The University of Plymouth has made its finance operations more cost-efficient and streamlined via its partnership with technology-enabled business transformation consultancy, Embridge Consulting.
Home to approximately 19,000 students and internationally recognised for excellence in teaching, research, and sustainability, the University had been using a leading SaaS-based RPA platform to automate the creation and distribution of invoices generated from financial spreadsheets. While effective, the platform required specialist expertise to maintain after staffing changes, and operated separately from the University’s wider enterprise systems. This limited flexibility as requirements evolved.
With an emotionally intelligent ‘elastic’ approach to change – designed to help business transformation adapt, stick and scale – Embridge boasts a proven track record of success in delivering complex transformation for hundreds of organisations across the public sector, NHS and healthcare, higher education, not-for-profit and professional services.
Having worked successfully with Embridge for more than five years, the University turned to its trusted partner to design and implement a more integrated approach within its existing Unit4 environment.
Embridge specialists built and configured custom integrations using the Unit4 Extension Kit to bring the University’s invoice automation processes previously delivered through an RPA platform directly into Unit4.
Since going live, the solution has allowed the finance team to create and issue invoices automatically, without manual intervention or reliance on additional platforms.
Alongside technical delivery, Embridge also provided structured staff training to ensure teams could confidently adopt and sustain the new approach. The University is now able to unlock greater value from the platforms it already uses, supporting strong adoption while enabling teams to work more effectively together across finance processes.
The impact has been particularly significant for the University’s innovation centres in Cornwall, which issue hundreds of SME tenancy invoices each month.
Steven Piper, Interim Finance Systems Manager, Financial Operations at the University of Plymouth, said: “Embridge has made a huge difference. By helping us harness and expand upon the full potential of the Unit4 Extension Kit, we’ve reduced reliance on an RPA system that was being retired due to its limited ROI within the current team context. The ability to rely on alternative methods that are simpler to support and easier maintain for the same functions has really streamlined our financial operations processes. As a result, teams are working far more efficiently, in sustainable, connected ways that not only save time and money but also drive better customer service”.
Faye O’Connell, Chief Product Officer at Embridge Consulting, added: “This project shows how organisations can unlock significant value from the platforms they already use on a daily basis. By extending automation within Unit4 and supporting users through the change, the University of Plymouth has created a more connected, efficient finance environment that’s easier to maintain and ready to support future transformation”.
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