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THE MANAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP TRAINING PROJECT
Leadership, Institutional Innovation and Development
NATIONAL COUNCIL FOR HIGHER EDUCATIONUGANDA, 2011
CONTENTSINTRODUCTION
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PART 1 4CHALLENGES AND TRENDS IN UNIVERSITY MANAGEMENT 1.1 INTRODUCTION 1.2 CAPACITY BUILDING AND POLICY CAPACITY
PART 2 10THE IMPORTANCE OF STRATEGIC THINKING AND PLANNING2.1 INTRODUCTION2.2 AN OVERVIEW OF THE PLANNING PROCESS2.3 BASICS OF DEVELOPING MISSION, VISION AND VALUES STATEMENTS2.4 START THINKING ABOUT BEGINNING A STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS
PART 3 17LEADERSHIP3.1 LEADING AND MANAGING3.2 WHO ARE LEADERS? 3.3 WHAT IS LEADERSHIP? 3.4 LEADERS AND VISION3.5 TWO MODELS OF LEADERSHIP: TRANSFORMATIONAL & SERVANT LEADERSHIP3.6 UNDERSTANDING FOLLOWERSHIP3.7 CULTIVATING EFFECTIVE AND EXEMPLARY FOLLOWERS3.7 SUMMING UP
PART 4 30CHANGING UNIVERSITIES FOR THE BETTER
4.1 ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE4.2 TYPES OF CULTURES4.3 WHY IS AN ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE IMPROTANT TO AN ORGANIZATION?4.4 FORCES FOR CHANGE4.5 WHAT CAN CHANGE AGENTS CHANGE?4.6 RESISTANCE TO CHANGE4.7 OVERCOMING RESISTANCE TO CHANGE4.8 THE POLITICS OF CHANGE4.9 HOW TO APPROACH ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE4.10 STIMULATING ORGANIZATIONAL INNOVATION4.11 CREATING A DYNAMIC UNIVERSITY4.12 MANAGING CHANGE AND CULTURE4.13 A FEW FINAL TIPS FOR MANAGING CHANGE
PART 5 45BUILDING WINNING TEAMS FOR UNIVERSITIES OF THE 21st CENTURY5.1 COMMUNICATION AND ACTIVE LISTENING.5.2 YOUNG AND PROMISING UNIVERSITIES5.3 PROMISING UNIVERSITIES AND BREAKTHROUGHS5.4 HOW TO EVALUATE UNIVERSITIES AND TO SEE IF THEY ARE WORLD CLASS INSTITUTIONS5.5 ORGANIZATIONAL REVIEW CHECKLIST
RECOMMENDED FURTHER READING
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INTRODUCTION
This module covers the subject of leadership in universities viewed as a critical lever in moving the institutions forward to their desired destinations. It must be noted that universities operate in volatile environments today and, therefore, the ability of an institution to change and adapt is critical for its survival. Those that fail to change and adapt are bound to lose while those who do so are bound to occupy their high ground tomorrow. Thus, the issues of leadership have to be dealt with in the context of institutional planning and management at operational, tactical and strategic levels. The three levels must be attended to well to provide the framework for the identification of the role of the top management in universities.
In Part 1 of this module, we examine the challenges that affect universities in transformation. In Part 2 of the module, we discuss the role of strategic thinking and planning as well as leadership in a university. We will see how strategic planning can help to determine a university’s future. In this first section, we will see what is meant by strategic planning, and in the second part, we will show how a vice-chancellor, and the senior management team, can start to develop a strategic plan for their university. In Part 3 we will begin by considering, what is leadership; leaders and vision; power and leadership; leaders and managing. Next, we will turn to examine the notion of two current forms, or models, of leadership: ‘transformational leadership’ and ‘servant leadership’, as well as ways in which to cultivate ‘followers’.
The purpose of Part 4 of the module is to provide a broad overview of the concept of “change management.” This part provides, an understanding of ways in which universities can change themselves for the better.
The fifth, and final, part of this module on leadership, institutional innovation and development, provides guidelines for recognizing good and bad universities. Any senior management team, into building an empowered and self-reliant and committed group of staff, must seek ways to improve the way services are delivered, especially with regard to staff members. In this final part of the module, we will explore ways to create humane, caring and supportive organizational structure that can maintain the commitment of staff, challenge them, and enable them to fulfill their role in the university as effectively as possible.
AIM OF THE MODULE:MODULE OBJECTIVES
By the end of the module, the module, you will be able to: Discuss the challenges and trends in university management Make a distinction between Management and Leadership of universities Define and describe the role of organizational cultures in the managing change in
universities Explain the role of good and effective communication in building winning teams in
universities List the challenges and problems of managing university-community partnerships Describe the attributes or qualities of a university of the 21st century.
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PART 1CHALLENGES AND TRENDS IN UNIVERSITY MANAGEMENT
Specific ObjectivesBy the end of Part 1, you will be able to:
Discussing the failures and successes at reforming a university, and
Analyze the critical role of a transformational leader in focusing the university to the future.
1.1 INTRODUCTION
The last 20 years have been difficult for many African universities, especially those in the public sector. We have seen too many reforms leading to too few results, too much rhetoric, and not enough wise leaders.
Over the last 20 years, new forces such as globalization, information technologies, and innovation have transformed the way we think about higher education, the role of universities, and the work done by those responsible for the management of such institutions. Both developed and developing countries have undertaken wide-ranging reforms in the higher education sector. Some have been remarkably successful; others not. We have seen progress on many fronts in different parts of the world, and we have also made enough mistakes that it should now be possible to look back and assess the lessons learned, as we turn our attention to the challenges ahead.
Some resounding reform successes are worth noting: The construction of new universities and expansion of older ones is one of the greatest
achievements of our time in building a higher education system based on progressive education principles, social transformation and the belief that knowledge-based societies are the way of the future.
The transition from an elitist view of higher education to a more egalitarian and open understanding has given hope to many who seek a university education; and the increased number of university graduates on the continent is testimony to that.
The successful transition, in many countries, from having only exclusively state-run universities to situations in which the private sector is encouraged to invest in university projects.
We have also seen the consequences of the failure to provide for good governance and management in universities. Many are still lacking:
Internal forums to arbitrate conflicting views and to bring about peaceful resolutions of conflicts,
Democratic accountability and transparency in the exercise of power and the use of university funds,
• Informed political oversight of public sector institutions; • Policy making and policy enforcement capacities.
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Serious mistakes were also made in terms of the way governments managed state-run universities. For a time, it seemed that in some parts of the world, governments lost sight of the importance of the role of the State in funding higher education as many decided to put their faith in the market’s unlimited ability to resolve problems and, hence, asked state-run universities to find their own funds.
As a consequence, a high price was paid in many countries. It damaged the sense of pride of the men and women who had dedicated their life to university teaching and convinced a number of young people that without private means they would be forever deprived of a university education.
Despite the diversity of experiences in the context of the rapid and deep societal changes of the last 20 years, universities are facing many common challenges. We must all explore how the university sector can work best and bring value-added to society in the future.
It has become customary to talk of:
• The transformation brought about by the forces of globalization, • The impact of information and communication technologies and • The emergence of knowledge-based societies and economies.
In order to understand the challenges of leading African universities in the 21 st century, we should first ask ourselves for What will be the role of the State in the development of university education? How can we unleash the potential of the universities to be all they can become?; and How can universities keep up with a situation in which it is estimated that empirical knowledge is doubling every five years?
We will frame this overview by discussing three challenges: 1) Finding the right balance between the market and the State in a global context, 2) The need for transformational leadership within the university sector, and3) The need to take on board new knowledge and innovation imperatives.
1) A Search For Balance The role of the State, especially in relation to universities, began to be redefined during the last years of the 20th century. The two pre-eminent signs of this were: (i) the huge influx of private students into public universities; and (ii) the granting of permission to private institutions of higher learning to begin offering full degree programmes. The chief reasons for this shift was the growing inability of African governments to continue large-scale funding of university education; and the sharp rise in the demand for places in university.
Although it is recognized that the State still has a pre-eminent role in university education and university development, it became increasingly clear that African governments’ capacity to be the prime provider of university education was limited. Since the turn of the 21st century, it has become more commonplace to hear, amongst politicians and university administrators, the case for arguing that the State should adopt the role of a partner, catalyst and facilitator of university education.
Such a case rests on the premise that the market is the most efficient way to allocate scarce resources and to ensure the pursuit of individual interests. For a well-performing economy and society to flourish, it is not about the dominance of the public sector over the private sector, (or
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vice versa); but rather, it is about a search for balance. Both are fallible, both have inherent weaknesses, but by working together, they compensate for each other and achieve the best results. That’s the theory.
In practice, these developments have impacted upon universities in several striking ways. The first is the way in which universities are funded. Instead of expecting governments to providing the lion’s share of cash needed to run a public-sector university, VCs - and their teams - are now expected to look for ways of raising cash through a myriad of different means. Entrepreneurial flair is now a quality much sought after when selecting a VC.
The second impact on university education has the transformation of the student body into clients and customers. This shift has altered the nature of the relationship between staff and students, as well as determining the selection of courses that a university offers. A crucial factor has become whether, or not, a course is ‘demand-driven’. The old adage that ‘education is an end in itself’ does not cut much muster with those who want to know if a course, or programme, is attracting sufficient students to make it economically worthwhile. It seems that the VC of the modern university needs not only entrepreneurial flair, in terms of being able to raise money, but also able to have a keen eye for what will sell, or not sell, in the market place.
Such developments, as we have said, have radically altered the profile of the kind of VC that university councils, and the like, want to recruit to lead their institutions. Instead of seeking out people, primarily renowned for their academic achievements and long years of service, candidates are being sought who can function as CEOs, successfully lead a management team, read a spreadsheet, and have above average marketing skills.
2) Transformational Leadership From the streets of Damascus to the board rooms of London banks, there is a rallying call for a more accountable and transparent brand of leadership. People are demanding and deserve high quality service exempt from patronage or influence peddling. They expect access to information, and they expect services to be organized and delivered in accordance with their needs and circumstances, not at the convenience of those in power. They demand to be treated with respect by institutions and expect those in authority to be true to their mission of being the “servant” of the collective interest and the “keeper of a public trust”.
Universities are not immune to these calls for accountability and transparency. While the older ‘public service’ model governing the way state-run universities operate and the ‘industrial management’ style of many private-run ones, still continue to hold sway in many places, neither should blind us to the fact that university heads must make a firm commitment to leaving to future generations better institutions than the ones we inherited. The call is now for university leaders who exhibit not only exceptional planning and communication skills, but who are “transformational” and who can make those around them believe in the impossible. Such leader gains influence by demonstrating the importance of personal characteristics like self-confidence, dominance and strong conviction in the moral righteousness’ of ones belief.
The importance of having a leader who is ‘transformational’ is a crucial factor in attracting, and retaining, talented and gifted staff. The competition for talent has become increasingly fierce among universities and between the private and public sectors. The best staff will come to a university if they are given the chance to make a difference, and the opportunity to use their skills and reach their full potential. A university whose role is limited to repetitive and predictable tasks will attract a different kind of workforce.
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3) The Knowledge and Innovation Imperatives The last challenge we will mention pertains to the “knowledge and innovation imperatives” that are in so many ways characteristic of the era we live in. The bureaucratic organizational model characterized the organization of universities for most of the last century. It was built around clearly defined and predictable tasks. Similar tasks were grouped into units, units into departments, and departments into faculties. The organization relied on a strict division of labour with a clear ladder of ascendancy for those wishing to go to the top. The authority was delegated top down.
A profound transformation took shape in many institutions during the 70's, 80's and 90's as the knowledge-based economy started to take shape. Instead of a ‘top-down’ model, people began reinventing organizations into a series of concentric circles that overlap. The guiding principle underlying such a transformation was the Principle of subsidiarity. Essentially, it stated that the role of the leader was to help those he, or she, was immediately responsible for, (ie. department heads), was to help them to do their job well. The job of department heads was, in turn, to help their team members of do their job well. This development literally turned the older pyramidal understanding of organizations upside down and gave rise to the notion of the ‘servant leader’.
