From Spreadsheets to Apps: Modernizing Activity-Based Costing for Better Decisions

Thursday, October 01, 2026 | 9:30AM–10:30AM MT
Session Type: Poster Session
Delivery Format: Poster Session
Understanding the true cost of services remains a challenge for many higher education institutions. This poster demonstrates how activity-based costing can transform financial and operational data into clear, decision-ready insights, including cost per service and campus-level consumption. It also explores practical lessons from implementation and shows how the process was modernized from spreadsheets into a database and web application built by a single analyst using AI-assisted tools.

Presenters

  • Jenny Ehrnthaller

    Director of Strategic Budget and Finance, University of Illinois Central Administration

  • Adam Frerichs

    Activity-Based Costing Specialist, University of Illinois Central Administration