Aligning Project Management and Impact: Outcomes of the Granada Workshop

Last April, the FOREU4ALL community convened in Granada for the workshop “Aligning Project Management and Impact: A Practical and Strategic Dialogue for European University Alliances”, jointly organised by the topical groups on Project Management and Impact. The event, hosted by the Arqus European University Alliance at the University of Granada, brought together representatives from European Universities alliances (EUAs), higher education stakeholders, policymakers, and experts to explore how project management and impact approaches can be better aligned to support long-term transformation in the European Higher Education Area. The outcomes of the workshop are now published, offering collective insights for all.

Participants collaboratively identified practical tools and proposed recommendations, including impact planning frameworks, shared data approaches, communication strategies, capacity-building actions, governance mechanisms, and knowledge-sharing structures. A joint roadmap was developed outlining short-, medium-, and long-term actions to strengthen impact-oriented management across alliances in the future.

Five interconnected challenge areas were analysed:

• embedding impact in strategic planning and proposal design;
• improving data collection and analysis;
• strengthening evidence-informed decision-making;
• communicating performance, impact and societal value;
• and aligning project logic with Alliance-wide strategic objectives.

The event reinforced the understanding that project management and impact should not be treated as separate administrative requirements, but as interconnected drivers of sustainable institutional transformation. By fostering shared learning, collaboration, and practical experimentation, FOREU4ALL contributes to strengthening the collective capacity of European University alliances to demonstrate and achieve meaningful long-term impact within the European Higher Education Area (EHEA).

Reflecting the collective voice of over 140 participants from European University Alliances, the recommendations presented in the report synthesise the substantive outputs of the Granada Workshop across its multiple sessions: the challenge workshops, the poster session, the raising literacy sessions, the toolbox co-creation sessions, the roadmap workshop, and the closing plenary. 

Read the full document here.

Photo credit: Arqus