The higher education landscape is changing rapidly
More institutions are actively considering mergers and strategic transformations to secure long-term sustainability. Boards and leadership teams need access to evidence, lived experience and strategic insights to make informed decisions and lead change effectively.
Whether your institution is exploring options, assessing risk or actively planning a merger, the critical questions remain the same: What does good governance of transformation look like? What have others learned? Where are the barriers – and how do you navigate them? These resources offer insights and approaches.
Our sector partners – UUK, AHUA, GuildHE, CUC, AHUA and Independent Higher Education (IHE).
Practical, evidence-based support for strategic decision-making
The insights reports share real accounts from recent mergers in the sector, so you can learn from those who have already navigated institutional transformation.
Understand what to prioritise at every stage, the risks involved, and what questions governors and leaders should be asking throughout the process.
Resources structured to support both governing bodies and senior leadership teams, helping Chairs and Vice-Chancellors to align their approach.
The sector resource takes a comprehensive view of merger and strategic transformation, covering governance, leadership, culture, financial scrutiny and risk.
Not just analysis — each resource points you towards examples, approaches and tools to help you move forward with clarity and confidence.
Advance HE and sector partners intend to continue adding insights and information to the resource over time, keeping it current as practice evolves.
Four resources, one member benefit
This member benefit brings together insights reports from three recent sector mergers alongside a new holistic resource for governing bodies and executive teams.
Built for those leading and governing institutional change, these resources are designed for the senior leaders and governors responsible for the most consequential decisions in their institution’s future.
Governing and Leading Merger and Strategic Transformation: Insights and Approaches in HE
Sector Resource
A comprehensive, navigable resource for governing bodies and leadership teams. Structured to support sense-making at every stage, it draws on recent sector examples to provide evidence-based insights, key decision points, questions to ask, and signposts for action – grounded in globally relevant governance principles.
Merger Insights Report: City St George’s, University of London
Insights Report
A detailed account of the merger experience at CSG, sharing lived experience, governance approaches and lessons learned for boards and leaders navigating similar journeys.
Merger Insights Report: the Health Sciences University (HSU)
Insights Report
Drawing on the experience of HSU, this report provides evidence-based perspectives on the strategic, financial and governance dimensions of institutional merger in higher education.
Merger Insights Report: Anglia Ruskin University
Insights Report
An insight report drawing on Anglia Ruskin University’s merger experience, offering lived experience, governance insights and practical lessons for boards and leaders leading similar processes.
The Merger Insights Reports offer lived experiences from recent sector mergers to learn from, while the insights and approaches sector resource provides key insights and signposts to guide through the thinking needed from governors and leaders.
Kim Ansell – Senior Consultant, Governance and Strategic Transformation – Advance HE
