Process management in higher education: universities in America and Europe. A comprehensive review

Abstract

Digital transformation in higher education has intensified pressures for greater administrative efficiency, transparency, and an improved student experience, renewing interest in business process management (BPM) as a mechanism for aligning strategy and operations. The aim of this study was to map and characterize BPM research published between 2020 and 2025 in universities across the Americas and Europe. A scoping review was conducted using ERIC, SciELO, Redalyc, and DOAJ, supplemented by metadata services (Crossref, OpenAlex, Semantic Scholar) to verify identifiers, remove duplicates, and support further retrieval. Two reviewers independently examined titles/abstracts and full texts and collected data on regional context, process scope, implementation approach, associated technologies (process mining; and, when reported, BPMS and robotic process automation), and reported outcomes. The search identified 20 records; Following the selection process, nine studies (concentrated between 2021 and 2025) were included, predominantly from the Americas (n=7) compared to Europe (n=2). The evidence was grouped into organizational BPM (governance, maturity, control, indicators) and data-driven BPM (process analysis/mining) focused on academic processes and student pathways. Overall, BPM promotes efficiency, traceability, and decision support when combined with process governance, change management, and data capabilities, although tensions between standardization and agility remain.