Unity and maturity: The approach further and higher education need to drive project successAs further education (FE) and higher education (HE) institutions compete to engage stakeholders and stay relevant in an intensifying market, the increasing pace of change can only be managed through successful transformation projects. To be successful, such projects call for a maturation of project management processes and the adoption of modern cloud tools across diverse portfolios.Further education (FE) and higher education (HE) institutions in the UK are under increasing pressure to deliver exceptional services in the face of global competition, rising tuition fees and a growing number of annual applicants that is estimated to reach one million by 2030 . The shift toward blended learning, changing student demographics and a focus on optimising the student experience is only intensifying this pressure, requiring institutions to adapt in order to meet stakeholder expectations and stay competitive.For such transformations to occur successfully, institutions need to deliver numerous and often complex projects. However, there are many factors that can make this challenging. FE and HE institutions are often large in size, comprising several dozens of departments and have a wide range of stakeholders, including faculty, students, administrators, alumni, and government bodies. Balancing the needs and expectations of these groups can be demanding and as such, a mature, uniform approach to project management is highly beneficial to ensure institutions can sufficiently serve and engage stakeholders.ORGANISATIONAL COMPLEXITY IN FE AND HE INSTITUTIONSThe organisational complexity that exists in FE and HE institutions can make communication and collaboration particularly challenging – two components that are essential for effective project delivery. In tandem with the changeable regulatory environment FE and HE sectors must contend with, the difficulties of navigating institutional priorities and the time limitations arising from the academic calendar can equally impact a wide variety of project portfolios, such as IT and digital, strategic change, infrastructure and estates.To adapt and overcome these obstacles, FE and HE institutions have organised project teams through the establishment of Project Management Offices (PMO), applied formal Project Portfolio Management (PPM) practices and modernised project methodologies. However, the typically siloed approach to such endeavours has meant that processes, maturity levels and digital tools vary significantly between different departments and project portfolios.As a result, FE and HE institutions are now facing increasing pressure to break down these silos to ensure strategic initiatives are effectively executed and align with overarching goals. In removing siloed processes, institutions can achieve more consistent outcomes that minimise friction and inconsistencies in the student experience. Facilitating a collaborative, uniform approach among different departments and portfolios can also lead to innovation and the cross-pollination of ideas, helping to create better solutions to complex challenges and improve the management of interdependencies.ALIGNING PROCESSES AND TERMINOLOGY AND DRIVING CONSISTENT WORKING ACROSS DEPARTMENTAL DIVIDESAligning processes and terminology and driving consistent working across departmental divides is fundamental to achieving greater integration, which in turn requires clear leadership and often significant cultural changes. Whilst this may have been difficult in the past, the widescale adoption of modern cloud technologies by FE and HE institutions in recent years has opened up new opportunities for project teams to collaborate and break down silos.Cloud collaboration platforms, such as Microsoft 365, are already widely utilised by institutions for greater team collaboration and information sharing across departmental or even organisational boundaries. Modern cloud-b...

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