One of the chief factors in such a paradigm shift was the rapid growth in new knowledge and the demand for innovation that came in its wake. When the assets of an organization are intellectual, the old management model simply cannot cope with necessary changes and, to use the name of Chinua Achebe’s most famous novel, ‘things fall apart’. The alternative is to opt for becoming, what Peter Senge calls, “learning organisations”. In his view, learning organizations are dynamical systems in a state of continuous adaptation and improvement. (See his book, The Fifth Discipline, 1999).
It must be said that unlike other areas of life, the university sector has been slower to adapt, but it must, in order to provide value-added education, remain relevant to people’s needs, and continue to be a seedbed for new knowledge and ideas. This transformation will be critical to the ability of the universities to attract and retain its fair share of the best talent in the future.
One sign of the impact of the knowledge explosion upon universities is the way the notion of a university lecturer is changing and the increasingly use of part-time staff members who are involved in independent consulting and work outside of the university. Such a development requires new ways of thinking in universities, as there is a need to implement a “team” approach, supported by horizontal management, in order to effectively respond to the broad range of staff in a cohesive and coherent manner. The idea of a university relying almost exclusively on a cadre of full-time staff, whose aim it is to stay in one institution until they reach retiring age, does not hold sway anymore.
The structures of authority are changing. The power of the office must now co-exist with the power of ideas, the power to innovate, and the power to discover new and better ways to fulfil the mission. The creation of ‘schools’ within large universities would be an example of this development, as would be the election, by staff members, of university departments, of their own heads instead of the traditional way of simply appointing a head.
Training for a job, as it was done in the past, only works when the content of the work is predictable and repetitive. Learning, on the other hand, is central to the ability of an organization to innovate, and will be key to the future of universities. At the practical level, this means preparing highly competent and qualified staff to be – not only successful teachers and
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researchers – but to have the added characteristics of being learners, innovators and entrepreneurs.
It remains an open question whether, and to what extent, universities will be able to adapt to the “knowledge imperative” and to encourage innovation. It is a complex undertaking and some will choose to err on the side of caution. Innovation that fails can damage an institutions’ reputation or affect its long-term plans. The current management systems of many universities in Africa do not encourage innovation, favouring instead predictability in a given range of activities. That said, failure to transform bureaucratic institutions into “intelligent” and “learning organizations”, able to explore and find new and better ways of achieving their mission, might signal their declining relevance in the future. There can be no innovation without some degree of tolerance for failure and reasonable risk taking.
The way universities adapt to the “knowledge and innovation imperatives” will set the context for reforms in the future. The competition for talent will be fierce among universities and between the private and public sectors. People will come to a university if they are given the chance to make a difference, and the opportunity to use their skills and reach their full potential. A university whose role is limited to repetitive and predictable tasks will attract a different kind of workforce.
1.2CAPACITY BUILDING AND POLICY CAPACITY
In order to enable universities to meet new demands and challenges, it is necessary to reshape and reinforce policy capacity. The policy capacity of a university refers to the ability of the VC and its senior managers to make and implement policies. Policy makers face entirely new environments that cannot be properly managed with the kind of capacities on which they have traditionally relied. In many cases, such a capacity is lacking or, at the most, being seriously hampered. There are three reasons for saying this:
1) A lot of universities, especially in developing countries, are struggling to attract sufficient students, retain staff, meet wages bills, satisfy the conditions of outside regulatory bodies, (such as the NCHE), etc. This is where the energy goes of those in positions of leadership – trying to solve problems that need immediate answers. The result is that many VCs become more used to seeing themselves as ‘crisis managers’ rather than as ‘strategic managers’. Few have the time, or the energy, for contemplating the ‘big picture’, articulating the challenges facing their institutions and formulating strategies for the next 10 years of a university’s development.
2) Many VCs are hampered by the presence of patrimonial management systems (that stress loyalty to the institution rather than rationality and merit in policy-making). They find themselves surrounded by senior management team who prefer to keep things as they are. (Such a situation is exacerbated when many influential senior staff members are in their last jobs, with no desire or incentive to rock the boat. As a result, change and those that crave it are viewed as threats and blocked or worse.)
3) There is the issue of the relationship between the University Council with the VC. While they are responsible for the appointment of the VC, often it is not at all clear whether
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there is real trust placed in the person being tasked to run their university. When such trust is lacking, there is little a VC can do to bring about much needed change.
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. In terms of countries, such as Uganda, what are the key challenges and trends in universities at the present moment?
2. To what extent do the three challenges highlighted above affect your university. What policies have you put in place to address the challenges?
3. Which of the three challenges discussed in this part of the module has the most relevance to the situation of universities in Uganda?
4. What is your view of ‘policy-making function’, as part and parcel of your job as VC?
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PART 2THE IMPORTANCE OF STRATEGIC THINKING AND PLANNINGSPECIFIC OBJECTIVES:By the end of Part 2, you will be able to:
Define strategic planning. Examine the reasons why strategic thinking and planning must be
part of the life of a university and Explain how a vice-chancellor, and the senior management team, can
develop a strategic plan for their university. Discuss leadership and management of 21st century universities.
2.1INTRODUCTION
There are a variety of perspectives, models and approaches used in strategic planning. The way that a strategic plan is developed depends on the nature of a university’s leadership, culture of the university, complexity of the university's environment, size of the university, expertise of planners, etc. For example, there are a variety of strategic planning models, including goals-based, issues-based, organic, and scenario planning.
Goals-based planning is probably the most common and starts with focus on the university's mission, (and vision and/or values), goals to work toward the mission, strategies to achieve the goals, and action planning (who will do what and by when). Issues-based strategic planning often starts by examining issues facing the university, strategies to address those issues, and action plans. Organic strategic planning might start by articulating the university's vision and values and then action plans to achieve the vision while adhering to those values. Some planners prefer a particular approach to planning, e.g. appreciative inquiry. Some plans are scoped to one year, many to three years, and some to five to ten years into the future. Some plans include only top-level information and no action plans. Some plans are five to eight pages long, while others can be considerably longer.
Quite often, a university's strategic planners already know much of what will go into a strategic plan. However, development of the strategic plan greatly helps to clarify the university's plans and ensure that key leaders are all “on the same page”. Far more important than the strategic plan document, is the strategic planning process itself
Many vice-chancellors and members of a university senior management team spend most of their time “fighting fires” in the sense that their time is spent realizing and reacting to problems. For such people, it can be very difficult to stand back and take a hard look at what we want to accomplish and how we want to accomplish it. We are too busy doing what we think is making progress. However, one of the major differences between new
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and experienced vice-chancellors, and senior managers, is the skill to see the broad perspective, to take the long view on what they want to do and how they are going to do it. One of the best ways to develop this strategic thinking ability is through an ongoing experience in strategic planning. What is strategic planning?
What is strategic planning?Strategic planning is a means of establishing major directions for the university, college/school or department. Through strategic planning, resources are concentrated in a limited number of major directions in order to maximize benefits to stakeholders—those we are employed to serve and who are affected by the choices we make. In universities, stakeholders include academic and non-teaching staff. Strategic planning is structured approach to anticipating the future and “exploiting the inevitable.
University strategic plan should details the institutions’ academic aims and objectives, students number policies, staffing and physical resources strategies, information and library system, strategies and financial strategies (including, financial forecast),In addition, institutions should develop strategic plans that will be put into action, supported by, or translated into individual department plans so that each know the part to play in the overall development.
2.2AN OVERVIEW OF THE PLANNING PROCESS
One of the most common sets of activities in the management is planning. Very simply put, planning is setting the direction for something - some system - and then guiding the system to follow the direction. There are many kinds of planning in the university sector. Common to these many kinds of planning are various phases of planning and guidelines for carrying them out as effectively as possible. Information in this document can be referenced as a basis from which to carry out various kinds of planning, ranging from highly complex to simple and basic. To help make the following information applicable to as many situations as possible, the scope of the following planning information is to the “system”, which is fully explained below. The following process should be customized by planners in order to meet their needs and those of their universities.
Planning in its Larger Context – Working Backwards Through Any “System”Before we jump into the typical phases in the standard “generic” planning process, let's stand back and minute and briefly look at the role of planning in its overall context. This is more than an academic exercise -- understanding this overall context for planning can greatly help the reader to design and carry out the planning process in almost planning application.
One of the most common sets of activities in the management is planning. Very simply put, planning is setting the direction for something - some system - and then working to ensure the system follows that direction. Systems have inputs, processes, outputs and outcomes. To explain, inputs to the system include resources such as raw materials,
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money, technologies and people. These inputs go through a process where they're aligned, moved along and carefully coordinated, ultimately to achieve the goals set for the system. Outputs are tangible results produced by processes in the system, such as expansion of university. Another kind of result is outcomes, or benefits for students, staff, etc. Systems can be understood as the entire university, or its faculties or departments, etc.
Whether the system is the whole university, a department, or a particular section, the process of planning includes planners working backwards through the system. They start from the results (outcomes and outputs) they prefer and work backwards through the system to identify the processes needed to produce the results. Then they identify what inputs (or resources) are needed to carry out the processes.
Quick Look at Some Basic TermsIt's not critical to grasp completely accurate definitions of each of the following terms. It's more important for planners to have a basic sense for the difference between goals/objectives (results) and strategies/tasks (methods to achieve the results).
Goals are specific accomplishments that must be accomplished in total, or in some combination, in order to achieve some larger, overall result preferred from the system, for example, the mission of a university. (Going back to our reference to systems, goals are outputs from the system.)Strategies or Activities are the methods or processes required in total, or in some combination, to achieve the goals. (Going back to our reference to systems, strategies are processes in the system.)Objectives are specific accomplishments that must be accomplished in total, or in some combination, to achieve the goals in the plan. Objectives are usually “milestones” along the way when implementing the strategies.Tasks, particularly in small universities, people are assigned various tasks required to implement the plan. If the scope of the plan is very small, tasks and activities are often essentially the same.Resources (and Budgets) include the people, materials, technologies, money, etc., required to implement the strategies or processes. The costs of these resources are often depicted in the form of a budget. (Going back to our reference to systems, resources are input to the system.)
2.3BASICS OF DEVELOPING MISSION, VISION AND VALUES STATEMENTS
Identifying or updating the mission, vision and values statements is usually done during strategic planning. Vision Statements and Mission Statements are the inspiring words chosen by successful leaders to clearly and concisely convey the direction of the organization. By crafting a clear mission statement and vision statement, you can powerfully communicate your intentions and motivate your team or organization to
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realize an attractive and inspiring common vision of the future. An example of a mission and vision statement for Makerere University Business School:
VisionTo be a leading Institution of academic excellence and innovations in Africa MissionTo produce high calibre professionals and promote research and knowledge transfer in Economics, Statistics, Business Management and Population Sciences, for informed policy and sustainable development Core ValuesThe College in pursuit of its mission is guided by the following core values:
Integrity Teamwork Accountability Transparency Passion for Business Social Responsibility Respect for others
Mission Statement CreationA Mission Statement defines the organization's purpose and primary objectives. Its prime function is internal – to define the key measure or measures of the organization's success – and its prime audience is the leadership team and stockholders.
Mission statements "give educators stronger motivation and provide parents with a clearer picture of what the school values. … A clear vision and a common mission that identify the kind of learning to be achieved can help keep the school and the efforts of its staff and students on target" (Peterson, 1995). Mission statements are the "how-to" statements or action plans that help schools achieve their vision. They prompt change and growth. The mission is the touch point that can help you determine whether what should be happening is, in fact, happening.
1. To create your mission statement, first identify your organization's "winning idea".
2. This is the idea or approach that will make your organization stand out from its competitors, and is the reason that customers will come to you and not your competitors (see tip below).
3. Next identify the key measures of your success. Make sure you choose the most important measures (and not too many of them!)
4. Combine your winning idea and success measures into a tangible and measurable goal.
5. Refine the words until you have a concise and precise statement of your mission, which expresses your ideas, measures and desired result.
