Change and Continuity in the Appointment of Second Tier University Managers (original) (raw)
Related papers
2015
The roles of deputy and pro vice chancellors (DPVCs) are changing and so is the way they are being appointed. This study examines (i) why many pre-1992 English universities are moving from an internal, fixed-term secondment model of DPVC appointment to one incorporating external open competition; and (ii) what the implications of change are for individual careers and management capacity building. At a theoretical level, it explores the extent to which DPVC appointment practice is symptomatic of ideal-type managerialism and subjects the prevailing academic narrative - that the power of academics has declined in relation to that of managers - to critical examination in the light of the findings. The research, which uses a mixed-methods design incorporating a census, online survey and 73 semi-structured interviews, has generated some unexpected findings. Notably, the opening up of DPVC posts to external open competition has resulted in a narrowing, rather than a diversification, of the...
2013
Executive management teams in pre-1992 universities are changing, both in terms of what they do and how they are appointed. The traditional internal secondment model for PVC appointments is increasingly giving way to one of open external competition, often utilising the services of executive search agencies. But who or what is driving this change: government policy, the global higher education marketplace, the whim of the Vice Chancellor, or something else? And what have been the outcomes – intended or otherwise? This paper will present some early answers to these questions. It will also begin to subject to critical examination the hackneyed rhetoric of managerialism in HE with its underlying assumptions that managerialism is both all-pervasive and has resulted in the inexorable rise of management at the expense of academic power.
2012
This paper will report on preliminary findings from an ongoing empirical doctoral study examining the implications of recent change to the way Pro Vice Chancellors (PVCs) are appointed. As key members of the university top team, PVCs perform a distinctive and vital role as facilitators of the Vice Chancellor’s vision and as catalysts for action (Smith, Adams & Mount 2007). Attracting the best people to these jobs is fundamental to an institution’s effectiveness. Nevertheless, the recruitment and selection of top team members remains a relatively under-researched and under-theorised area of enquiry (Kennie & Woodfield 2008) that warrants further investigation, not least because of an enduring public perception of “leadership deficit” in HE (Watson 2008). Earlier research by the author has established that many pre-1992 universities are moving away from the traditional internal, fixed-term secondment model of PVC appointment to one of external advertisement, often utilising the servic...
Bureaucratic, Professional and Managerial Power in University Tenure Track Recruitment
Peer review in an Era of Evaluation, 2022
In this chapter, our interest lies in analysing the different powers in recruitment and, particularly, how they are manifested in the new tenure track model in technical fields in Finland. Traditionally, recruitment in higher education has mostly relied on the bureaucratic application of processes and on academics, representing professional power, evaluating academic merit. The new university legislation, granting universities more autonomy in recruiting, has allowed the development of increasingly strategic recruitment models. The novel tenure track recruitment criteria exceed traditional notions of individual merits to include assessments of the strategic visions of universities and departments. We see the use of the tenure track model as a shift both in the recruitment for identity building related to the technical university’s strategy and as a shift in using more managerial power in recruitment. We use a case study approach where we look at recruitment in a similar field in two...
Higher Education Quarterly
Deputy and pro-vice-chancellors (DVCs and PVCs) are core members of the executive team and play a pivotal role in university management. Nevertheless, they have rarely been the subject of empirical investigation. This study addresses this research gap, utilising a census to examine the size and remit of the DVC and PVC cohort in English pre-1992 universities and map its evolution since 2005. It shows how these universities have increased the number of DVCs and PVCs, created new more managerial variants of the role and extended their collective remit. These developments evidence the extent to which pre-1992 universities have strengthened their executive and adopted a more corporate post-1992 university management model. Yet, despite the advent of new executive-style roles, the endurance of the traditional floating policy PVC testifies to the continued salience of academic leadership—as well as more managerial approaches—in contemporary university management.
Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management, 2019
This paper reports on research conducted to understand key factors impacting the recruitment and selection of senior academic leaders in Australian universities. A key finding emerging from this research was an increasing reliance on executive search firms when recruiting senior academic leaders. This reliance is driven by a range of factors including an ageing and contracting pool of potential academic leaders, growing competition domestically and internationally and the declining attractiveness of academia as a sustainable career in the context of increased casualisation of the academic workforce. Concurrently, workforce planning and succession planning have not been a high priority for many universities. As a result, Australian universities are finding it increasingly difficult to recruit senior academic leaders without the use of executive search firms. These findings have significant implications for the higher education sector in Australia and warrant further research.
The study seeks to determine a fitting model for public university administrators in formally identifying potential candidates to fill in key management positions. The review of literature provided three keywords from various models such as talent pool management, succession planning and replacement planning. Within the context of local public universities, which formal documentation would prove the right fit? Preliminary interviews with two deans at a public university showed that potential candidates are only identified three months prior to the end of a dean"s tenure. The final decision on the successor is done by the Vice Chancellor of the university. As such, it is suggested that a strategic, long-term plan be drawn up to include a formal documentation naming potential leaders. This would reduce organizational conflict and ensure that the right candidate with the right qualifications is chosen to helm a prestigious academic post.
The Process of Change in University Management: From the" Ivory Tower" to Entreprunialism
The article aims to provide a retrospective overview of the changes experienced by the management of universities in their recent histories. In describing this type of organization, it was possible to understand the complexity inherent to universities. After briefly detailing the more traditional university management models, we proceed to discuss the need for organizational change based upon the most recent management approaches. Among the new types of university, the entrepreneurial university stands out as a good option for changing university organizations worldwide. However, university management has yet to be subject to sufficient research since there are a series of shortcomings that need answering. Finally, we set out a list of future research options with the objective of completing those answers as well as stimulating research on this theme important to the university itself or to society in general.