What Higher Ed Services does

Higher Ed Services (HES) is a not-for-profit organization, founded in 1999 and headquartered in Canberra, Australia, that is owned by and works for the higher education sector across Australia and New Zealand. HES operates as a sector consortium employing 11–50 staff, providing shared technology infrastructure, business services, and professional communities of practice to universities, TAFEs, and private providers. The organization's mission centers on collaborative development and management of sector partnerships, solutions, and initiatives that individual institutions cannot efficiently build alone.

HES's core technology portfolio includes My eQuals (a digital credentials platform powered by Digitary that enables viewing, sharing, and verification of tertiary qualifications, adopted by every major Australian and New Zealand university and serving over 1 million users within 18 months of full operation), HES Analytics (a sector-wide benchmarking tool allowing institutions to share and compare performance data while retaining sector ownership of the data), and the ANZ Credit Management System (CrMS) currently in Discovery phase, designed to improve cross-border credit recognition and transfer. Additional services include Technology Advisory (identifying and brokering partnerships with technology providers), Business Services (procurement and operational support), and HES Forums (subscription-based communities of practice including the Academic Quality Forum and People & Culture Forum).

HES generates revenue through three primary streams: AWS reselling (offering competitive pricing on 200+ cloud services with value-added billing and migration support), forum memberships ($10/month individual, $950+GST/year institutional), and business services and technology advisory engagements. The organization renegotiates consortium agreements with major enterprise software vendors, notably Oracle, on behalf of the sector. HES is governed by a Board of Directors (chaired since 2022 by Dr Stephen Weller) and holds no external parent, PE, or VC ownership; it is collectively owned by the sector institutions it serves. The company is bound by the Australian Privacy Act 1988 and Australian Privacy Principles, and holds offices in Canberra and Melbourne.

Name

Higher Ed Services

Legal name

Higher Ed Services

Website

https://hes.edu.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1999

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Higher Ed Services (HES) is a not-for-profit sector consortium, founded in 1999 and headquartered in Canberra, Australia, that provides shared technology infrastructure, procurement, and advisory services to universities and tertiary education providers across Australia and New Zealand.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Canberra

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. AWS Reselling: HES is an official AWS reseller offering competitive pricing structures for Amazon Web Services to universities across more than 200 services and solutions, with value-added services including billing solutions, support, TCO analysis and Migration Readiness Assessments.
2. Forum Memberships: Individual memberships at $10/month and institutional memberships at $950 plus GST per annum providing access to communities of practice, professional networks, webinars, resources and networking opportunities.
3. Business Services & Technology Advisory: Comprehensive suite of offerings tailored to meet business and operational needs of higher education providers, including procurement services, technology solutions, and sector partnerships.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Higher Ed Services (HES) operates shared digital infrastructure and business services for the higher education sector across Australia and New Zealand. Its core offerings include My eQuals (a digital credentials platform enabling students and graduates to view, share and verify tertiary qualifications), HES Analytics (a sector-wide benchmarking tool for institutional performance comparison), Business Services (procurement and operational advisory), Technology Advisory (vendor brokering including AWS reselling), and community-based HES Forums. The ANZ Credit Management System (CrMS) is being developed to improve cross-border credit recognition and transfer.

Product overview

HES (Higher Ed Services) is a not-for-profit organisation owned by the Australian and New Zealand higher education sector. The company operates as a unified platform with multiple interconnected service offerings: My eQuals serves as the core digital credentials platform (powered by technology partner Digitary) for all major AU/NZ universities; HES Analytics provides sector-wide benchmarking and performance comparison tools; Business Services encompasses procurement and operational advisory; Technology Advisory identifies and brokers partnerships with technology providers (including AWS and Oracle reseller arrangements); and the Academic Quality Forum provides professional community and development. The ANZ Credit Management System (CrMS) is currently in Discovery phase, aiming to create sector-wide infrastructure for credit recognition and transfer. The company also offers forums as communities of practice and SAM services through KPMG partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• My eQuals: A single source of truth for viewing, sharing and verifying tertiary credentials. Accepted internationally with every major New Zealand and Australian university participating. Powered by technology partner Digitary.

Products and services

• My eQuals
• HES Analytics
• Business Services
• Technology Advisory
• ANZ Credit Management System (CrMS)
• Academic Quality Forum
• Software Asset Management (SAM) Service

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 1 million users accessed digital qualifications within 18 months of My eQuals full operation

Named customers8 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• AWS (Amazon Web Services)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHES is an official AWS reseller, offering universities competitive pricing for Amazon Web Services across more than 200 services. HES provides value-added services including billing solutions, partner-led or AWS-led support, subsidised TCO analysis, and Migration Readiness Assessments.
• Australian Catholic University (ACU)minorOthersACU provides office space for HES Melbourne Offices, supporting HES operations.
• KnowMeQcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerKnowMeQ is supporting the ANZ Credit Management Initiative CrMS Discovery phase, working with HES to define planning, design, technical, and implementation requirements for a sector-wide Credit Management System.
• MortarCAPS Higher Learning Data StandardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMortarCAPS is supporting the CrMS Discovery phase alongside HES and KnowMeQ, contributing to cross-border, cross-sector initiative for tertiary harmonisation across Australia and New Zealand.
• DigitarycoreTechnology or IntegrationDigitary is the technology partner for My eQuals platform, providing the digital credential infrastructure that enables students and graduates to access and share their official digital qualifications.
• The Women's College at The University of SydneyminorOthersHosted the inaugural My eQuals Connect event in Sydney 2024.
• OraclecoreTechnology or IntegrationHES renegotiated consortium agreements with Oracle on behalf of the sector, retaining critical components including EFTSL as licence metric and securing discounts unmatched in the Australian marketplace.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• SURF: Dutch cooperative of education and research institutions providing shared IT infrastructure, procurement, and innovation services. Highly comparable to HES as a sector-owned IT and procurement consortium for tertiary education.
• JISC: UK-based not-for-profit digital, data, and technology agency for higher education and research. Closest functional equivalent to HES: sector-owned consortium providing shared technology infrastructure, digital resources, and procurement services to universities — directly comparable business model and mission.
• Internet2: US not-for-profit computer networking consortium for research and education. Comparable as a member-driven technology consortium serving higher education institutions, with shared services and sector-wide infrastructure.

Regional players

• AARNet: Australia's Academic and Research Network, operating shared telecommunications and network infrastructure for Australian universities and research institutions. Comparable as an Australian sector-owned technology provider serving the same customer base.
• CAUDIT: Council of Australasian University Directors of Information Technology — leadership body for university IT in AU/NZ. Comparable customer base and sector coordination role, though primarily an advisory community rather than service operator.

Broad incumbents

• EDUCAUSE: US-based higher education IT association with broader scope (community, learning, research, advocacy) but overlapping with HES in providing technology advisory, benchmarking (Core Data Service), and professional development forums to universities.
• Parchment: Global commercial digital credentialing and education verification platform. Comparable offering to My eQuals in digital credentials, but operates as a commercial entity across multiple markets — HES's most direct global commercial competitor in credentialing.
• Universities Australia: Peak body representing Australian universities. Comparable as a sector-owned organisation serving AU higher education institutions with advocacy, policy, and shared services — though HES is more IT/operational-focused.
• National Student Clearinghouse: US-based not-for-profit providing education verification, degree verification, and student record services. Comparable sector-coordination function and verification/credentialing services, though operating at much larger scale in the US market.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/higher-ed-services

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Higher Ed Services