Vision Statement CreationVision Statements define the organizations purpose, but this time they do so in terms of
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the organization's values rather than bottom line measures (values are guiding beliefs about how things should be done.) The vision statement communicates both the purpose and values of the organization. For employees, it gives direction about how they are expected to behave and inspires them to give their best. Shared with customers, it shapes customers' understanding of why they should work with the organization.
The vision statement communicates both the purpose and values of the organization. For employees, it gives direction about how they are expected to behave and inspires them to give their best. Shared with customers, it shapes customers' understanding of why they should work with the organization.
Once you have created your mission statement, move on to create your vision statement:1. First identify your organization's mission. Then uncover the real, human value in
that mission.2. Next, identify what you, your customers and other stakeholders will value most
about how your organization will achieve this mission. Distil these into the values that your organization has or should have.
3. Combine your mission and values, and polish the words until you have a vision statement inspiring enough to energize and motivate people inside and outside your organization.
Developing a Vision Statement1. The vision statement includes vivid description of the university as it effectively
carries out its operations.2. Developing the vision can be the most enjoyable part of planning, but the part
where time easily gets away from you.3. Note that originally, the vision was a compelling description of the state and
function of the university once it had implemented the strategic plan, i.e., a very attractive image toward which the university was attracted and guided by the strategic plan. Recently, the vision has become more of a motivational tool, too often including highly idealistic phrasing and activities which the university cannot realistically aspire. (For example, for a young African university to include, in its vision statement that it aspires ‘to be the world’s leading research institute’ is only be realistic if the institute was, at least, ranked in the top ten in the world!).
Developing a Values Statement1. Values represent the core priorities in the university’s culture, including what
drives staff’s priorities and how they truly act in the university, etc. Values are increasingly important in strategic planning. They often drive the intent and direction for “organic” planners.
2. Establish four to six core values from which the university would like to operate. Consider values of the various shareholders, various categories of staff, and the wider community, which the university serves.
3. Notice any differences between the university’s preferred values and its true values, (the values actually reflected by staff members’ behaviours in the
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university). Record each preferred value on a flash card, and then have each member “rank” the values with 1, 2, or 3 in terms of the priority needed by the university with 3 indicating the value is very important to the university and 1 is least important. Then go through the cards again to rank how people think the values are actually being enacted in the university with 3 indicating the values are fully enacted and 1 indicating the value is hardly reflected at all. Then address discrepancies where a value is highly preferred (ranked with a 3), but hardly enacted, (ranked with a 1).
4. Incorporate into the strategic plan, actions to align actual behaviour with preferred behaviours.
Value statements are often referred to as "guiding principles" and can mean different things depending on who writes them. A value statement tells the customer and the employee where the company stands and what the company believes in.
A value statement is an expression of a company's core beliefs. Companies write the statement to identify and connect with the stakeholders. Additionally, the declaration allows for the university's staff to be aware of the priorities and goals of the university.
The value statement, along with a mission and vision statement, will form the corporate culture and climate. Guiding principles are positive statements about the core mission of the university.
2.4 START THINKING ABOUT BEGINNING A STRATEGIC PLANNING PROCESS
The real benefit of the strategic planning process is the process, not the plan document. There is no “perfect” plan. There's doing your best at strategic thinking and implementation, and learning from what you're doing to enhance what you're doing the next time around. The strategic planning process is usually not an “aha!” experience. It's like the management process itself - it's a series of small moves that together keep the university doing things right as it heads in the right direction. In planning, things usually aren't as bad as you fear, nor are they as good as you'd like. Start simple, but start!
The context of planning in a university Universities are not unitary institutions. They are composed of faculties and schools, which have distinct tasks of preparing students for entry to particular professions or inducting them into the intellectual tradition and methods of distinct disciplines. Professions and disciplines have external reference groups and a fact of university that staff loyalty and identification can be more strongly devoted to a professional organization or to the international disciplinary network than to the seemingly less relevant university that employs them. Thus university mangers need to take the context of the university when they seek the interest and involvement of their academic staff in strategic planning.
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Strategic planning processThe process as follows:
Analyzing the environment Creating the university’s vision Defining the university’s mission Set the goals Establishing measurable objectives for each goal and Constructing action plans (the desirable, the actions and who is responsible)
Both the external and internal environment of the university have to be analyzed. Analysis of the external environment and predicting what impact it could have on the university over the plan period. External environment include political, social, economic and technological changes. In addition, market environment comprising of competitors, students and employers have to be considered.
Analysis of the internal environment focus on the weakness and strength that exist with regard to systems, processes, expertise, leadership, culture, communication structure, facilities and equipment among others in the university. The other steps in strategic planning were explained earlier.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. Briefly an outline on overview of the planning process2. What are the chief elements in the typical phases in planning?3. How would you distinguish between mission, vision and values statements?4. What factors are entailed in planning for action in a university setting?
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PART 3LEADERSHIP
Specific Objectives:By the end of Part 3, you will be able to:
Define what is a leader, the types of leaders and what makes a ‘great’ leader.
Understand the linkages between leaders and vision; power and leadership;
Explain the notions of ‘transformational leadership’ and ‘servant leadership’ and some of the attributes associated with each;
Understand the meaning of ‘followership’ and what makes an exemplary follower.
3.1LEADING AND MANAGING
Effective managers are not necessarily true leaders. Many top administrators in universities, and even vice-chancellors, can execute their responsibilities successfully without being great leaders. But these positions do afford opportunity for leadership. The ability to lead effectively, then, will set the great chancellors apart from the good ones.
While managing requires planning and budgeting routines, leading includes setting the direction (creating a vision) for the university. Management, (especially for a new university) will require: structuring the university, staffing it with capable people, and monitoring activities. Leadership, however, goes far beyond these functions by inspiring people to attain the vision. Great leaders keep people focused on moving the university towards its ideal future, motivating them to overcome whatever obstacles lie in the way,
RELATED TO MANAGEMENT IS A SIMILARLY IMPORTANT TERM SUPERVISORY LEADERSHIP WHICH IS behaviour that provides guidance, support, and corrective feedback for the day-to-day activities of staff members. Strategic leadership ON THE OTHER HAND gives purpose and meaning to universities. Strategic leadership involves anticipating and envisioning a viable future for the university, and working with others to initiate changes that create such a future.
Let us now turn our attention to the notion of what is meant by a ‘leader’ and the attributes of such a person.
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3.2WHAT ARE LEADERS?
A leader is one who influences others to attain goals, the greater the number of followers, the greater the influence. And the more successful the attainment of worthy goals is, the more evident the presence of great leadership. But we must explore beyond this bare definition to capture the excitement and intrigue that devoted followers and students of leadership feel when they see a great leader in action.
Outstanding leaders combine good strategic substance and effective interpersonal processes to formulate and implement strategies that produce a sustainable competitive advantage. They may launch enterprises, build university cultures, win wars, or otherwise change the course of events. They are strategists who seize opportunities others overlook, but they are also passionately concerned with detailing all the small fundamental realities that can make or mar the grandest of plans.
3.3WHAT IS LEADERSHIP?
A leader is one who influences others to attain goals, the greater the number of followers, the greater the influence. And the more successful the attainment of worthy goals is, the more evident the presence of great leadership. But we must explore beyond this bare definition to capture the excitement and intrigue that devoted followers and students of leadership feel when they see a great leader in action.
Outstanding leaders combine good strategic substance and effective interpersonal processes to formulate and implement strategies that produce a sustainable competitive advantage. They may launch enterprises, build university cultures, win wars, or otherwise change the course of events. They are strategists who seize opportunities others overlook, but they are also passionately concerned with detailing all the small fundamental realities that can make or mar the grandest of plans.
3.4LEADERS AND VISION
“The leader’s job is to create a vision” is a common expression and is repeated often in Jim Collins’ bestselling book on leadership, From Good to Great. Until a few years ago, vision was not a word one heard managers utter, But today, having a vision for the future and communicating that vision to others are known to be essential components of great leadership. Leaders are described as painters of the vision and architects of the journey. So what kind of vision are we talking about? Let’s apply the meaning of the word, as used in modern management theory, to universities.
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A vision is a mental image of a possible and desirable future state of the university. It expresses the leader’s ambitions for the university. The best visions are both ideal and unique. If a vision conveys an idea, it communicates a standard of excellence and a clear choice of positive values. If the vision is also unique, it communicates and inspires pride in being different from other universities. The choice of language is important; the words should imply a combination of realism and optimism, an action orientation, and resolution and confidence that the vision will be attained.
Visions can be small or large and can exist through all organizational levels as well as at the very top. The important points are that:
a vision is necessary for effective leadership; a person or team can develop a vision for any job in university; and many people, including vice-chancellors and their deputies, who do not develop
into strong leaders, do not develop a clear vision – instead, they focus on performing or surviving on a day-to-day basis as they await their retirement.
Put another way, leaders must know what they want. And other people must understand what that is. The leader must be able to articulate the vision, clearly and often. Other people throughout the university should understand the vision and be able to state it clearly themselves. But the vision means nothing until the leader and followers take action to turn the vision into reality.
Let us now turn and examine two models of leaders that have much to contribute to the growth and development of universities, especially in the context of Africa. The first is “transformational leadership” and the second is “servant leadership”. Unlike more traditional models of leadership, which emphasise authority, power-distance, these seek to lead others through by the power of inspiration and example.
3.5TWO MODELS OF LEADERSHIP
Transformational LeadershipThis is defined as a leadership approach that causes change in individuals and social systems. In its ideal form, it creates valuable and positive change in the followers with the end goal of developing followers into leaders. Enacted in its authentic form, transformational leadership enhances the motivation, morale and performance of followers through a variety of mechanisms. These include connecting the follower's sense of identity and self to the mission and the collective identity of the organization; being a role model for followers that inspires them; challenging followers to take greater ownership for their work, and understanding the strengths and weaknesses of followers, so the leader can align followers with tasks that optimise their performance.
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James MacGrgor Burns, (See his Leadership, 1978), first introduced the concept of transforming leadership in his descriptive research on political leaders. According to Burns, transforming leadership is a process in which "leaders and followers help each other to advance to a higher level of morale and motivation". Burns related to the difficulty in differentiation between management and leadership and claimed that the differences are in characteristics and behaviours. He established two concepts: "transforming leadership" and "transactional leadership”.
According to Burns, the transforming approach creates significant change in the life of people and organizations. It redesigns perceptions and values, and changes expectations and aspirations of employees. Unlike in the transactional approach, it is not based on a "give and take" relationship, but on the leader's personality, traits and ability to make a change through example, articulation of an energizing vision and challenging goals. Transforming leaders are idealized in the sense that they are a moral exemplar of working towards the benefit of the team, organization and/or community. Burns theorized that transforming and transactional leadership were mutually exclusive styles.
The extent to which a leader is transformational, is measured first, in terms of his influence on the followers. The followers of such a leader feel trust, admiration, loyalty and respect for the leader and because of the qualities of the transformational leader are willing to work harder than originally expected. These outcomes occur because the transformational leader offers followers something more than just working for self gain; they provide followers with an inspiring mission and vision and give them an identity. The leader transforms and motivates followers through his or her idealized influence, intellectual stimulation and individual consideration. In addition, this leader encourages followers to come up with new and unique ways to challenge the status quo and to alter the environment to support being successful.
In summary, we can say there are four elements of transformational leadership:1. Individualized Consideration – the degree to which the leader attends to each
follower's needs, acts as a mentor or coach to the follower and listens to the follower's concerns and needs. The leader gives empathy and support, keeps communication open and places challenges before the followers. This also encompasses the need for respect and celebrates the individual contribution that each follower can make to the team. The followers have a will and aspirations for self development and have intrinsic motivation for their tasks.
2. Intellectual Stimulation – the degree to which the leader challenges assumptions, takes risks and solicits followers' ideas. Leaders with this style stimulate and encourage creativity in their followers. They nurture and develop people who think independently. For such a leader, learning is a value and unexpected situations are seen as opportunities to learn. The followers ask questions, think deeply about things and figure out better ways to execute their tasks.
