Education Leaders Forum09 July 2009 – Pasteur Institute – Paris

Turnaround Leadership for Higher Education

Education Leaders Forum

Turnaround Leadership for Higher Education

Professor Geoff Scott

University of Western Sydney, Australia

Key Points

‘Good ideas with no ideas on how to implement them are wasted ideas’

Never waste a crisis.

More focus on implementation and building change capable systems & universities

Change doesn’t just happen it must be led, deftly

BroadWorld-wide, ‘tectonic’ stresses

Globalisation

Loss of talent & experience

ICT revolution

Fractious divisions

Higher EducationOpening up accessFunding pressures & new

sources of incomeGrowing competition

User pays & changing patterns of participation

Changing expectations, increased scrutiny, maintaining ‘standards’

Change forces feeding into and off each other

“Good ideas with no ideas on how to implement them are wasted ideas”

What + How = productive investment

What - How = failed investment

Effective change management in Higher Education

1. Right Vision & Priorities

2. Aligned Infrastructure

& Support

3. Consistent & Effective

Delivery

4. Effective Performance

& Impact

1. Right focus – clear & ‘owned’ priorities

Relevant, feasible & evidence based Listen, link & lead Steered engagement

2. Aligned support & infrastructure Responsive and agile Targeted staff learning Peer support Focused leadership

3. Effective implementation

Targeted benchmarking‘Learn by doing’On-going review

4. Focus on impactEnsure those intended to benefit

have done so

In combination, these attributes characterise a change capable higher education institution (TLHE pgs 76-77)

Evaluating turnaround initiatives in Higher Education

Evaluation = making judgements of quality

Evaluating inputs

1. Quality of the vision, plan – e.g. its relevance & feasibility2. Alignment and quality of infrastructure & support

Evaluating outcomes

3. Consistency and effectiveness of implementation4. Quality of impact on those intended to benefit

All four levels count but level 4 is the key

Setting Priorities:Tests & Dilemmas

Key testsRelevantDesirable ClearFeasibleDilemmasAccess vs qualityHigher Education - investment or cost?Mission vs marketCompete vs collaborateUniversity - virtual vs physical? Addressing digital divides

Innovation in Higher EducationSome change management myths

Brute logic myth

Consensual myth

Academic independence myth

“Knight on the white charger” myth

“Single disciplinary structures suit a trans-disciplinary world” myth

Linear myth

Restructure myth

Strategic plan myth

Change doesn’t just happen – it must be ledThe Learning Leaders in Times of Change Study

Funded by the Australian Learning & Teaching Council

Experienced leaders identified as being effective

512 from Provost to Head of Program

National & international scrutiny of the results for veracity and implications (n=1500 leaders)

Countries involved: Canada, South Africa, New Zealand, USA and the UK

HE Leadership Capability Framework

PersonalCapabilities

InterpersonalCapabilities

CognitiveCapabilities

Role-specificCompetencies

GenericCompetencies

Capability

Competency

Personal capabilitiesBeing true to personal values & ethics (2)Remaining calm under pressure (3)Understanding personal strengths &

limitations (5)Energy & passion for learning & teaching

(7)Admitting to & learning from errors (10)

Interpersonal capabilitiesBeing transparent & honest in dealings

with others (1)Being able to empathise and work

productively with diversity (4)

Cognitive capabilitiesBeing able to identify the core issue or

opportunity in any situation (8) Making sense of and learning from

experience (9)Thinking creatively & laterally (11)Diagnosing the underlying causes of a

problem & taking appropriate action to address it (12)

Key competenciesBeing able to organise work & manage

time effectively (6) These capabilities closely parallel the attributes of a change

capable institution – leader as model

Next steps…Learn from each otherFocus on implementationBuild change capable leaders for change capable systems Note change capable leaders = change capable professionals,

teachers and Higher Education cultures

What engages students in productive change (learning) is what engages staff and leaders

Turn inquiry inward on to Higher Education itself – new ways to grow, share and link knowledge

Does a turnaround university have be a place?

‘Good ideas with no ideas on how to implement them are wasted ideas’

Sources

Fullan, M & Scott, G (2009) : Turnaround Leadership for Higher Education, Wiley/Jossey-Bass, San Francisco

Scott, G., Coates, H., & Anderson, M (2008): Learning Leaders in Times of Change, ALTC, Sydney

Scott, G (2006): Accessing the student voice, Australian Government, Canberra