Part 4: Universities in the Knowledge Economy (original) (raw)

Editorial: Universities in the knowledge economy: places of expectation/spaces for reflection?

2006

The current higher educational landscape in the UK is marked by complex sets of expectations, accompanied by efforts to encourage universities into diversifying and stratifying functions. Yet the picture is far from clear and a number of tensions and contradictions remain, such as in relation to incentivisation and reward structures which impact differentially on universities. For universities that attempt to translate these agendas into meaningful actions at the local level, the result is a mixture of enthusiasm, engagement, retreat and defence. This article will demonstrate such processes in action through a discussion of the ongoing "Manchester--Knowledge Capital" initiative, which seeks to bring local and regional partners and universities together to create a critically acclaimed global pivot to the emerging knowledge economy.

The University in the Knowledge Economy: Academic Capitalism and Its Implications

This article introduces the debate about the role of the university in the knowledge economy to the literature on doctoral education in public administration. An important part of this narrative is the rise of academic capitalism and the increasing tension between symbolic and commodified knowledge. A second part of this narrative is intellectual work as public work. Central to this idea of academic public work is the co-producing of knowledge and the valuing of local knowledge alongside expert knowledge, thus creating the conditions for universities in the 21st century to become enclaves of democratic engagement. Democratic engagement underscores the importance of epistemological pluralism and inclusiveness. Faculty and doctoral students in public administration can benefit from an appreciation of this new context.

Towards the 'Neoliberal' University: Higher Education and Innovation in the Knowledge Economy

Recent decades have seen significant changes within the realm of academia, as universities and similar public institutions of higher education become steadily linked to economic development. These changes can be understood as occurring within a complex set of dialectical processes, inextricably intertwined, in part, with neoliberal discourse and the development of the knowledge economy and knowledge capitalism. Certainly, as a facet of globalization, the ascendancy of neoliberalism in particular has proven catalytic in the paradigmatic shift towards a knowledge-based economy, wherein knowledge and information effectively function as the new capital. In turn, universities are thus regarded as veritable bases of knowledge at the heart of this economy and are therefore increasingly justified within economic terms. Moreover, policy communities at both national and transnational levels of government are recognizing an integral role in universities to potentially act as powerful drivers of innovation and economic change. Naturally, this raises questions concerning the role of the university and its function for modern society within the context of the developing knowledge economy. In this case, we aim to explore the role of the university within the framework of recent policy touting the importance of knowledge and innovation and advocating the alignment between academia and industry. Of course, this is not to depreciate either the current or future capacities in which universities and institutions of higher education can act as economic drivers and play an important role in fostering economic growth. Rather, it is the fundamental shift in the way that universities are redefining this role that deems closer scrutiny. To be sure, the attempt to align academia with business can have profound implications for the roles such institutions play in our society. Our goal is to adopt an exploratory approach in examining these roles and the various issues and challenges—both existing and potential—that universities face within the context of the developing knowledge economy and within an environment increasingly shaped by neoliberal discourse. By evaluating the wide range of these perspectives regarding the role of the university, we aim to synthesize an instrumentalist approach in looking forward towards the changing nature of higher education and the future role of the university.

Universities in the New Knowledge Landscape: Tensions, Challenges, Change—An Introduction

Minerva, 2010

In the last decades of the twentieth century universities in Europe and other OECD countries have undergone a profound transformation. They have evolved from mainly élite institutions for teaching and research to large (public and private) organisations responsible for mass higher education and the production and distribution of new knowledge. Increasingly, new knowledge is produced by universities not only for its own sake but also for potential economic gains.

Adapting the pattern of university organisation to the needs of the knowledge economy

