What Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services does

Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services (CHESS) is a US non-profit organization incorporated in 2021 and headquartered in Santa Fe, New Mexico, that delivers shared services to higher education institutions. The organization's name and mission framing indicate a consortium-style model in which multiple colleges or universities consolidate administrative functions (such as procurement, finance, HR, payroll, or IT) under a single operating entity to capture economies of scale and reduce per-institution cost. The .edu domain and "Collaborative" branding are consistent with a member-driven structure rather than a vendor-style commercial enterprise.

The firm employs 23 people as of the available data, consistent with a small, recently established non-profit operating in its early build-out phase. Revenue mechanics are not disclosed in the source data, but in the shared-services non-profit model, funding typically derives from member dues, fee-for-service charges, and occasional grants or sponsorships, with surpluses reinvested rather than distributed. No product portfolio, pricing model, customer names, GTM channels, or technology stack are disclosed in the available input; the primary web source returned only a loading/verification page.

The available evidence supports a factual picture of a small, regionally based non-profit collaborative in the US higher education shared-services segment, but the dataset is materially thin on customers, revenue, leadership, partnerships, and product detail. Each of those domains represents a significant data gap for any investment-grade analysis.

Name

Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services

Legal name

Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services

Website

https://chess.edu

Company type

Private

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services (CHESS) is a US non-profit, founded in 2021 and headquartered in Santa Fe, New Mexico, that delivers shared administrative services to higher education member institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Higher Education Shared Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (6117)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Online Nonprofit Universities (EDAHALAK)

Keywords

• Higher education shared services
• Education administration services
• Institutional collaboration
• Nonprofit education services
• Shared back-office services

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Core offering

Based on its name, Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services is a nonprofit collaborative that delivers shared services to higher education institutions. The firm's specific service offerings, scope, and deliverables are not documented in the available source material, which contains only firmographic metadata and a non-substantive website loading page.

Product overview

Insufficient data available to characterize the product and service portfolio. The source page showed only a loading/verification screen with no substantive content about products, services, or organizational offerings.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Recent moves2 records

Expansion highlights1 record

Direct peers

• E&I Cooperative Services: A membership-based, education-focused cooperative that aggregates procurement and shared services for colleges and universities nationwide. It is the closest direct comparator to a higher education shared services collaborative.
• WICHE (Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education): One of four US regional higher education compacts serving western states including New Mexico. Comparable as a multi-institutional higher ed support organization whose territory overlaps CHESS's geographic base.
• NEBHE (New England Board of Higher Education): A regional higher education compact serving New England states with cooperative programs and services. Mirrors the multi-state collaborative structure CHESS would need to replicate.
• SREB (Southern Regional Education Board): A southern US higher education compact coordinating shared programs and policy support among member states. Operates the same shared-services-for-higher-ed model that CHESS targets.
• MHEC (Midwestern Higher Education Compact): A regional higher education compact that delivers shared programs and services across member institutions. Directly comparable as a cooperative-style organization providing pooled higher education services.

Broad incumbents

• EDUCAUSE: A large, well-established higher education IT association that provides shared resources and community services to member institutions. Comparable as a higher ed membership organization, though broader in scope than a focused shared services cooperative.
• NACUBO (National Association of College and University Business Officers): A membership association serving higher education business and finance officers with shared resources, benchmarking, and peer services. Relevant peer because it operates a higher ed shared-services-like membership model.
• American Council on Education (ACE): A large US higher education association coordinating policy, leadership, and shared services on behalf of member institutions. Comparable as a mature, broad higher ed membership organization.

Market position

Strengths3 records

Weaknesses3 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks4 records

Key highlights4 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/chesshighereducation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Collaborative for Higher Education Shared Services