In the rapidly evolving landscape of global higher education, universities are no longer just centres of learning; they are complex, multi-faceted enterprises requiring the operational agility of Fortune 500 companies.
Deloitte’s 2026 higher education trends highlight that institutions are currently poised for massive reinvention amid shifting enrolment models, AI advancements, and an urgent need for operational agility.
To meet these modern demands, Singapore Management University (SMU) has undertaken a sweeping, university-wide business transformation to support its flagship SMU2030 Strategic Plan—an agenda anchored on a purposeful impact mission to transform lives through education, research, and partnerships.
For Lau Kai Cheong, SMU’s chief information officer, the limitations of the legacy environment were increasingly operational rather than purely technical. “Core processes across finance, grants, HR, procurement, travel and expenses were supported by multiple systems, some of which were not fully integrated and still depended on manual or offline workarounds,” he explained.
“Data harmonisation was a challenge across silo systems, and there were limited user self-service capabilities in these systems.” Lau Kai Cheong
These constraints diverted employees from analysis and service delivery toward administration and reconciliation. As SMU grew, the accumulation of workarounds increased risk.
“Continuing to add workarounds to the existing environment would have increased complexity and risk,” Lau noted. “We therefore needed to address the underlying processes, data and controls through a connected digital core.”
That diagnosis aligns with broader market trends. Gartner predicts that 60 per cent of all new ERP deployments by 2026 will be cloud-native, reflecting a massive shift away from legacy, on-premises systems.
The case for integration over modularity
SMU faced a choice that confronts many large organisations: assemble a best-of-breed modular stack or commit to a tightly integrated platform. Lau said the decision was evaluated in terms of the long-term operating model rather than the initial cost of individual applications alone.
“A highly modular approach can provide flexibility, but it can also create more integration points, fragmented data ownership and additional effort whenever a process or system changes,” he observed.
The integrated approach allowed SMU to adopt standard functionality and minimise customisation. “Fewer bespoke components should mean less maintenance, more predictable upgrades and a lower likelihood of introducing problems when the environment changes.”
The university did not conduct a formal total-cost comparison. Instead, it assessed implementation complexity, integration effort, operational risk, and long-term support costs. “The assessment showed that an integrated ERP platform would reduce the number of interfaces to maintain, simplify governance, and lower lifecycle costs associated with upgrades and system changes,” Lau said.
“The ability to operate on a common data model and standardised business processes also reduced operational risks that would otherwise arise from managing multiple applications.” Lau Kai Cheong
That reasoning resonates with consultant findings. Forrester’s Q1 2026 ERP Landscape identifies AI-driven automation as the main innovation trend, but stresses that the primary challenge remains change management and organisational readiness—compounded by the complexity of data migration.
SMU’s decision to prioritise a common data model from the outset effectively front-loaded that remediation.
The toughest technical hurdle
The most demanding integration involved connecting SAP SuccessFactors, SAP S/4HANA, and SAP Ariba—particularly where HR master data drives finance, procurement, and workflow processes. SMU enlisted the support of SAP implementation partner, Abeam Consulting.
“The challenge was ensuring that employee records, organisational structures and approval hierarchies remained synchronised across systems while supporting payroll, procurement approvals and financial controls,” Lau said.
The team addressed this through extensive data cleansing, standardisation of master data, clearly defined ownership of business data, and repeated end-to-end integration testing.
“The experience reinforced that successful integration depends as much on business agreement around common data definitions and processes as it does on technical implementation.” Lau Kai Cheong
Winning over faculty and staff
Technology was only half the battle. SMU’s workforce comprises faculty, professional staff, and multiple schools and units, each with varying requirements. The largest shift was moving from familiar local practices, emails, and manual forms to common, system-driven workflows.
“Standardisation therefore required more than teaching people how to use a new interface; it involved changing established ways of working,” Lau said.
Employee and manager self-service represented a particular cultural adjustment. Tasks previously routed through administrators could now be completed directly through digital workflows. “Some staff were accustomed to administrative teams handling transactions on their behalf and were uncertain about taking on these responsibilities directly,” he recalled.
The university responded with hands-on training, departmental champions, simplified user guides, short instructional videos, and responsive support.
Another challenge involved standardising approval workflows; different schools and departments had developed their own local practices over time. Rather than replicate every variation, SMU worked with business stakeholders to agree on common processes while preserving genuine regulatory and operational requirements.
The two-phase HR rollout reflected a learning mindset. Phase 1 focused on establishing SMU’s core HR capabilities and foundational processes. Phase 2 then introduced additional functionality to improve employee services and respond to evolving organisational requirements.
“One important lesson from Phase 1 was that organisational readiness was just as important as technical readiness,” Lau said. “While the system functioned as designed, users needed greater confidence in the new processes, particularly around manager self-service, approvals and policy changes.”
That insight reshaped Phase 2: business users were engaged earlier in the design and testing process, change communications were strengthened, and post-go-live support was increased. “This phased approach allowed us to treat implementation as an organisational change programme rather than a one-time technology deployment,” he noted.
That emphasis on organisational readiness mirrors consultant guidance. Plante Moran, in its 2025 analysis of change management strategies, warns that organisations frequently launch top-of-the-line technologies only to find dismal adoption six to 12 months later because internal structures were not ready to absorb dramatic change.
SMU’s phased approach and investment in departmental champions appear to have sidestepped that trap. Early adoption reached 83 per cent of employees, with nearly 3,900 workflows triggered after go-live.
Measuring success beyond go-live
Since going live in January 2026, SMU has recorded tangible operational improvements. More than 10,000 suppliers have been onboarded through self-service registration via SAP Ariba, with 4,700 purchase orders synchronised.
Supplier collaboration on SAP Business Network has exceeded 2,000 onboarded suppliers. In finance, SAP Concur has processed over 3,600 claims, 3,700 payments, and over 500 accounts receivable collections within the first month.
But Lau is clear that adoption and transaction volumes are only early indicators. “The longer-term test is whether SMU can operate more quickly, consistently and with better information,” he said.
The university is tracking processing times for procurement, expense reimbursement, and financial close; the proportion of transactions completed without manual intervention; and self-service completion rates.
Specific targets include reducing procurement cycle time by approximately 20 to 30%, completing expense reimbursement within five working days for standard claims, shortening the financial month-end close by 20 to 30%, and achieving integration success rates above 99%.
“The clearest measure of agility will be how quickly SMU can respond to a new policy, reporting requirement or organisational need without introducing another manual workaround or extensive custom development.” Lau Kai Cheong
A foundation for 2030
For SMU, the transformation is not an endpoint but a foundation. “By modernising our core platforms, harmonising processes, and creating a more connected data environment, we have enhanced operational efficiency, strengthened decision-making capabilities, and created a scalable foundation for future innovation,” Lau said. “This transformation helps position SMU to support the evolving needs of our community and advance our SMU2030 vision.”
That framing—treating ERP selection as a decision about the institutional operating model rather than a procurement exercise—reflects a growing consensus among higher education technology consultants. As institutions face constrained resources and rising expectations for digital services, the ability to adapt without accumulating technical debt may prove to be the most important metric of all.
The true test of any transformation is long-term operational agility.
Eileen Chua, managing director of SAP Singapore, noted, “Universities today are under increasing pressure to deliver more integrated campus experiences while operating with greater agility and accountability. By bringing together finance, HR, procurement and travel on SAP’s unified cloud platform, SMU has established a strong digital foundation that supports its SMU2030 ambitions.”