3. Inspirational Motivation – the degree to which the leader articulates a vision that is appealing and inspiring to followers. Leaders with inspirational motivation challenge followers with high standards, communicate optimism about future
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goals, and provide meaning for the task at hand. Followers need to have a strong sense of purpose if they are to be motivated to act. Purpose and meaning provide the energy that drives a group forward. The visionary aspects of leadership are supported by communication skills that make the vision understandable, precise, powerful and engaging. The followers are willing to invest more effort in their tasks, they are encouraged and optimistic about the future and believe in their abilities.
4. Idealized Influence – Provides a role model for high ethical behavior, instills pride, gains respect and trust.
As can be seen from the above, the need for leadership qualities in universities is not restricted to the VC and the senior managers, but extends to staff workers at all levels. Leadership exists at many places inside the university, both formally and informally. Formal leadership, exercised by those appointed or elected to positions of authority, entails activities such as setting direction, providing symbols of the mission, ensuring that tasks are done, supporting resource development, and modeling the importance of students as clients or customers.
On the other hand, persons who become influential exert informal leadership because they possess special skills or resources valued or needed by others. Examples of informal transformational leadership include spearheading the reorganization of a university library services, or initiating an innovative, multi-disciplinary approach to the way research is carried out in a university.
In universities with effective leadership, each staff member believes that he or she should and can contribute to the success of the institution, act as a partner, be largely self-directed, and assume responsibility for his or her actions and contributions. As a group, staff feel empowered and have the requisite knowledge, skills, opportunity, guidelines and personal initiative to perform effectively.
Servant LeadershipThe servant-leader takes care to ensure that his people’s greatest needs are being met and that those, while being served by the manager, “become healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous, more likely to become servants. A servant-leader should:
Listen first so that they may understand a situation; Develop their intuition and ability to ‘foresee the unforeseeable’; Lead by persuasion, forging change by ‘convincement rather than coercion’; Conceptualize the reforms they seek and lift others to see the possibilities also; Empower by creating opportunities and alternatives for those in their care..
The image of servant-manager contrasts with the typical notion of a vice-chancellor as a power-wielding authority figure. Here we see the vice-chancellor as one whose first responsibility is to consider the needs of others and to create conditions where the led can become leaders themselves.
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Nelson Mandela would be regarded by many as the model for understanding the meaning of ‘servant-leadership’. In the recent movie, Invictus, (2009) he is shown taking over the position as President of South Africa. On his first day at work, he notices a lot of the white staff packing their bags to leave. He decided to call them into his office and explain that no one was forcing them to leave. He addressed them by saying: ‘The new South Africa needs everyone and if you want to stay with me and do your best to make the President’s Office the best it can be, believe me when I say that I promise to also do my best.’ That is a servant-leader speaking.
Here are some important characteristics of servant-leaders: Listening - Leaders have been traditionally valued for their knowledge and
communication skills. These skills need to be reinforced by a deep commitment to listening intently to others. The servant-leader seeks to identify the will of a group and helps clarify that will. He or she seeks to listen receptively to what is being said (and not said). Listening also encompasses getting in touch with one’s inner voice and seeking to understand what one’s body, spirit and mind are communicating. Robert Greenleaf, in his book Servant Leadership, (1978) speaks about the role of listening: “Only a natural servant automatically responds to any problem by listening first.” (p.7). When he or she, is a leader, this disposition causes him or her to be seen as servant first. Listening deepens levels of communication and understanding. A listening leader strengthens people, helping them clarify how they might grow.
Empathy - Servant-leaders try to empathize with others – to recognize individuals for their special traits and unique talents. They assume the good intentions of co-workers and do not reject them as people even though one cannot always accept their behaviour or performance. The most successful servant-leaders become skilled empathetic listeners.
Healing - Learning to heal is a powerful force for transformation and integration. One strength of servant-leaders is their potential for healing themselves and others. Many people have broken spirits and have suffered emotional hurts. Servant-leaders ‘help make whole’ those whom they come in contact.
Persuasion - Servant-leaders reply upon persuasion rather than their positional authority in making decisions. They seek to convince others rather than coerce compliance. The servant-leader is effective at building consensus within groups.
Commitment to the growth of others - Servant-leaders believe that individuals have an intrinsic value beyond their tangible contribution to an organization, such as a university. As such, servant-leaders are deeply committed to the growth of each individual, recognising the tremendous responsibility to do everything within their power to nurture the personal and spiritual growth of those in their care.
Neither transformational leadership nor servant leadership is a quick-fix approach to the problems of universities in modern-day Africa or anywhere else. Rather, they both represent a long-term, transformational approach to life and work – a way of being – with the potential to create positive change. These characteristics communicate the power and promise this concept offers to those leaders who are open to its challenge.
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3.6UNDERSTANDING ‘FOLLOWERSHIP’
“Follower” is not a term of weakness but the condition that permits leadership to exist and gives it strength. No single researcher has studied followers and followership more than Robert Kelley. In his book, The Power of Followership, (1992), he says that follower behaviour can be categorized using a two-dimensional taxonomy. One dimension, the vertical axis, ranges from independent, critical thinking at one end to dependent, non-critical thinking at the other. The other dimension, the horizontal axis, ranges from passive to active.
The best or effective followers are individuals who: Think for themselves; Give constructive criticism; Are their own person; Are creative and innovative;
At the other ends of the spectrum, the worst or ineffective followers: Must be told what to do; Do not think for themselves; Cannot make it to the bathroom on their own.
In between are several other kinds of followers who comprise the bulk of the people we work with. We will look at each group in turn. In between are several other kinds of followers who comprise the bulk of the people we work with. We will look at each group in turn.
INDEPENDENT, CRITICAL THINKING
Alienated Followers
PASSIVE
PragmatistFollowers(Survivors)
Effective Followers
ACTIVE
Passive Followers(Sheep)
Conformist Followers(Yes people)
DEPENDENT, UNCRITICAL THINKING
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1. Alienated FollowersThese are constant irritants and are like festering wounds. They like to point out all the negative aspects of university procedures, policies and goals, and invariably overlook positive aspects. They are known to be capable but cynical, frequently holding back their best efforts, or perhaps displaying disgruntled acquiescence. Their own self-image, however, often differs significantly from their image as seen by others, especially those in charge. Alienated followers often describe themselves as:
Mavericks who think for themselves; Having a healthy skepticism that sees things for what they really are; Playing the devil’s advocate in the group; The ‘conscience’ of the university;
Vice-chancellors, however, often see alienated followers as: Troublesome, cynical or negative; Headstrong but lacking judgment; Not team players, uncooperative; Adversarial to the point of being hostile.
Alienated followers may formerly have been exemplary followers who became disgruntled over setbacks, unmet expectations or broken trust. So the prospect of their becoming exemplary followers again depends on willing self-examination and reducing their negativity through constructive problem solving by who?
Without these approaches which ones? The alienation will undoubtedly persist. However, for alienated persons, continuing to vent hostility over perceived broken trust or unmet expectations generally leads nowhere. Although they may feel moments of satisfaction from getting a jab in here or there, approaching their position in this way is ultimately a losing proposition. The individual is unhappy and continues to make others unhappy by griping and sniping.
2. Conformist FollowersConformist followers are the ‘yes people’ found in all universities. They are the active followers who readily and uncritically carry out orders. Quite often they seem to have a personality predisposition to be obsequious and self-deprecating or adverse to conflict.
Often, this behaviour results from the authoritarian – demanding – style of the person running the university or an overly rigid organizational structure. Domineering vice-chancellors who seek power over others encourage conformists as they need ‘yes people.’
Conformist followers are active participants seen as committed contributors. However, they should recognize that the university needs their constructive, critical views as well. They need to cultivate independent, critical thinking by evaluating the ideas of others – even managers – then exercising the courage to articulate their own points of view.
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3. Pragmatist FollowersPragmatist followers, or survivors as they are called, keep to the middle of the road. They are rarely committed to team goals, but have learned not to make waves. Because they do not like to stick their necks out, pragmatists tend to be mediocre performers and clog the arteries of a university.
They present an ambiguous challenge image with both positive and negative characteristics since it is difficult to discern just where they stand on issues. On the positive side, they are sometimes seen as:
Keeping things in perspective; Knowing how to work the system to get things done; Toeing the middle line so as to keep the university from going overboard in either
direction; Playing by the rules of the game.
Unfortunately, these same behaviours can be interpreted as: Playing political games; Bargaining to maximise one’s own self-interests; Being adverse to risk and prone to cover one’s tracks; Being a bureaucrat who adheres to the letter of the rule rather than the spirit.
Pragmatist followers may adopt this behavioural style as a result of organizational conditions, personal preferences or some combination of the two. It can be a survivor mode, adopted as a coping mechanism in order to “ride out the storm” in an unstable or turbulent environment. Another possibility is that pragmatists are simply averse to taking risks. They live by the slogan, “Better safe than sorry.”
Pragmatist followers are “stuck in the middle.” To change, they must decide whether mere survival is sufficiently fulfilling to them. The answer may well be yes in times of crisis. But to choose more than survival in the university, they must be willing to stretch along both dimensions of effective followership. Pragmatists should be asked: “Besides protecting yourself, isn’t there something you really want to accomplish in life? Is there any goal or mission you can commit yourself to with enthusiasm?”
4. Passive FollowersPassive followers are also known as “sheep.” They:
1. Lack initiative and a sense of responsibility;2. Look to managers to do their thinking;3. Require constant direction when performing tasks;4. Do not carry out assignments with enthusiasm.
Vice-chancellors and those in senior management, often see passive followers as:1. Incompetent2. Lazy;3. Unmotivated;4. Stupid.
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Some passive followers may indeed deserve these characteristics. But others may have adopted this behaviour style, not because they are passive by nature but to help them cope with a former vice-chancellor who expected followers to behave in this way.
In order to improve their effectiveness, passive followers need to change significantly on both dimensions of effective followership.
5. Effective or Exemplary FollowersEffective or exemplary followers are important to organizational success and are high on both critical dimensions of followership. They are seen by both co-workers and those in leadership positions as:
1. Independent;2. Innovative, creative;3. Courageous in articulating their views and willing to stand up to superiors when
necessary;4. Ready to apply their talents for the benefit of the university even when confronted
with bureaucratic stumbling blocks and passive or pragmatist co-workers.
What distinguishes effective from ineffective followers is enthusiastic, intelligent and self-reliant participation in the pursuit of the organizational mission. Effective followers are well-balanced, responsible adults. They can succeed without strong leadership.
Many effective or exemplary followers believe they offer as much value to the university as managers do, especially in project or taskforce situations.
As organizational structures flatten, the quality of those who follow will become more and more important. Vice-chancellors, therefore, would be well advised to select for empowerment, people who have the qualities of exemplary followers. Perhaps even more important, they should create the conditions and climate that encourage these characteristic behaviours.
3.7 CULTIVATING EFFECTIVE AND EXEMPLARY FOLLOWERS
The qualities that make effective and exemplary followers are pretty much the same qualities found in effective leaders. This is no mere coincidence, of course. Followership is not a person but a position. What distinguishes followers from leaders is not intelligence or character but responsibility. Effective followers and effective leaders are sometimes the same people playing different roles at different times.
In many universities, the leadership track is the only road to career success. Leadership is taught and encouraged while followership is not. Yet effective followership is prerequisite for organizational success. A university can take steps to cultivate effective followers by doing the following:
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1. Redefine Followership and LeadershipInstead of seeing the leadership role, as vice-chancellor, as putting one in a class above everyone else in the university and, therefore superior to the role of follower, we need to start thinking of them as equal but different activities. The operative definitions are roughly these:
People, who are effective in the leadership role, as vice-chancellors, have: The vision to set university goals and strategies; The interpersonal skills to achieve consensus; The persuasive skills to communicate enthusiasm to large or diverse groups of
individuals; The organizational talent to coordinate disparate efforts; The desire to lead.
People who are effective in the follower role have: The vision to see both the forest and the trees; The social capacity to work well with others; The strength of character to flourish without heroic status; The moral and psychological balance to pursue personal and corporate goals at no
cost to either; The desire to participate in a team effort for the accomplishment of some greater
common purpose and mission.
