Case Study
University of New South Wales College: Accelerating finance processes with RPA bots, eliminating 97% of manual tasks
OUR CLIENT
The University of New South Wales College (UNSW College), based in Sydney, Australia, has been delivering international and English language education since 1966. Originally established as the UNSW Institute of Languages, the college has expanded its offerings over the decades to include English language programs, Foundation Studies (first introduced in Australia in 1989), and diplomas. In 2018, it launched its diploma programs, followed by bespoke online offerings in 2020. To date, more than 40,000 students have completed programs at UNSW College, preparing them for further study at UNSW and other universities.
THE CHALLENGE
Wanted to eliminate repetitive, manual financial processes
The college’s finance team wanted to increase operational efficiency and productivity by eliminating error-prone manual tasks associated with these three key financial processes:
- Smart fee diploma invoicing—Finance personnel had to manually click an “accept all” button on the smart fee invoicing screen before invoices could be processed. Although this step was essential to trigger invoicing, it was often missed, which delayed fee processing. It also negatively impacted cash flow, slowed financial reporting, and frequently led to compliance issues.
- Student/sponsor fee statements—This time-consuming process involved multiple manual steps, including navigating through several student categories, previewing data, and generating individual fee statements for each of the school’s 63,000 students. The finance team struggled to generate accurate and timely fee statements. Delays negatively impacted student payments, the school’s financial position, and reporting deadlines.
- Making invoice documents visible in the student portal system—Students wanted to see the most current fee statements and invoices in their portal. When they reviewed old documents, confusion, disputes, and unnecessary calls arose, prompting questions about the fees. Finance personnel had to manually uncheck the “portal” checkbox on each document, so only the most current documents were visible.
UNSW College aimed to implement automations to streamline and accelerate these financial processes, thereby eliminating tedious, error-prone manual tasks.
THE TRANSFORMATION
Accelerated financial workflows with robotic process automation
UST implemented RPA bots to automate critical tasks and create seamless financial workflows. By mimicking human actions, the RPA bots accelerated these tasks:
- Smart fee invoice approvals—A bot triggers statement processing, ensuring all student bills are processed on time and without manual intervention.
- Bulk generation of fee statements—RPA bots automated the bulk generation of statements in minutes instead of hours. This bot was created in such a way that any invoice/statement could be sent in bulk, making it reusable for other processes.
- Automated invoice visibility—The bot updates student portal settings, so the most current bill is visible in a student’s financial portal at any given time. It also edits settings, so multiple versions of invoices are not visible.
The finance team at UNSW College now enjoys streamlined, automated financial processes, enabling personnel to focus on more strategic priorities.
THE IMPACT
Eliminated 97% of manual tasks, improved cash flow, and enhanced student experiences
The successful automation engagement helped UNSW College achieve these business benefits:
- 97% straight-through processing rate—This impressive metric indicates efficient and seamless workflows with minimal manual intervention.
- Accelerated financial processes—The automations significantly sped-up invoicing, fee statement generation, and portal updates.
- Compliance adherence—Now, the finance team can meet reporting deadlines on time and have peace of mind that financial data is accurate.
- Enhanced student experiences—The accurate, timely invoices have reduced confusion and unnecessary calls to the finance department.
- Improved scalability—The automations allow the university to scale its financial operations without adding additional personnel.
If your company wants to streamline processes with RPAs, UST can help. Click here to learn more.
RESOURCES
https://www.ust.com/en/insights/what-is-rpa-and-why-should-every-business-care
https://www.ust.com/en/insights/how-to-capitalize-on-benefits-of-robotic-process-automation
https://www.ust.com/en/insights/what-is-intelligent-process-automation