Sustaining Excellence in the 21st Century: A Vision and Strategies for College and University Administration.
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| Title: | Sustaining Excellence in the 21st Century: A Vision and Strategies for College and University Administration. |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Katz, Richard N., West, Richard P., CAUSE, Boulder, CO., California Univ. System. |
| Availability: | CAUSE, 4840 Pearl East Circle, Suite 302E, Boulder, CO 80301 ($8 for members, $16 for non-members). |
| Peer Reviewed: | N |
| Page Count: | 31 |
| Publication Date: | 1992 |
| Sponsoring Agency: | International Business Machines Corp., Milford, CT. Academic Information Systems. |
| Intended Audience: | Policymakers; Administrators; Practitioners |
| Document Type: | Information Analyses Opinion Papers |
| Descriptors: | College Administration, Educational Change, Educational Quality, Educational Trends, Futures (of Society), Higher Education, Institutional Mission, Long Range Planning, Technological Advancement |
| Subject Chronological: | Twenty First Century |
| Abstract: | This paper offers a vision, referred to as the "network" vision, and a new set of strategies for higher educational institution management to meet the challenges posed by social and economic changes of the near future in the 1990s. This vision conceives of the modern higher education institution as an information-intensive organization and suggests strategies for freeing scarce executive attention to address those key elements of campus life that create and sustain excellence. The paper describes this vision as the development of a smaller, diverse, and highly skilled administrative workforce optimizing administrative service, quality, productivity, and flexibility. The strategies outlined include: (1) generalization of employee job responsibilities; (2) investment in technologies that facilitate communication among members of the campus community; (3) organization of the campus technical environment from the viewpoint of the academic departmental administrator; (4) reliance on private organizations, where appropriate, for certain campus administrative services; and (5) creation of incentives for administrative employees to make decisions based on perceived campus impact. In summary, the paper claims that colleges and universities are uniquely complex organizations and that success in the 1990s will depend on the quality and execution of an institution's academic plan and on the quality of its administration. (Author/JB) |
| Entry Date: | 1993 |
| Accession Number: | ED355843 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | This paper offers a vision, referred to as the "network" vision, and a new set of strategies for higher educational institution management to meet the challenges posed by social and economic changes of the near future in the 1990s. This vision conceives of the modern higher education institution as an information-intensive organization and suggests strategies for freeing scarce executive attention to address those key elements of campus life that create and sustain excellence. The paper describes this vision as the development of a smaller, diverse, and highly skilled administrative workforce optimizing administrative service, quality, productivity, and flexibility. The strategies outlined include: (1) generalization of employee job responsibilities; (2) investment in technologies that facilitate communication among members of the campus community; (3) organization of the campus technical environment from the viewpoint of the academic departmental administrator; (4) reliance on private organizations, where appropriate, for certain campus administrative services; and (5) creation of incentives for administrative employees to make decisions based on perceived campus impact. In summary, the paper claims that colleges and universities are uniquely complex organizations and that success in the 1990s will depend on the quality and execution of an institution's academic plan and on the quality of its administration. (Author/JB) |
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