This view of leadership and followership can be conveyed directly and indirectly – through training and by example.
2. Foster Followership SkillsMost still assume that leadership has to be taught but that everyone knows how to follow. This assumption is based on three faulty premises:
That followers are less important than leaders; That following is simply doing what you are told; That followers inevitably draw their energy and aims, even their talents, from the
leader.
A programme of follower training can correct these misconceptions by focusing on such topics as:
Fostering independent, critical thinking; Increasing self-management and personal effectiveness; Building credibility; Disagreeing agreeably and resolving differences; Developing assertiveness skills and resilience; Aligning personal and organizational goals and commitments; Acting responsibly toward the university, the leaders, co-workers and oneself; Identifying similarities and differences between leadership and followership roles; Moving between the two roles with ease.
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Universities that want the benefits of effective followers must find ways of rewarding them and brining them into full partnership in the enterprise. Today’s flatter, leaner universities will not succeed without people who take pride and satisfaction in the role of supporting player, doing the less glorious work without fanfare
3. Involve Subordinates in the Empowerment ProcessThink for a moment of a university blessed with fully-engaged, fully-energized, fully-appreciated senior management team and academic and support staff. What would the spirit be? How would people feel about coming into work? Would they be open to staying on late to finish an important job? The answers are easy to formulate but finding a university like that in which to work can be an altogether different thing!
Empowerment can enrich people’s working lives by making their jobs more satisfying. It broadens their job activities, gives them more involvement in decision-making and allows them greater responsibility for their own success or failure. And the process is as applicable to a person operating a computer in the diocesan catechetical office as to a parish priest in a large town.
There are special factors to be considered, however, in involving subordinate staff in the empowerment process. Extending the boundaries of a job may give greater empowerment, but some will have to also develop new skills.
People who are making decisions must be able to deal with the consequences and associated stress. A person working in the IT department, for example, horrified at the thought of being involved in decision-making about the type of computers that the university wants to buy, thought it should be a senior management responsibility. He was not willing to risk making a wrong choice.
Empowerment does not occur automatically. People slowly build up the confidence to face the demands of their greater role.
3.7SUMMING UP
Thinking about your university, how are strategic leaders selected? What criteria is used to appoint VCs, Deans and Heads of Departments? Are their roles clearly spelt out in relation to the mission and visions of the university? What factors influence the selection of university leaders and how can they be mitigated to enable the most able to lead our universities competitively in the 21st Century?
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REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. How did you see your role as leader when you were appointed a vice-chancellor, (or to another senior management post in the university), and how do you see it now?
2. List FIVE specific needs you see in the staff you lead. Which of these needs are not being fully addressed and what can you, as a leader, do about them?
3. Write down on a separate sheet of paper your institution’s mission, vision and core values.
a. Are the three related?b. Identify an example of how you work towards their achievement.
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PART 4CHANGING UNIVERSITIES FOR THE BETTER
Specific Objectives:By the end of the Part 4 you should be able to:
Discuss organizational culture in universities Examine the forces of change in universities Discuss the techniques universities use to change behaviour of
its staff as they perform their tasks
4.1ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE
Organisational culture is comprised of distinct observable forms that groups of people create through social interaction and use to confront the boarder social environment. The observable forms manifest in behaviour of the people in the institution, their values and assumptions and beliefs.
“Corporate Culture”- Corporate culture is the total sum of values, customs, traditions and meaning that make an organization unique. Corporate culture is often referred to as “the character of the organization” since it embodies the vision of the organization’s founders. The values of a corporate culture influence the ethical standards within the corporation as well as managerial behaviour.
Senior managers must try to establish a corporate culture, which could reflect the values and standards of behaviour that specifically reflect the objectives of the organization. For example, Uganda Christian University tries to ensure that all lecturers are married and do so in Church; all students stay in designated halls of residence preferably run and owned by the university itself etc. These values are however challenged by other factors that are equally important such as the need for expansion to accommodate those who are able and willing to study from the university and the institution’s need to earn more money to survive in the market. What happens to its corporate culture under radically changing times? Uganda Martyrs University also originally required all students’ applications to be supported by local parish priests but abandoned it as the number of non-catholic students grew.
4.2TYPES OF CULTURES
Chares Handy, identifies four different cultures in a university as summaries below: Power Culture, which concentrates power among a few. Control radiates from
the center like a web. Power and influence spread out from a central figure or
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group. Power desires from the top person and personal relationships with that individual matters more than any formal title of position. Power Cultures have few rules and little bureaucracy; swift decisions can ensue.
In a Role Culture, people have clearly delegated authorities within a highly defined structure. Typically, these organizations form hierarchical bureaucracies. Power derives from a person's position and little scope exists for expert power. Controlled by procedures, roles descriptions and authority definitions. Predictable and consistent systems and procedures are highly valued.
By contrast, in a Task Culture, teams are formed to solve particular problems. Power derives from expertise as long as a team requires expertise. These cultures often feature the multiple reporting lines of a matrix structure. It is all a small team approach, who are highly skilled and specialist in their own markets of experience.
A Person Culture exists where all individuals believe themselves superior to the organization. Survival can become difficult for such organizations, since the concept of an organization suggests that a group of like-minded individuals pursue the organizational goals. Some professional partnerships can operate as person cultures, because each partner brings a particular expertise and clientele to the firm.
4.3WHY IS AN ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURE IMPROTANT TO AN ORGANIZATION?
Organizational culture is possibly the most critical factor determining an organization's capacity, effectiveness, and longevity. It also contributes significantly to the organization's brand image and brand promise by:
Creating energy and momentum. The energy will permeate the organization and create a new momentum for success.
Guaranteeing stability and, therefore, continuity, which is crucial for the organization. We need people who share the same values, beliefs and ways of doing things but here is the problem: in radically changing times where change is a MUST, organizational culture can be a real impediment.
The above-mentioned relevance of organizational culture supports the proposition that, in this competitive and globalized corporate scenario, there is great need of organizational development strategy at various workforce departments, as this can improve the company's culture. A normative systems culture change process is necessary highlighting the first phase of Analysis- the existing culture is examined to see what ideas are likely to grow in the culture. Leadership is engaged and goals are determined. This is followed by phase two- the seed of the new cultural ideas is planted in the minds of the members of the culture and employees at all levels are informed about the initiative and asked to participate. In the third phase, the new cultural practices are nurtured. Finally, results are harvested,
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success is celebrated and plans are set for building on the progress that has been achieved.
Organizational culture is accumulated over the years and it is very difficult to change in the short run. We now turn to change and its challenges in a university setting.
4.4FORCES FOR CHANGE
More and more universities today face a dynamic and changing environment. This, in turn, is requires these universities to adapt. “Change or die!” is the rallying cry among today’s university leaders.
Besides forces for change that come from outside of the university, (i.e. the government’s policy on development, etc), there are those that come from within. Many people, for example, have a far higher expectation level of what a university should be providing. They expect, for example, a higher standard of academic excellence than in the past and visible signs of improvement. Vice-chancellors and senior management cannot ignore these demands and must strive, (and, of equal importance, be seen to strive), for excellence in every aspect of a university’s life and work.
Managing Planned ChangeIf a university is to survive and grow in a 21st century environment, it must respond to changes in its environment. Efforts to stimulate innovation, empower members, and introduce improvements are examples of planned-change activities directed at responding to changes in the environment.
Since a university’s success or failure is essentially due to the things that its staff members do or fail to do, planned change also is concerned with changing the behaviour of individuals and groups within the university. (In the final part of this section, we review a number of techniques that universities can use to get people to behave differently in the tasks they perform and in their interactions with others.)
It also helps to think of planned change in terms of order of magnitude. First-order change is linear and continuous. It implies no fundamental shifts in the assumptions that staff members hold about their faith or how the university can improve it’s functioning. In contrast, second-order change is a multidimensional, multilevel, discontinuous, radical change involving reframing of assumptions about the university and the context in which it operates.
Who in universities are responsible for managing change activities? The answer is change agents. Change agents can be the vice-chancellor, his or her deputies, senior management staff, deans, other staff members, and people closely associated with the life and work of the university.
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4.5WHAT CAN CHANGE AGENTS CHANGE?
What can a change agents change? The options essentially fall into three categories: structure, physical setting, and people. Changing structure involves making an alteration in authority relations, coordination mechanisms, job redesign, or similar structural variables. Changing the physical setting covers altering the space and layout arrangements in the university. Changing people refers to changes in staff attitudes, skills, expectations, perceptions, and/or behaviour.
Changing StructuresA university’s structure is defined by how tasks are formally divided, grouped, and coordinated. Change agents can alter one or more of the key elements in a university’s design. For instance, responsibilities can be combined, vertical layers removed, and spans of control widened to make the university flatter and less bureaucratic. More rules and procedures can be implemented to increase standardization. An increase in decentralization can be made to speed up the decision-making process. (For example, should former students, after graduation, have to wait three to six months before being provided with a transcript? The answer is clearly ‘No’ but what in a university’s structure causes such delays? If you don’t know, find out!)
Change agents can also introduce major modifications in the actual structural design. This might include a shift from a simple structure to a team-based structure. Change agents might consider redesigning jobs or work schedules. Job descriptions can be redefined, jobs enriched, or flexible work hours introduced.
Changing the Physical SettingIn order to assess the physical setting of the university, and what changes are needed, senior managers should have a map or display with scale models made up for them. With the whole picture before them, they can consider with others how best space might be utilized and what structural improvements are needed. By prioritizing needs and drawing up a three or five year plan, vice-chancellors and their senior management team can set out a vision for what the university might look like in the future.
A final idea: some universities encourage specific groups of people to undertake a project geared at improving the university in some way. With encouragement, and careful selection, a small team can do wonders if they are motivated properly. (For example, if there is an architecture or design faculty in your university, use them to come up with ideas for how to improve the way the university looks. Who else could be useful for this task? Sit down and think about it!)
Changing PeopleThe final area in which change agents operate is in helping individuals and groups within the university to work more effectively together.
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This category typically involves changing the attitudes and behaviour of members through processes of communication, decision-making, and problem solving.
This is the toughest task of all – academic timetable can be re-drawn and tables can be moved around, but what of people in a university? Some will block any proposed change – not because the change being suggested is bad – but simply because they resent change and were not consulted.
One of the changes in Makerere University is the college system where schools and faculties have been amalgamated to form larger and more self-sustaining colleges. At the head of the college is a principal who oversees the running as well as the financial flows in the college. The system of deans as the administrators and financial controllers has come to an end. The new and probably the most important role of the Dean that was grossly neglected before is academic leadership. The roles of the former academic dean are now the sole responsibilities of the school/ faculty dean. The college structures have changed university management for instance, now each college has an academic registrar, a bursar, an appointments board etc. In addition space allocation has been more political than ever as the administrative staff increases in number, as colleague offices are allocated in different buildings as a result of the merger etc. these changes have implications to the attitudes of people in colleges. For instance the position of a Dean, once fought for is not an attraction to many as deans have been reduced to the level of Heads of Departments. How will these changes affect the election politics where formerly ethnicity, religion and political affiliations played a big part?
4.6 RESISTANCE TO CHANGE
One of the well-documented findings from studies of individual and organizational behaviour is that people, in general resist change. In a sense, this is not altogether a bad thing. Keeping things as they are provides a degree of stability and predictability to behaviour. If there weren’t some resistance, organizational behaviour could take on characteristics of chaotic randomness. That said, resistance to change can also be a source of conflict in a group. For example, resistance to a plan to reorganize the central administration of a university can stimulate a healthy debate over the merits of the idea and result in a better decision. But there is a definite downside to resistance to change. It hinders adaptation and progress.
