Scottish colleges embrace evidence-based collaboration to tackle financial challenges.
Etio’s collaborative benchmarking approach is transforming how Scottish colleges face their pressing financial challenges. By combining robust, comparative data with genuine inter-college collaboration, colleges are evidencing material differences in cost-profiles, illustrating investment need and efficiency opportunities, whilst developing a sector-wide solution that could benefit all colleges. The experience of four of the six institutions (Ayrshire College, Fife College, Forth Valley College, and Glasgow Clyde College) demonstrates that this approach goes far beyond traditional benchmarking, creating a new blueprint for financial sustainability in Scottish further education.
Data-Driven Decision Making
Through Etio’s benchmarking approach, colleges gain a collaborative view of their operations, set within a consistent sector-wide model and viewed through an Etio lens that normalises differences in scale and structure. This ensures comparisons are fair and meaningful, giving leaders the confidence to interrogate costs, impact, and efficiency from a clear, granular perspective. The result is insight that is both accessible and actionable, helping institutions see exactly where resources can be saved, redirected, or reinvested for the greatest impact.
Alan Ritchie, Vice Principal of Finance and Infrastructure at Ayrshire College, explains:
“Having that data and analysis from Etio has started to point us in the direction of areas that we need to look at, in terms of structures and also efficiency levels. We can immediately see where we’re out of kilter with the sector—where we might need to look at costs or where we might need to consider investing, based on how we compare to college A, B or C. We’re able to use this information to make better informed choices, to identify areas of potential inefficiency and explore opportunities for improvement”. [Full article with Ayrshire College]
Wendy Brymer, Assistant Principal at Fife College, highlights how the insights helped identify real savings:
“The data revealed the college had comparatively higher spend on fleet and mileage, which they have now started addressing. Elsewhere, the College has been able to identify savings in other non-pay and pay-related areas, both validating and informing decisions that the college needed to take given real-term reductions in its core funding”. [Full article with Fife College]
Collaboration: The Sector’s New Advantage
What makes the Etio approach stand out is its collaborative ethos. Traditionally, benchmarking was anonymised—colleges would not know which results were from which peers. Now, six Scottish colleges commit to meet to discuss their results openly, validate each other’s successes, and explore collective solutions.
Alan Ritchie remarks,
“The biggest advantage for us has been sitting down with the other colleges—getting together and looking at the data set. Historically, we haven’t shared data enough—it’s only when you start sharing data that you actually start talking about it and start asking the right questions. Every time we’ve done it, something different has come up—there are always those light-bulb moments”.
This sentiment is echoed across the group.
“The regular meetings with other colleges have been brilliant—just sitting down and having conversations about why our data looks different, what others are doing, and where we can learn from each other. It’s been a really good experience,” shares Wendy Brymer.
Senga McKerr, Finance Director at Forth Valley College, adds:
“It really helps those difficult conversations. It’s one thing for us to have conversations with our other finance directors, but it’s another thing to have that independent evidence in black and white. The more colleges that participate, the more beneficial it is for the sector… We are stronger and more effective working together”. [Full article with Forth Valley College]
Practical Outcomes and a Sustainable Future
The tangible results of Etio’s benchmarking are already being felt. Fife College quickly identified actionable savings, Glasgow Clyde College has made informed adjustments to teaching utilisation, and Forth Valley College used the evidence base to drive internal change across their campuses.
The collaborative approach is enriching the dataset for use in national conversations about sector funding and policy, whilst also potentially opening the door for conversations about joint initiatives. Niall Macpherson, COO at Glasgow Clyde College, states,
“Simply asking, ‘Why are you doing better in this area?’ or ‘What are you doing differently?’ has sparked valuable conversations and shared intelligence across the group… Ultimately, it’s all about giving us quality data to make more informed decisions. The collaborative aspect and the longitudinal insights only enhance that value”. [Full article with Glasgow Clyde College]
Invitation to Finance Leaders
Etio’s collaborative benchmarking is not just a tool but a catalyst for change in Scottish colleges. As Wendy Brymer urges, “We’re dealing with significant financial challenges as a sector, and this tool helps us see where we can make efficiencies, learn from others, and ensure we’re making decisions backed by data. I’d encourage more colleges to get involved”.
In a climate where every pound counts, collaboration—supported by rigorous, sector-wide benchmarking—is proving to be a powerful tool for resilience and continuous improvement in the sector. By joining this growing movement, finance leaders can help build a smarter, stronger future for all Scottish colleges.
If you would like to understand how Etio's Performance Benchmarking can support your organisation or group's collaboration projects, please get in touch with Phil Moseley and the Benchmarking team here.
