EduSummit 2026 brought together managers, educators, and specialists in Fortaleza, Ceará, to discuss the challenges and opportunities in the education sector within a context marked by digital transformation, changes in the job market, and new learning demands. PagCorp was there, demonstrating how the number one solution in corporate expense management can contribute to the education market.
In his presentation “The Financial Mission and the Pedagogical Mission: Two Sides of the Same Coin,” Dan Josua, Director of Innovation and People at PagCorp and Educational Coordinator at São Paulo Tech School, offered a reflection on a topic that is often treated separately in educational institutions: the relationship between financial sustainability and the quality of the educational experience.
According to Dan Josua, viewing these two dimensions as independent areas can compromise both the financial health and the educational outcomes of organizations.
“If I only have the financial management part organized and I don't communicate with the pedagogical part, the financial management won't hold up. Now, if I have the pedagogical part and I don't organize the financial part and control expenses properly, there's no way the pedagogical project can survive,” the executive stated.
What is the purpose of education in a constantly changing world?
The lecture began with an essential provocation: what, after all, is the true mission of education? By revisiting the history of modern educational systems, Dan highlighted how education has always been linked to the formation of citizens and the building of communities capable of strengthening society. At the same time, he showed how, throughout the 20th century, schools have assumed the responsibility of preparing professionals for the job market.
Today, however, this challenge has taken on a new dimension. With increasingly rapid technological transformations, professions are disappearing and new occupations are emerging at an unprecedented rate. In this context, skills such as critical thinking, creativity, collaboration, resilience, and leadership are becoming increasingly relevant.
"The job market is demanding what we've always wanted to develop: analytical thinking, critical thinking, creativity, resilience, flexibility, leadership, collaboration, and empathy," Josua assured.
This reflection directly engages with one of the main trends in contemporary education: the strengthening of socio-emotional skills as a central element in student development.
Social-emotional education as a differentiator for the future.
In sharing his experience in building social-emotional learning programs in higher education, Dan Josua emphasized the importance of aligning curricula with the latest evidence on human development and learning.
More than just transmitting technical knowledge, educational institutions face the challenge of training individuals capable of dealing with complex environments, collaborating in teams, and adapting to constant change.
This scenario reinforces the need for schools and educational institutions to have the structure, resources, and processes that allow them to implement their pedagogical projects in a sustainable way.
Financial management as a support for the pedagogical mission.
One of the main points of the presentation was the argument that financial management should not be seen as an area separate from education, but as a fundamental element to guarantee the continuity of pedagogical projects.
According to Dan Josua, financial difficulties directly affect the quality of education, impacting everything from teacher retention to the capacity for investment in infrastructure and innovation. "Financial management is not the enemy of pedagogy; it's its support. It's the oxygen. Without it, this body can't function," he asserted.
During the presentation, the executive highlighted how challenges such as default, payment delays, and lack of expense control can generate a cycle of operational deterioration that affects the entire school community.
When an institution loses financial predictability, cuts increase, staff insecurity grows, and conditions for implementing a consistent educational project diminish.
How technology can simplify expense control.
When discussing the role of innovation in educational management, Dan presented examples of how technology can reduce bureaucracy and offer more autonomy to managers and employees without sacrificing financial governance.
In this context, PagCorp's solutions were highlighted as tools capable of modernizing corporate expense control, bringing more agility, transparency, and security to operations.
For Dan, the goal is not to increase bureaucracy, but to create mechanisms that allow resources to quickly reach those who need them. “Good control is different from bureaucratic control. It's about resources being easily accessible to those who need them, at the right time, with complete visibility for those responsible,” he revealed.
In practice, this means allowing coordinators, managers, and teams to have the autonomy to resolve day-to-day demands without depending on slow processes, while the institution maintains full traceability and governance over expenses.
Two sides of the same coin
In closing his participation in EduSummit 2026, Dan Josua reinforced the central message of his lecture: there is no sustainable pedagogical mission without financial organization, just as there is no efficient financial management that is not connected to the educational purpose of the institution.
“If there’s one message I’d like to leave, it’s that financial management and education are two sides of the same coin. When one works well, the other gains strength. And it is from this connection that more sustainable institutions, better-prepared teams, and educational experiences capable of transforming the future emerge,” the executive revealed.
In this scenario, solutions that promote operational efficiency, transparency, and intelligent expense management help to strengthen precisely what is at the heart of any educational institution: its ability to transform lives through education.
“Financial management is not the destination of this journey, but it is the path that allows the pedagogical mission to happen in a consistent, sustainable, and lasting way. Our role is to help institutions simplify management so that they can dedicate more energy to what they do best: educating. When resources reach the right person at the right time, the pedagogical mission gains strength,” Josua concluded.
Image: PagCorp