Resistance to change does not necessarily surface in standardized ways. Resistance can be overt, implicit, immediate, or deferred. It is easiest for a leader to deal with resistance when it is overt and immediate. For instance, a change is proposed and staff members quickly respond by voicing complaints. The greater challenge is managing resistance that is implicit or deferred. Implicit resistance efforts are more subtle - loss of loyalty to the university, loss of motivation to work, increased errors or mistakes, late submission of end-of-semester exam marks, increased absenteeism from university activities due to
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“sickness” - and hence more difficult to recognize. Similarly, deferred actions cloud the link between the source of the resistance and the reaction to it. A change may produce what appears to be only a minimal reaction at the time it is initiated, but then resistance surfaces weeks, months, or even years later. Or a single change that in and of itself might have little impact becomes the straw that breaks the camel’s back. Reactions to change can build up and then explode in some response that seems totally out of proportion to the change action it follows. The resistance, of course, has merely been deferred and stockpiled. What surfaces is a response to an accumulation of previous changes.
Let’s look at the sources of resistance. For analytical purposes, we’ll categorize them by individual and organizational sources that often overlap.
Individual ResistanceIndividual sources of resistance to change reside in basic human characteristics such as perceptions, personalities, and needs. The following summarizes four reasons why individuals may resist change.
1) HABIT As human beings, we’re creatures of habit. Life is complex enough; we don’t need to consider the full range of options for the hundreds of decisions we have to make every day. To cope with this complexity, we all rely on habits or programmed responses. But when confronted with change, this tendency to respond in our accustomed ways becomes a source of resistance.
2) SECURITY People with a high need for security are likely to resist change because it threatens their feelings of safety. When a Dean of a Faculty, for example, says that he or she is reorganizing allocation of duties, some staff members, especially senior academic staff, may fear that their status or position in the university is in jeopardy.
3) FEAR OF THE UNKNOWN Changes substitute ambiguity and uncertainty for the known. The arrival of a new vice-chancellor is typically such an experience. We might not have especially liked his or her predecessor, but at least we understood him or her. Then a new person arrives and brings in new ways of doing things. If, for example, the introduction of a new system of staff appraisals, some might feel aggrieved that they were not consulted. They may, therefore, develop a negative attitude towards the new leader and actively work against him or her, although the arguments in favor of introducing the new appraisal system are obvious to everyone else concerned.
4) SELECTIVE INFORMATION PROCESSING Individuals shape their world through their perceptions. Once they have created this world, it resists change. So individuals are guilty of selectively processing information in order to keep their perceptions intact. They hear what they want to hear. They ignore information that challenges the world they’ve created. To return to the academic staff member resistant to the introduction of a new staff appraisal system, they may ignore the arguments their colleagues make in explaining the potential benefits the change will provide to the university and to staff.
Organizational ResistanceUniversities, by their very nature, are conservative. They actively resist change. You don’t have to look far to see evidence of this phenomenon. Many universities, for example, want to continue doing what they have been doing for years, whether the need for their services changes or remains the same. This is because it has become deeply
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entrenched in its history. Any attempt to change practice requires great persistence and patience!
Six major sources of organizational resistance can be identified:1) STRUCTURAL INERTIA Universities have built-in mechanisms to produce
stability. For example, the recruitment process for a university systematically selects certain who are known already as solid types. Often, they were themselves, students at the same university. Other socialization techniques often reinforce specific role requirements and skills. Formalization provides rules and procedures for staff members to follow. The people who are in universities are chosen for fit; they are then shaped and directed to behave in certain ways. When a university is confronted with change, this structural inertia acts as a counterbalance to sustain stability.
2) LIMITED FOCUS OF CHANGE Universities are made up of a number of interdependent subsystems. You can’t change one without affecting the others. If the admissions department, for example, decide to lower the entry requirements for certain courses, the impact will be felt very quickly by those who have to teach students with markedly less ability than in previous years.
3) GROUP INERTIA Even if individual staff members want to bring in changes, group norms in their faculty or department may act as a constraint. There is nothing more depressing than receiving the put-down at a faculty meeting when an individual staff member talks excitedly about introducing a new course – and the reaction is ‘Why should we? It only means extra work.’
4) THREAT TO EXPERTISE Changes in working patterns may threaten the expertise of specialized groups. The proposal to establish of a new institute or department that has a cross-cutting themes, (for example: ‘Peace Studies’ or ‘Good Governance’, may cause problems for those in the Faculty of Social Sciences who have been offering courses in both area and now feel they are the experts in the respective areas. They feel aggrieved that others are taking over ‘their’ courses. )
5) THREAT TO ESTABLISHED POWER RELATIONSHIPS Any redistribution of decision-making authority can threaten long-established power relationships within a university. The introduction of a weekly senior management team meeting is the kind of change that is often seen as threatening by some senior managers. They feel they are being called to be accountable to their juniors, even though the meeting is primarily one, which attempts to synergies their collective efforts to run a good ship.
6) THREAT TO ESTABLISHED RESOURCE ALLOCATIONS Those groups in the university that control sizable resources often see change as a threat. They tend to be content with the way things are. Will a change, for instance, mean a reduction in their budgets or a cut in their staff size? Those that most benefit from the current allocation of resources often feel threatened by changes that may affect future allocations.
4.7OVERCOMING RESISTANCE TO CHANGE
Six tactics have been suggested for use by change agents in dealing with resistance to change:
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1) COMMUNICATION Resistance can be reduced through communicating with staff members to help them see the logic of a change. This tactic basically assumes that the source of resistance lies in misinformation or poor communication: If staff members receive the full facts and get any misunderstandings cleared up, resistance will subside. Communication can be achieved through one-on-one discussions, group presentations, or reports at staff meetings. Does it work? It does, provided that the source of resistance is inadequate communication and that leader–members relations are characterized by mutual trust and credibility. If these conditions don’t exist, the change is unlikely to succeed.
2) PARTICIPATION It is difficult for individuals to resist a change decision in which they participated. Prior to making a change, those opposed can be brought into the decision process. Assuming that the participants have the expertise to make a meaningful contribution, their involvement can reduce resistance, obtain commitment, and increase the quality of the change decision. However, against these advantages are the negatives: potential for a poor solution and great time consumption.
3) FACILITATION AND SUPPORT Change agents can offer a range of supportive efforts to reduce resistance. When fear and anxiety are high, providing new skills training may smooth the road ahead. Returning to the subject of staff appraisals, if an SMT want its introduction to be successful it makes sense to hold a one-day workshop on the topic, and show people how the new system works. The drawback of this tactic is that, as with the others, it is time consuming. Additionally, it’s expensive, and its implementation offers no assurance of success.
4) NEGOTIATION Another way for the change agents to deal with potential resistance to change is to exchange something of value for a lessening of the resistance. For instance, if the resistance is centered in a few powerful individuals, a specific reward package can be negotiated that will meet their individual needs. Negotiation as a tactic may be necessary when resistance comes from a powerful source. Yet one cannot ignore its potentially high costs. Additionally, there is the risk that, once a vice-chancellor, or another member of the SMT, negotiates with one party to avoid resistance, he or she is open to the possibility of being blackmailed by other individuals in positions of power.
5) MANIPULATION This refers to twisting and distorting facts to make them appear more attractive, withholding undesirable information, and creating false rumors to get members to accept a change are all examples of manipulation. Manipulation is a relatively inexpensive and easy way to gain the support of adversaries, but the tactics can backfire if the targets become aware that they are being tricked or used. Once discovered, the change member’s credibility may drop to zero.
6) COERCION Last on the list of tactics is coercion, that is, the application of direct threats or force upon the resisters. ‘It’s either my way or the highway.’ The advantages and drawbacks of coercion are approximately the same as those mentioned for manipulation.
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4.8THE POLITICS OF CHANGE
No discussion of resistance to change would be complete without a brief mention of the politics of change. Because change invariably threatens the status quo, it inherently implies political activity. Those who cause most problems, when a change is being advocated in the way the university operates, typically are individuals high in the university who have a lot to lose from change. Change, for them is perceived as a threat to those skills and patterns. What if they are no longer the ones the university values? This creates the potential for others in the university to gain power at their expense.
Politics suggests that the impetus for change is more likely to come from outside change members who are new to the university, (and have less invested in the status quo), or from leaders slightly removed from the main power structure. Those leaders who have spent their entire careers with a single university and eventually achieve a senior position in the hierarchy are often major impediments to change. Change, itself, is a very real threat to their status and position. Yet they may be expected to implement changes to demonstrate that they’re not merely caretakers. By acting as change members, they can symbolically convey to various constituencies that they are on top of problems and adapting to a dynamic environment. Of course, as you might guess, when forced to introduce change, these long-time power holders tend to implement first-order changes. Radical change is too threatening. Power struggles within the university will determine, to a large degree, the speed and quantity of change. You should expect that long-time staff members will be sources of resistance. This, incidentally, explains why some governing councils and boards of trustees that recognize the imperative for the rapid introduction of second-order change in their universities, and frequently turn to outside candidates when looking for a new vice-chancellor.
4.9HOW TO APPROACH ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE
Now we turn to one popular approach to managing change. Specifically, we discuss ACTION RESEARCH. It refers to a change process based on the systematic collection of data and then selection of a change action based on what the analyzed data indicate. Their importance lies in providing a scientific methodology for managing planned change the process of action research consists of five steps: diagnosis, analysis, feedback, action, and evaluation.
DIAGNOSIS The change agent, often a member of the senior management team, begins by gathering information about problems, concerns, and needed changes from members of the university. This diagnosis is analogous to the physician’s search to find what specifically ails a patient. In action research, the change agent asks questions, interviews individuals, reviews records, and listens to the concerns of staff members.
ANALYSIS The information gathered during the diagnostic stage is then analyzed. What problems do people key in on? What patterns do these problems seem to take?
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The change agent synthesizes this information into primary concerns, problem areas, and possible actions.
FEEDBACK Action research includes extensive involvement of the change targets. That is, the people who will be involved in any change programme must be actively involved in determining what the problem is and participating in creating the solution. So the third step is sharing with staff members, especially deans and heads of departments, what has been found from steps one and two. The staff members, with the help of the change agent, develop action plans for bringing about any needed change.
ACTION Now the “action” part of action research is set in motion. The staff members and the change agent carry out the specific actions to correct the problems that have been identified.
EVALUATION Finally, consistent with the scientific underpinnings of action research, the change agent evaluates the effectiveness of the action plans. Using the initial data gathered as a benchmark, any subsequent changes can be compared and evaluated.
Research provides at least two specific benefits for an organization, such as a university. First, its problem focused. The member of the senior management team objectively looks for problems and the type of problem determines the type of change action. While this may seem intuitively obvious, a lot of change activities aren’t done this way. Rather, they’re solution centered. The change agent has a favourite solution and then seeks out problems that his or her solution fits. Second, because action research so heavily involves staff members and others in the process, resistance to change is reduced. In fact, once members have actively participated in the feedback stage, the change process typically takes on a momentum of its own. The members and those that have been involved become an internal source of sustained pressure to bring about the change.
Makerere University’s ranking in Africa according to the much disputed but significantly influential web metrics was very low. The VC realized the importance of these rankings and the need for Makerere to rise in its ranking to keep its competitive edge. He initiated a crusade to improve MUK position/ranking among African universities (according to her vision!) on web-metrics. The VC communicated with the faculty in charge of IT and the library and paved a way to increase our web presence. This involved availing all research on the web at faculty and university level. It called on academic staff together with the School of Graduate Studies to spend time and resource to make this possible in addition to declaring all departmental and individual projects and research projects received. As the university ranking improved over the months, more and more in the university community got involved in uploading materials. This has improved public opinion about the university. As a university leader, what have you instituted to move your university to fulfill its mission and vision?
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4.10 STIMULATING ORGANIZATIONAL INNOVATION
InnovationAn important question we need to ask before concluding this part of the course on change management is: “How can a university become more innovative?” While there is no guaranteed formula, certain characteristics surface again and again when researchers study innovative universities inside, and outside, of Africa. We’ve grouped them into structural, cultural, and human resource categories. Leaders should consider introducing these characteristics into their university if they want to create an innovative climate. Before we look at these characteristics, however, let’s clarify what we mean by innovation.
We said change refers to making things different. Innovation is a more specialized kind of change. Innovation is a new idea applied to initiating or improving a product, process, or service. So all innovations involve change, but not all changes necessarily involve new ideas or lead to significant improvements. Innovations in universities can range from small improvements, such as planting trees around the outside of the university administration building to such radical steps such as going into partnership with another university to deliver certain programs together.
