastructure 3 4

Creating new products, services, and innovation 4 5 7 5 7

Reducing enterprise costs 5 3 3 10

Improving business processes 6 1 1 1

Improving business continuity, risk, and security 7

Implementing and updating business applications 8

Attracting and retaining the workforce 9 6

Increasing management control 10

Source: Gartner, “The 2011 Higher Education CIO’s Agenda: Lean Controlled Growth”

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Opportunities in the Cloud
Higher education institutions increasingly are turning to
cloud computing to lower cost and take advantage of the
latest technology. Cloud applications—also known
as software-as-a-service or SaaS—provide enterprise
applications delivered as a service via the internet.
The benefits of cloud applications are numerous as
demonstrated on the chart below. The cloud simplifies
and optimizes IT, enables IT to offload non-essential
processes, and allows IT to refocus on driving the core
mission and goals of higher education institutions.
Using the cloud greatly increases IT agility and allows
organizations to pay for only the IT services they use,
enabling better resource tracking, more predictable
costs, improved budget forecasting, and faster return
on investment.
Organizations utilizing cloud technology are able
to take advantage of the newest innovations, rapid
implementations, and immediate updates with
the latest functionality. Packaged integrations,
lower operating costs, better service levels, and
comprehensive security complete the list of added
benefits of cloud over on-premise.

Cloud Applications vs. On-Premise

One-to-One Comparison
Cloud Applications vs. On-Premise — One-to-One Comparison

Cloud On-Premise

Software Utility subscription model Utility subscription model

(operational cost) (operational cost)

Maintenance/ Built into subscription costs ~22% of license costs per year
Implementation

Updates/Upgrades 30% of 5-year subscription costs 30% to 50% more

Training Consumer-Internet user experience; ERP user experience; extensive

limited training is required training is required

Infrastructure: Hardware/ Infrastructure outsourced to cloud Customer responsible for infrastructure;

Software provider; built into subscription costs significant additional cost and risk

Security/Contingency Data privacy/security, availability, Data privacy/security, availability,

Planning performance, backup, disaster performance backup, disaster recovery
recovery managed by cloud provider; managed by customer at significant
built into subscription costs additional cost and risk

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What to Look for in Cloud Solutions for Higher Education Items to Consider:

There are many cloud and software-as-a-service (SaaS)

providers in the market today. However, organizations
looking to utilize the benefits of a cloud solution need
to determine which vendor can provide a solution that
is uniquely designed for today’s global higher education
organizations. Several items need to be considered when
evaluating which cloud applications will provide long-
term value and sustained cost savings.
• A unified solution specifically designed for higher
education. Colleges and universities benefit from
having all of their key information in one place,
streamlining activities and improving data accuracy.
• A true SaaS platform that reduces costs. A multi-
tenant SasS platform in which every customer is on
the same version of software. No customer is left
behind when the software is updated to include
new features and innovations.

• The right functionality for global higher education

institutions. A cloud solution for higher education
must meet the needs of truly global organizations
with faculty and staff around the world. It should
be able to handle everything from complex payroll
needs to multi-entity organizational requirements.

Workday’s Mission for

Workday’s Mission for Higher
Higher Education
Education
Workday will help transform the administrative systems
and service delivery models across higher education with
cloud solution.

FROM: TO:
Old Modern
Siloed Unified
Expensive Cost-effective
Rigid Agile
Complex Usable
Domestic Global

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• Improved agility. A cloud solution will provide
greater flexibility than traditional on-premise
solutions. It will support multiple dynamic
organizational structures that allow institutions
to accurately represent and update their
organizations and operations in real time.
• Mobile technology. The technology should include
seamless mobile support and an integration
platform that helps organizations keep up with the
latest technological advancements.
• Improved visibility into financial and operational
information. Built-in actionable analytics are
key. There should be no need for separate
reporting tools to analyze information. With all
administrative information in one system, you can
build reports and gain insight in real time straight
from the application.
• Employee empowerment. Armed with unprece-
dented visibility, employees can make better,
faster decisions. In addition, it is easier to maintain
compliance with external reporting requirements,
and organizations can ensure proper stewardship of
funds and strong financial controls. The improved
visibility allows institutions to free up employees
allowing them to focus on more strategic tasks that
advance the mission of the institution.
• Support for shared services. Many higher education
organizations are embarking on shared services
initiatives to drive best practices and cost reduction
across multiple organizations. Ensure that the cloud
solution you are selecting supports multiple entities
in a single shared system, enabling institutions
to effectively manage administration of faculty,
staff, researchers, and student workers across
organizational and global boundaries.

Workday Benefits:
Workday’s Benefits:
Impact on ResourceDeployment
Impact on Resource Deployment
More than 5% of the IT budget today is spent on maintaind and
running existing systems and software infrastructure — Gartner Group

Strategic
25%
Initiatives

75%

Administration,
Operations & 75%
Maintenance

25%

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The Workday Difference
The administrative systems currently running at
most colleges and universities were designed and
implemented years ago. Due to the rigidity of these now
antiquated technologies, institutions are forced to cobble
together disparate systems to address their evolving
administrative needs. These costly, inflexible, and siloed
systems simply cannot keep up with the rate of change
facing today’s institutions.

Although a number of software vendors claim to offer

cloud applications, Workday provides the only real SaaS
alternative to hosted on-premise ERP/administrative
solutions. Workday’s single, unified administrative
solution includes key components that academic
institutions need: Human Resources, Talent Management,
Benefits, Payroll, Financials, Initiatives, and Spend
Management. Designed from the ground up for a multi-
tenant, SaaS delivery model, Workday gives customers
a unified user experience for faculty and staff, real-
time visibility into the state of the organization, and
significant cost savings in the short-and long-term over
traditional administrative systems.

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