European Journal of Education, 2000

Universities worldwide are facing two major challenges. The first concerns the continuous need to generate and disseminate adequate knowledge that can significantly contribute to the development of the emerging knowledge economy. The second is the ability to adequately train a new class of workers, the knowledge workers. Universities are becoming more and more`knowledge enterprises' because they produce, intermediate and disseminate all kinds of knowledge to develop knowledge economies and train knowledge workers. The new economy is based more upon knowledge than upon capital or manual labour (Thurow). Universities play a crucial role in the context of opportunities and risks generated by the new economy. Universities are first of all partners or promoters of brainpower industries as Information and Communication Technology, biotechnology, chemistry, advanced services, government, etc. In these industries, products and services will be developed increasingly through the combination of expert and tacit knowledge (Nonaka), through a new relationship between theory and practice: this is a challenge that universities should face. Universities in technology, economy, social sciences and others-should rapidly generate meaningful scientific and practical knowledge, especially in countries which are not at the lead of the new economy, as many European countries. Information and Communication Technologies upset organisations, institutions and societies, but do not redesign them: universities Ð as multidisciplinary agencies Ð should help in visioning and designing new ones, especially in ancient traditions such as Western and Eastern Europe. IC Technologies will provide individuals and communities with an unprecedented power in action and communication, but this may increase inequality and conflicts (Tapscott): Universities have the scientific and moral authority to support both innovation and social developments, mainly in areas of intense social differentiation and of immigration as Europe. The`information marketplace' (Dertouzos) which is supported or made by ICTs will allow economic transactions of the same magnitude as the traditional market: universities may contribute to redesign the economic and social dimensions of traditional and virtual markets. Universities in Europe operate both in a global economy and in differentiated cultural and social local settings: they are the best equipped global and local agencies for facing the problems of the institutional embeddedness of the economic processes (Powell). Universities are going to train`knowledge workers' (Drucker), i.e. scholars,

Universities Upside Down: The Impact of the New Knowledge Economy

Canadian Journal of Women and the Law/Revue Femmes et Droit, 2009

Engaging with the fiftieth anniversary theme of “Knowledge Reconsidered: Feminism in the Academy at York,” this presentation will consider the knowledge revolution that is presently occurring in the academy. Instead of pursuing knowledge for its own sake, à la Newman, universities everywhere are playing a key role in the production of new knowledge as required by nation states. The effect of global trends such as the commodification of knowledge and knowledge transfer will be addressed. The key question in light of these phenomena is what space is there within the new paradigm for the pursuit of feminist, critical, and theoretical knowledge that lacks market value?

Universities and the emerging new players: building futures for higher education

Technology Analysis & Strategic Management, 2009

Universities are long-established organisations, and although they have reinvented themselves several times, major reforms are needed again, underpinned by systematic prospective analyses. A novel method is needed to take into account the wide-ranging and complex factors, shaping the future of the higher education system. 'Futures' should be devised in a multi-level structure as the bulk of trends and driving forces are international in their nature and universities are embedded in broader socio-economic systems. This new approach is demonstrated here by devising 'cascading' futures for the European Union (EU), the European Research and Innovation Area (ERIA) and universities. Several advantages can be expected from this type of prospective analysis: (i) the potential changes of these broader settings, in which universities operate, as well as their impacts on higher education can be explored; (ii) the huge diversity of higher education systems and individual universities can be reflected; and (iii) the likely impacts of different policy options can also be explored. It is also proposed to select foresight programmes from the 'prospective toolkit', given their specific features and benefits compared to other prospective methods. otherwise evident point that universities operate in broader socio-economic systems, and thus it is crucial to set the scene when thinking about their future. One possibility could be to treat these systems as given. The EU itself, however, is still evolving, as a result of a number of internal and external factors. This article, therefore, devises several distinct futures 3 for the EU as a starting point. It is also assumed that the European Research and Innovation Area can evolve in different directions, depending on the main features of the EU to a significant extent, but obviously having its own dynamics, too. The scenarios developed for universities below are largely driven by these broader structures, that is, the EU and the ERIA.

The university in the learning economy

2002

In all parts of the world, universities are exposed to a growing pressure to change. This is caused by the emergence of new relationship between the economic dynamics and the production of knowledge as well as by policy and administrative initiatives finding their rationale in interpretations of these changes. In this paper an attempt is made to specify some of the new challenges, and suggest appropriate responses. Under the heading 'the learning economy' changes in the context of universities are identified. One important conclusion is that traditional modes of organisation, characterised by sharp and rigid borders between disciplines and isolation from the society at large are being challenged and alternatives have to be developed. Another conclusion is that strategies of alliance and networking have become a key factor behind the success of universities. A third conclusion is that the universities' most significant contribution to society and the economy will remain welleducated graduates with critical minds and good learning skills.