Structural variables have been the most studied potential source of innovation. A comprehensive review of the structure – innovation relationship leads to the following conclusions. First, long tenure by a vice-chancellor is associated with successful innovation. Universities that cannot keep vice-chancellors for more than a year or two, will not be places for innovation because those in charge do not have sufficient knowledge and experience of the situation to implement much-needed changes. Second, innovation is nurtured where there are ample resources. Having sufficient resources allows a university to afford to purchase innovations, bear the cost of instituting innovations, and absorb failures. Poor universities will always be struggling to make ends meet. Third, communication is high in innovative universities. These universities are high users of committees, task forces, an efficient intranet, and other mechanisms that facilitate interaction across groups.
Innovative universities tend to have similar cultures. They encourage experimentation. They reward both successes and failures. Unfortunately, in too many universities, people are rewarded for the absence of failures rather than for the presence of successes. Such cultures extinguish risk taking and innovation. People will suggest and try new ideas only where they feel such behaviours exact no penalties. Vice-chancellors and senior management staff in innovative universities recognize that failures are a natural by-product of venturing into the unknown. They believe in the maxim: ‘It is better to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all.’
Within the human resources category, we find that innovative universities actively promote the training and development of staff members so that they keep up to date on developments in university education e either by attending sessions or visiting other
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universities, which have a high reputation for excellence. We want members who are champions of change. Once a new idea is developed, idea champions actively and enthusiastically promote the idea, build support, overcome resistance, and ensure that the innovation is implemented. The evidence indicates that champions have common personality characteristics:
Extremely high self-confidence; Persistence; Energy, and Tendency to take risks.
Idea champions also display characteristics associated with transformational leadership. They inspire and energize others with their vision of the potential of an innovation and through their strong personal conviction in their mission. They are also good at gaining the commitment of others to support their mission. In addition, idea champions have jobs that provide considerable decision-making discretion. This autonomy helps them introduce and implement innovations in universities.
4.11CREATING A DYNAMIC UNIVERSITY
A dynamic university is one that has developed the continuous capacity to adapt and change. Just as individuals learn, so do universities. It is important that even universities have to learn, whether they consciously choose to or not - it is a fundamental requirement for their sustained existence.
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Key Characteristics of a Dynamic UniversityWe can sum up the basic characteristics of a dynamic university in the following way. It’s a university where people put aside their old ways of thinking, learn to be open with each other, understand how their university really works, form a plan or vision that everyone can agree upon, and then work together to achieve that vision.
In order to make the above happen, three basic steps that need to be taken:1) ESTABLISH A STRATEGY Vice-chancellors need to make explicit their
commitment to change, innovation, and continuous improvement.2) SIMPLIFY THE UNIVERSITY’S STRUCTURE A complex structure and
reporting system, can be a serious impediment to learning. By flattening the structure, eliminating or combining committees, and increasing the use of cross-functional teams, interdependence is reinforced and boundaries between people are reduced.
3) RESHAPE THE UNIVERSITY’S CULTURE As noted earlier, dynamic universities are characterized by risk taking, openness, and growth. University vice-chancellors set the tone for the university’s culture both by what they say (strategy) and what they do (behaviour). Vice-chancellors, as well as others in the senior management team, need to demonstrate by their actions that taking risks and admitting failures are desirable traits. That means rewarding people who take chances and make mistakes. And university vice-chancellors need to stir things up and encourage functional conflict. “The key to unlocking real openness at work,” says one expert: “is to teach people to give up having to be in agreement. We think agreement is so important. Who cares? You have to bring paradoxes, conflicts, and dilemmas out in the open, so collectively we can be more intelligent than we can be individually.”
4.12MANAGING CHANGE AND CULTURE
A number of change issues we’ve discussed are culture bound. To illustrate, let’s briefly look at four questions:
1) Do people believe change is possible?2) If it is possible, how long will it take to bring it about? 3) Does culture influence how change efforts will be implemented?4) Do successful idea champions do things differently in different cultures?
Do people believe change is possible? Remember that cultures vary in terms of beliefs about their ability to control their environment. In cultures where people believe that they can dominate their environment, individuals will take a proactive view of change. In other cultures, people see themselves as subjugated to their environment and thus will tend to take a passive approach toward change.
If change is possible, how long will it take to bring it about? A culture’s time orientation can help us answer this question. Societies that focus on the long term will demonstrate considerable patience while waiting for positive outcomes from change efforts. In
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societies with a short-term focus, people expect quick improvements and will seek change programmes that promise fast results. Resistance to change is greater in some cultures than in others. Resistance to change will be influenced by a society’s reliance on tradition.
Does culture influence how change efforts will be implemented? Power distance can help with this issue. In high-power-distance cultures, change efforts will tend to be autocratically implemented by the university leader. In contrast, low-power-distance cultures value democratic methods.
Finally, do successful idea champions do things differently in different cultures? The evidence indicates that the answer is “yes.” People in collectivist cultures, in contrast to individualistic cultures, prefer appeals for cross-functional support for innovation efforts; people in high-power-distance cultures prefer champions to work closely with those in authority to approve innovative activities before work is conducted on them; and the higher the uncertainty avoidance of a society, the more champions should work within the university’s rules and procedures to develop the innovation.
These findings suggest that effective leaders will alter their university’s championing strategies to reflect cultural values.
4.13A FEW FINAL TIPS FOR MANAGING CHANGE
John P. Kotter, (Leading Change, 1996) has been observing this process for almost 30 years. What intrigues him is why some leaders are able to take these tools and methods and get their organisation to change dramatically - while most do not. How many times have we not seen somebody get very excited about some new tool? Yet two years later there is no performance improvement at all. Often because most of the organisation has rejected the change needed to make it happen.
When people need to make big changes significantly and effectively, Kotter finds that there are generally eight basic things that must happen:
1) INSTILL A SENSE OF URGENCY Identifying existing or potential crises or opportunities.
2) PICK A GOOD TEAM Assembling a strong guiding coalition with enough power to lead the change effort. And make them work as a team, not a committee!
3) CREATE A VISION AND SUPPORTING STRATEGIES We need a clear sense of purpose and direction. In less successful situations you generally find plans and budgets, but no vision and strategy; or the strategies are so superficial that they have no credibility.
4) COMMUNICATE As many people as possible need to hear the mandate for change loud and clear, with messages sent out consistently and often. Forget the boring memos that nobody reads! Try using videos, speeches, kick-off meetings, sessions in small units, etc. Also important is the teaching of new behaviours by the example of the guiding coalition
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5) REMOVE OBSTACLES Get rid of anything blocking change, like bosses stuck in the old ways or lack of information systems. Encourage risk-taking and non-traditional ideas, activities, and actions. Empowerment is moving obstacles out of peoples' way so they can make something happen, once they've got the vision clear in their heads.
6) CHANGE FAST Little quick wins are essential for creating momentum and providing sufficient credibility to pat the hard-working people on the back and to diffuse the cynics. Remember to recognize and reward employees involved in the improvements.
7) KEEP ON CHANGING After change universities get rolling and have some wins, they don't stop there. They go back and make wave after wave of other actions necessary for long-term, significant change. Successful change leaders don't drop the sense of urgency. On top of that, they are very systematic about figuring out all of the pieces they need to have in place before they declare victory.
8) MAKE CHANGE STICK The last big step is nailing big change to the floor and making sure it sticks. And the way things stick is through culture. If you can create a totally new culture around some new way of managing, it will stay. It won't live on if it is dependent on one boss or a couple of enthusiastic people who will eventually move on.
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. “Resistance to change is an irrational response.” Do you agree or disagree? Explain.
2. Why is participation considered such an effective technique for lessening resistance to change?
3. Why does change so frequently become a political issue in universities?4. What characteristics of African culture hinder and encourage innovation? 5. In your experience, do you think that it is true to say that the majority of
universities in Uganda really are committed to the search for excellence? Justify your answer with reasons!
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PART 5BUILDING WINNING TEAMS FOR UNIVERSITIES OF THE 21st CENTURY
Specific ObjectivesIn this final part of the module, we will explore ways to create humane, caring and supportive organizational structure that can maintain the commitment of staff, challenge them, and enable them to fulfill their role in the university as effectively as possible.
5.1COMMUNICATION AND ACTIVE LISTENING.
According to the Hay Group, one of the world’s largest global management firms, “trust” and “confidence” in managers are the single most reliable predictors of employee satisfaction in an organization. Effective communication by managers in three critical areas is, they say, the key to winning organizational trust and confidence:
Helping employees understand the organization's overall business strategy.
Helping employees understand how they contribute to achieving key business objectives.
Sharing information with employees on both how the organization is doing and how an employee's own division is doing - relative to strategic business objectives.
So basically, you must be trustworthy and you have to be able to communicate a vision of where you are going.
In crafting your strategic architecture, you must ensure that a critical mass of your staff know and understand the direction being taken to avoid collapse. All staff at any time should tell us where they are headed to and what their ROLES are in that process.
Therefore, unless a VC and his senior team can COMMUNICATE the vision, mission and the mandates of the institutions to people within it- all people including support staff- the university will have big problems.
In most universities, academics are talking and writing about INTERDISCIPLINARY/ TRANSDISCIPLINARY teaching and research but seldom is this practiced. They remain anchored in their “territorial tribes” of History, Botany, and Microbiology etc without getting to exploit the synergies that reside at the interstices of the disciplines. Often, senior managers fail to see that collaboration between departments and faculties in the production of knowledge optimizes utilization of resources such as skills and competencies shared across the board.
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But the key to success of such interdisciplinary teaching and research lies in the VCs and his team- do they have the required communication skills to reach everybody with the message for their consent? It is not just getting history staff and mathematics staff, for example, working on a joint project - but getting academics into active exploration of knowledge in the disciplines to create new knowledge. (See Michael Gibbons on “The New Production of Knowledge”)
Again for this to succeed, the VC and his team must keep an inventory of skills and competencies of all the staff in the university. Quite commonly, once recruited into a university, one teaches for a life time in the discipline without moving anyone or caring whether or not the individual could useful in another department. In this regard, staffs are underutilized and by the time they leave, perhaps only 5% of their knowledge has been exploited! At the same time universities are crying about shortage of academics.
5.2YOUNG AND PROMISING UNIVERSITIES
The ability to predict which university, founded in Uganda over the last 20 years, will eventually become a world-class institution known nationally and internationally for its standard of education, its research and its role in the community, is more a matter of art than a science.
Lessons can be learned from the successes and failures of those universities that have emerged in the last 20 years in many parts of the developing world, and that continue to operate and flourish:
All these recently-founded universities, that can be considered successful, had at first a very restricted number of leaders, often only one leader with followers. This person generally had a vision and was aware of the fact that this vision was convincing enough to attract and retain followers and supporters, even though he or she did not really know all the details or the hows and whys of development. This vision usually translated into a limited number of coherent and consistent objectives that, though ambitious, were realistic. The visionaries who were successful were those who knew how to adapt to changes without constantly modifying their strategy.
These leaders were good communicators and knew how to deal with multiple audiences, inspiring their followers while managing to keep very good relations with donors and country authorities. Leaders of what would become successful Businesses have often identified someone to serve as their right hand—someone who would be in charge of administration and of transforming the vision into reality. This person would prove crucial for maintaining accounts and showing results, and would be a person who preferred working in the shadow of the visionary leader. It was often the mutual respect between these two people that would ensure the success of the university.
The new universities that proved to be real successes were those that learned how to use the capital they obtained to become more effective and efficient, while simultaneously becoming less dependent on external subsidies to cover their recurring costs. New universities that will be able to survive are those that understand that the availability of
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foreign assistance is eventually going to decrease and that a durable local university should find other reliable sources of funds by other means.
The universities that succeed over time are rarely those that grow initially at a very fast pace. When trying to create sustainable institutions, it is sometimes necessary to start off at moderate speed. Events can lead to unpleasant consequences for a university that grows quickly, but they could lead to disastrous consequences for a university that grows at an explosive pace. It is extremely difficult to grow rapidly while at the same time strengthening the university. Slowdown in the institutional growth of a university can be very useful if the leadership uses it to improve operations and make sure that everybody is willing and able to follow.
