8 Steps College CFOs Can Take to Reduce Administrative Costs

During the last four decades, the number of administrative staff has increased by five times when compared to teachers. Hence, the burden of high administrative costs has exploded exponentially. With high inflation all around the world, colleges are struggling with a weighty budget. 

But, there are definitely some steps college CFOs can take to reduce administrative costs. Let’s take a look at them now. 

      1. Examine Your Current Expenses

Identifying and measuring the administrative costs is the first step towards decreasing them. 

The costs associated with various administrative duties and responsibilities, such as salary, supplies, travel, tools, software, and training, must be clearly understood. 

You may employ various techniques and tools to gather and analyze your cost data, including spreadsheets, invoices, accounting software, surveys, and reports. To determine how well you are doing and where you may improve, you must also compare your expenses to best practices and industry standards.

      2. Reduce Waste in Administration 

It is necessary for college campuses to turn towards high standards of transparency and accountability when it comes to administration costs. For example, college campuses can waste a lot of money by processing and counting fraudulent applications. AMSA Connect has been able to save $500 million through round-the-clock monitoring and support for higher education institutions. 

Using such technologically advanced software and tools can help college campuses save thousands of dollars each year. 

      3. Put Away the Paper

While certain paperwork, particularly for administrators, still needs to be completed, filed, submitted, and maintained on real paper, plenty of the work may be completed digitally to cut administrative costs. It will help you save money on copy paper supplies and free up staff members’ time from filing, sorting, and searching for documents throughout the office. 

You may use a scanner to digitize purchase orders, contracts, paper receipts, and other significant paperwork for record-keeping to save money, time, and office space.

Plus, it’s better for the environment! 

      4. Update A Few Procedures

It is now feasible to reduce education costs via the use of technology. Email, WhatsApp Business, SMS, or the school’s system can all be used to distribute announcements and alerts. Video conferencing may be used for meetings.

The college saves money and staff time by modernizing work procedures. Naturally, many individuals may be reluctant to make these adjustments; nonetheless, doing them is worthwhile.

      5. Keep an Eye On Your Supply Purchases

Keeping better track of the items you buy will help you cut administrative expenditures. The amount you spend might be destroyed if you order too many rolls of toilet paper or notebooks. You are over budget for this year’s finances if you have more notebooks than you will use over three years. If you don’t order enough toilet paper for the entire month, you could have to run out and spend more money on last-minute supplies. 

Consumables may occasionally be an undervalued invisible asset that colleges frequently ignore. They are simple to lose, leave behind, misplace, throw away, or take home, which can add to the cost.

      6. Purchase vs. Rent

While some expensive products should be bought, others should be leased. Understanding how, when, and how frequently an item will be utilized may aid in determining which would be the most advantageous to save administrative expenses. 

For instance, if you don’t often throw outdoor gatherings but need a shaded cover for a college event, you might rent one from a supply shop.

      7. Observe Tools and Equipment

Maintaining a record of the equipment and tools that have been purchased can also result in financial loss for service programs. Small equipment, including printers, office fans, calculators, answering machines, telephones, and other necessary but inconsequential items, can add to the overall cost if damaged, stolen, or lost. The housekeeping staff’s tools, including buckets, mops, dustbins, brooms, and more, should also be tracked to ensure they don’t disappear.

      8. Keep an Eye On and Assess Your Outcomes

The last stage is to monitor and assess your outcomes to see whether your waste elimination and cost reduction objectives have been met. You must have a proper system and metrics to track and gauge your performance and advancement. 

You should also solicit their opinion to determine whether your students, stakeholders, and staff are happy with your administrative administration and whether some areas need improvement. 

To ensure they align with the evolving needs and expectations, you should periodically examine and update the cost reduction and analysis initiatives.

Final Thoughts

As costs for tuition keep increasing, it can be difficult to maintain a suitable income for college campuses since students might opt out of the program. To keep overall costs low, CFOs should focus on reducing the administrative budget burdens with innovative techniques like the S.A.F.E software to reduce waste.