Hyper-Automation and Open Innovation: The Future of Digital Transformation of Accessible and Cost-Efficient Global Online Education

Abstract

This research examines the integration of Hyper-Automation and Open Innovation within a non-profit, global online educational institution to enhance operational efficiency, financial sustainability, and educational access at scale. This exploratory research was motivated by the challenge of delivering education that is both accessible and affordable to millions of learners, especially those in disadvantaged and geographically remote areas. The current education system is inadequate in addressing such challenges on a large scale due to resource constraints. Hence, this research proposes a digital-first approach based on automation and open innovation.
With a mixed-methods approach, the study examined more than eight key administrative and academic workflows in a commercial VLE serving over two million students. Quantitative primary data were gathered from system logs, labour cost reports, and automation scripts. Qualitative data were collected from stakeholder interviews, technical documentation, and student support feedback. The research examined the relative productivity of manual versus automated workflows in enrollment, assessment setup, exam retake workflows, certifications, live broadcast workflows, and student support.
The results demonstrate that Hyper-Automation reduced their annual manual labour from 139,748 hours to 11,252 hours and their monthly process costs from 109,245 USD to 9,000 USD, resulting in a staggering gain of over 91%. Automation not only streamlined high-volume tasks but also improved process consistency, response time, and scalability. Open Innovation helped bring together open-source technology, community-developed tools, and modular infrastructure to decrease reliance on a single vendor and reduce licensing costs.
The research confirmed two central hypotheses: (1) Hyper-Automation and Open Innovation substantially improve cost-efficiency in the provision of large-scale online education. (2) By adopting these approaches, an educational organisation can ensure a cost-efficient, large-scale online education provision with an agile core team of highly skilled staff, overcoming limitations in technical resources while ensuring long-term sustainability. Notably, the research revealed that human oversight remains essential and is still necessary to manage emotionally sensitive support cases and to review the quality of processes.
This research presents a replicable model and a practical strategic implementation plan for educational organisations seeking scalable digital transformation. It offers practical implications and future research directions for AI-supported content generation and infrastructure design, aiming to deliver global digital education more efficiently.