Another key element of university success is the treatment of staff and in particular of new employees. Most new universities do not have sufficient resources to hire staff with vast experience of the higher education sector. They need to rely on staff with less experience, often on people straight from university themselves. To grow quickly, the university must have in place a programme of recruitment and training for new staff that will allow them to maintain quality services for their students while also maintaining or improving the quality of their lecturing and teaching skills of their young staff.
Universities can only succeed if they have several tools to ensure that staff and leadership fulfill their responsibilities and do not use their position to gain undue advantage. In a big university, some individuals will try to obtain advantages by breaking rules. This is even truer in young universities where rules are not always well defined and disseminated. It is thus fundamental that the university put in place control mechanisms against abuses. Although it is common to see universities where some members of the staff are rarely turning up for their classes, the worst abuses are those committed by vice-chancellors and senior managers who, let things slide and don’t bother to challenge certain bad behaviours of staff. When this happens, a culture of ‘who cares who comes to class’ soon spreads to all levels of the university.
5.3PROMISING UNIVERSITIES AND BREAKTHROUGHS
To select promising universities does not mean choosing universities that are going to grow as fast as possible during the next few years, to the detriment of their long-term institutional viability. Rather, it means choosing universities that are going to be able to grow, while at the same time laying a solid foundation and developing the capacity for continued, sustainable growth even after the project ends. In the history of education, people have repeatedly—and mistakenly—considered spectacular and temporary successes to be breakthroughs. It is preferable to support institutions that grow at a less spectacular but solid pace.
When analyzing a university, and how it measures up as an institution, one should avoid getting lost in too many details and losing sight of the big picture. An institution must be viewed and analyzed as a whole. Indeed, all universities have numerous weaknesses, but also several strengths. It is the degree to which their strengths outweigh their weaknesses that will determine the capacity of universities to become breakthroughs. The observer must identify this capacity to find solutions to problems and overcome weaknesses.
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And the observer must recognize that anything, even a virtue, pushed to the extreme often becomes a defect. For example, too much democracy within a university risks slowing down decision-making processes and, ultimately, can lead to paralysis. Not enough democracy risks limiting the autonomy and creativity of staff and leadership. Not enough control fosters bad habits and permits the abuse of power. Too much control increases the administrative costs and slows down individual initiative. A successful university will be able to strike a healthy balance that will allow it to adapt to both internal and external pressures. That said, experience has shown that we cannot adopt or promote a single solution across different contexts.
5.4HOW TO EVALUATE UNIVERSITIES AND TO SEE IF THEY ARE WORLD CLASS INSTITUTIONS
Assessing the organizational level of universities cannot be boiled down to mere numbers. Any conclusions reached during an assessment or evaluation exercise are merely indicative of a university’s potential. That said, there are certain indicators that can tell us which way a university is going.
Experience shows that the key areas for assessment are:1) Vision, Purpose, and Legal Structure2) Governing Council3) Funding/Resources4) Management5) Systems6) Staff7) Delivery Structure8) Performance9) Organizational Culture10) Clients
Let us take each topic in turn and see what is entailed:
1. VISION, PURPOSEVision is everything. A world-class university knows that it wants to become. A university that is simply adding new faculties and starting new programmes each year, just because they see a demand, but does not view recruiting competent staff and sustainability and scale as prerequisites, is unlikely to become a world-class university. A world-class university is one that knows what it can do well, and what it can’t do well. It has a strategic plan and knows where it wants to be in five or ten year’s time. World-class universities are very aware of future options and what is entailed in becoming all they believe they can be.
2. GOVERNING COUNCIL The role of the Governing Council s often underestimated during assessment exercises. An excellent Governing Council can make a significant difference in terms of the institutional performance of a university. A dysfunctional Council can be a real hindrance. Common problems
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are having Councils comprising of a number of talented individuals who rarely attend meetings and do not work effectively together. Often you can find members of such Councils who have little understanding of higher education and the challenges facing universities in the 21 st Century. For a university to be a success, it must have a Council who can provide direction, guidance and insight on which way forward for the institution, without overstepping the boundaries and attempting to micro-manage the it.
3. FUNDING/RESOURCESThere is an enormous difference in commitment and performance between a l university that is seeking funds to build on its core activities and one that, seeing funds are available, decides to start new projects without any thought of the future. Universities that have a visionary founder (s) who has put seed-money money into a university, and have a clear idea of how, at least, the operational costs can be met through fees or scholarship funds, seem to be more likely to succeed in the long-term. Those universities that are forever chasing grants simply to access outside funding and are quick to accept new resources for something, in which they have little experience, rarely succeed in the long-term.
4. LEADERSHIPSome say that finding the right person to be the vice-chancellor of a university is more than half the work of setting out to become a world-class university. A good assessment of the style and competence of the vice-chancellor is a vital glimpse into the future of a university. The ideal vice-chancellor is someone open to new ideas and hungry to learn; someone who manages in a participatory and decentralized style, who visits faculty’s s regularly, has learned from previous institutional mistakes, and sees the importance of putting good administrative practices in place. Dictatorial, “ivory-castle” types who are never seen around the campus have poor relations with staff, and who are closed to suggestions are extremely unlikely to steer their university to success.
5. SYSTEMSSystems in all universities are unlikely to be perfect, but attitudes toward systems are indicative of their success or failure in the long-term sense. As a minimum, universities should have a staff manual, that is updated each year; weekly senior management team meeting; monthly faculty meetings; semester staff meetings; a budget and finance plan that are tracked monthly; regularly maintained website; a timetable that is published before the start of the semester; examination results that come out two week after the final exam is given; and a university prospectus that is current and accurate. Without these basics things in place – and we are only talking about the basics! - it is hard to envisage why the name ‘university’ should be on the front door of the institution.
6. STAFFStaff are the heart of a university and the students primary contact. Their attitude often defines a university’s public image. Universities that build staff loyalty through training and fair personnel policies have a good chance of success. Signs of low morale are staff openly complaining about management and procedures. This typically leads to poor performance.
7. DELIVERY STRUCTUREThe key to delivering quality education in all sectors of a university seems to be having a solid, decentralized, faculty and department office system in place. Without such resources, and resourceful people to run them, things can become very chaotic. World-class universities have faculties and department heads that can provide immediate assistance to students seeking help, competent leadership for those staff working there, and have the ability to perform their duties in
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a quick and efficient manner. Heavily centralized universities where all management decisions are made those in the main office are unlikely to become world class.
8. ORGANIZATIONAL CULTUREOrganizational culture provides a rare glimmer of the future potential of a university. It is very hard to change and therefore an assessment must try and understand it. For a university, organizational culture includes attitude toward and openness about how things are moving forward in the university and whether or not it is making any real difference in the lives of students. Lack of basic attention to the needs of students is a sign that a university is more of business than an educational institution. But even as a business it will eventually fail because the customers (i.e. students) will get carried of being offered poor service and move elsewhere.
Universities that are on the right path in terms of effectiveness and efficiency are ones where the organizations culture is that ‘students come first’. Everything that a university does should, in one sense, be related to its core activity of being an institute of higher education. Those universities that treat students as an inconvenience’, to say nothing of their staff, will never become a world-class establishment.
5.5 ORGANIZATIONAL REVIEW CHECKLIST
I. VISION & PURPOSELikely to be successful
Clear vision of becoming a sustainable organisation and a strongly felt desire at all levels of the institution to make this happen
Visionary Founder (s) Higher education is core activity Clear commitment to treating students as ‘customers’ Scale vision—reaching thousands
Unlikely to be successful Unclear educational focus influenced by funding available Multi-sectoral development Adding new “courses” without any real thought of who will teach them or how they can
be made sustainable Small project vision—reaching hundreds
II. GOVERNING COUNCIL Likely to be successful
Council members regularly attend meetings and take their responsibilities seriously Council understands higher education or is “hungry” to learn Council comprises a broad range of professional people including women All Council members have firsthand experience of what the university does for people
Unlikely to be successful Council members have no understanding of higher education in the 21st century Council has no professional people or few women “Trophy Council” of important people who rarely attend meetings and do not govern Most Council members have never seen what the university does for people
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III. MANAGEMENTLikely to be Successful
Strong vice-chancellor —”hungry” for new ideas Typical answer to a suggestion: “Interesting…we want to learn from the experiences of
other successful universities around the world” Transformational vice chancellor who articulates goals, builds an image, demonstrates
confidence and arouses motivation In a meeting with the vice-chancellor and the senior management team, all feel free to
speak their mind in a relaxed and constructive manner Vice-chancellor regularly sits down with Deans
Unlikely to be successful Weak vice-chancellor —”blinkered” Typical answer to a suggestion: “We’re different…….. our people are different…….this
university is different…..that would never work here” In a meeting with the vice-chancellor and the senior management team, the vice-
chancellor mostly speaks Vice-chancellor never visits the faculties and departments
IV. SYSTEMSLikely to be successful
Clear policies and procedures in place and publicized. Effective and efficient use of communication Regular SMT, faculty and staff meetings and solidarity is strong
Unlikely to be successful No policies and procedures manuals in place, or manual and directives are ignored by
staff Poor use of communication Few meeting at any level and solidarity is weak
V. STAFFLikely to be successful
University builds up their number of full-time staff Extensive staff training Staff talk about management showing support for their work and are proud of their
institution
Unlikely to be successful University uses mostly part-time staff hired from other universities Staff receive no training Staff openly complain about management and have little loyalty to the institution
VI. DELIVERY STRUCTURELikely to be successful
Clear, documented, and consistent office systems Quick delivery mechanisms for student access to services
Unlikely to be Successful Confused or inconsistently implemented office systems
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Highly centralized delivery structure out of main building Slow, laborious procedures for students to access to services, obtain results of
examinations, transcripts etc.
VIII. ORGANIZATIONAL CULTURELikely to be Successful
Openness about problems and how to resolve them Open and transparent culture, straight and consistent answers to simple questions from
staff at different levels of the university Learn from mistakes Student-responsive, externally focused culture that is aware of the importance of
providing good services delivery Gut feeling that this would be a great university to work with and that mutual trust and
respect would naturally develop
Unlikely to be successful Cover-up of problems at any level of the university Closed culture and/or lack of transparency, evasive answers to simple questions or
different answers to the same simple question by staff at various levels Repeat mistakes—”it’s our way” Internally focused culture with little idea of why the university was founded in the first
place Gut feeling that this would be a difficult university to work with
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
1. ‘The ability to predict which universities in Uganda will become world is more a matter of art than a science’. Do you agree with this statement?
2. Make a summary of the criteria, which can be used to assess which are universities, which we can term ‘promising ones’.
3. Which of the criteria listed in the session do you think need more attention within the university sector?
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Recommended Further ReadingHeather Eggins, Access and Equity: Comparative Perspectives. Institute for Education Policy Research, Staffordshire University. (Ed.), 2010Patrick Clancy and David D. Dill (Eds), The Research Mission of the University: Policy Reforms and Institutional Response, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2009Jane Knight (Ed.), Financing Access and Equity in Higher Education, Ontario Institute for Studies in Education/University of Toronto, Canada, 2009R. Middlehurst, Leading Academics, Open University Press, 1993W.G. Bowen, H.T., Shapiro, Universities and their Leadership, Princeton University Press, 1998Allan Michael Hoffman, Randal W. Summers, Managing Colleges and Universities: Issues for Leadership, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2000H.T. Shapiro, A Larger Sense of Purpose: Higher Education And Society, Princeton University Press, 2010J.R. Davis, Learning to Lead, Greenwood Publishing Group, 2003A. Goodall, Socrates In The Boardroom: Why Research Universities Should Be Led By Top Scholars, Princeton University Press, 2005J. Pounder, New Leadership and University Organisational Effectiveness: Exploring the Relationship, Leadership and Organizational Development Journal, 22, pp. 281-290J. Storey, Leadership In Organisations: Current Issues and Key Trends, Routledge, 2004
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