Doing More With Less: Measuring the Impact of AI in Higher Education

Thursday, October 22, 2026 1:40 PM to 2:10 PM · 30 min. (Europe/London)
Rutherford Room
Breakout
Finance, Strategy and LeadershipDigital, Data and Systems

Information

As universities face increasing financial pressures, AI is often presented as a way to do more with less. However, while the potential is significant, demonstrating return on investment remains challenging as many institutions are still in the early stages of adoption.

This session explores how universities can move beyond experimentation and develop a practical approach to monitoring, evaluating and measuring the impact of AI initiatives. We will discuss how to identify opportunities that align to institutional priorities, establish meaningful success measures, and track benefits such as time savings, service improvements, enhanced student experience and better decision-making.

Attendees will gain insights into:

  • How to define meaningful measures of success before implementing AI initiatives
  • Approaches for establishing baselines and monitoring benefits over time
  • Why focusing on outcomes and institutional priorities is more important than chasing isolated AI use cases
  • How to build the governance, accountability and evaluation mechanisms needed to support sustainable adoption and demonstrate value

This session will provide practical guidance for leaders looking to make informed decisions about AI investment and ensure benefits can be evidenced as adoption matures.



Waterstons8Waterstons is a bigger picture technology consultancy. Our team has helped organisations across the world make IT and digital technology secure, functional and valuable. Advising, implementing and supporting as consultant practitioners. We do the thinking, the doing, and the seeing-through. We understand your goals, your context and what good looks like, then do whatever it takes to help you get there. Working with no-nonsense leaders who need important problems solved, and technology that helps achieve their goals, we get you before getting to work. Then bring in the right people, right expertise and right attitude to make a real difference.