From Manual to Modern: How Automation Helps Higher Education Build a Culture of Compliance

Colleges and universities have a responsibility that goes beyond educating students. They must also safeguard the financial integrity of their institutions. Yet for many, outdated systems and manual processes make this increasingly difficult. Whether it’s managing travel and expense (T&E) reports, auditing grant-related spend, or reconciling vendor invoices, compliance gaps can quietly erode budgets, reputations, and even access to critical funding. 

According to SAP Concur research, 63% of organizations say time wasted during expense audits due to non-compliance is a major challenge. And data from Wakefield Research shows higher education organizations face the same strain: nearly two-thirds (64%) take more than 60 days to process vendor payments, and 37% of expense reports are still audited manually. For colleges and universities managing tight budgets, such inefficiencies are not only costly but also expose significant compliance risks. 

Why compliance challenges are growing on campus 

Higher education faces unique financial and regulatory pressures that make compliance particularly complex: 

• Multiple funding sources — colleges and universities must track spending across federal, state, private, and grant-funded programs, each with its own reporting requirements and restrictions. 
• Decentralized spending — Faculty, researchers, and staff make independent purchasing and travel decisions, creating inconsistent oversight and policy enforcement. 
• Manual audits — Relying on spreadsheets and internal reviews means compliance issues often go unnoticed until after reimbursement — when it’s too late. 

These challenges increase risk and make it harder for universities to deliver on their core mission. Non-compliance can threaten funding, damage institutional reputation, and reduce the resources available for student success. 

Automation brings visibility, control, and consistency 

Manual processes may feel familiar, but they can’t provide the real-time visibility today’s higher education organizations need. According to Wakefield Research, 46% of higher ed leaders say automated compliance checks are essential for identifying fraud and out-of-policy spend before it happens, not after. 

By digitizing travel and expense management, universities can: 

• Identify compliance issues early with intelligent audit tools that automatically flag out-of-policy transactions. 
• Reduce manual workload by automating routine reviews and focusing auditors on high-risk reports. 
• Preserve institutional knowledge through centralized data that doesn’t disappear with staff turnover. 
• Protect sensitive data by consolidating spend management into secure, integrated platforms. 

A modern, integrated T&E system can also help ensure compliance checks happen before payment or reimbursement, significantly reducing audit findings and protecting limited budgets. 

Learn more: Better Audits, Better Results: 3 Ways to Control Spend and Create a Culture of Compliance Across Your Campus 

How intelligent technology transforms audits 

Automated audit tools combine the speed of AI with the accuracy of human expertise to strengthen financial control across campus. Benefits include the ability to: 

• Review expense reports and receipts before reimbursement, identifying waste, fraud, or misuse. 
• Use pattern analysis to uncover repeat offenders or systemic compliance risks. 
• Complete reviews in as little as 48 hours, helping staff and vendors get paid faster. 

This intelligent, proactive approach allows universities to refine policies in real time and focus on continuous improvement instead of damage control. 

Real-world example: How Michigan State University built smarter, safer travel compliance 

Michigan State University knows firsthand that compliance can’t be an afterthought. With faculty, staff, and students traveling around the globe for research, recruiting, and conferences, the university needed a way to manage thousands of travel requests while keeping visibility, safety, and policy adherence front and center. 

When the travel team began re-evaluating its systems, the goal wasn’t just faster approvals. It was consistent compliance and stronger duty of care. According to Wakefield Research, nearly half (48%) of higher education leaders require integration with existing finance and ERP systems, and 46% require automated internal compliance checks to flag fraud or noncompliant charges. Michigan State University’s priorities reflected those same needs. 

“We were looking for a partner that operated with other partners to create that really holistic, comprehensive duty of care product,” said Ed Phillips, University Travel Manager. “By connecting Concur, TripLink, and our ERP, we built a system that’s user-friendly, auditable, and compliant.” 

Now, Michigan State University can automatically capture travel data from booking through reimbursement, integrate with its duty of care partner to locate travelers in emergencies, and maintain consistent visibility into spend across departments — a significant leap from the fragmented, manual processes of the past. 

Michigan State University’s journey reflects what many colleges and universities are realizing: modern T&E systems are more than operational upgrades. They’re compliance enablers. With 83% of higher education organizations planning to invest in new or updated travel and expense technology this year, forward-thinking schools are following this lead to protect their people, their data, and their funding. 

Preparing for the future of campus compliance 

Regulatory expectations, cybersecurity threats, and funding pressures aren’t slowing down. For universities to thrive, they need systems that are flexible, automated, and secure. 

With a modern T&E solution that has compliance capabilities baked in, colleges and universities can: 

• Enforce compliance policies automatically. 
• Audit spend intelligently and efficiently. 
• Integrate seamlessly with existing ERP and financial systems. 
• Build a connected campus that balances efficiency, transparency, and accountability. 

Every dollar your college or university saves through better compliance is another dollar that can be invested in students, research, and innovation. Automation empowers colleges and universities to protect their funding, uphold their values, and strengthen their mission, today and for the generations to come. 

Ready to modernize your travel and expense processes and strengthen compliance across your campus? Explore SAP Concur solutions for higher education and see how automation can protect your people, data, and funding.