Axiom® Labor Planning, part of the Axiom® Higher Education Suite, enables higher education leaders to take a more strategic, data-driven approach to workforce and compensation planning that improves accuracy, agility, and financial control.

Higher education institutions are facing mounting financial pressure from declining enrollment, rising costs, shrinking international pipelines, and growing skepticism about the value of a degree. For many colleges and universities, the challenge is compounded by something less visible: disconnected leadership, fragmented data, and siloed systems that slow decision-making and weaken financial resilience. 

Yale University transformed its budgeting and planning process with Strata’s Axiom® software, creating a more connected, flexible approach to financial management across its complex organization. With more than 450 users spanning academic departments, professional schools, museums, libraries, and administrative functions, Yale needed a solution that could support both detailed departmental analysis and high-level executive reporting. Axiom delivered a streamlined, Excel-based platform that unified budgeting, forecasting, and reporting into one integrated system.   

In an environment where labor costs account for about 60% of institutional spending, colleges and universities must have tools and processes to precisely and continuously monitor these expenses.^[i] Many institutions rely on annual forecasting, a once-a-year projection that’s often outdated by the time it’s fi