This article investigates management systems in higher education organisations by analysing the 2009 Italian reform of performance management and its implementation within Italian universities. The research is based on a survey that covered about half of Italy's public universities. Survey results provide an account of the state of management…

It is broadly acknowledged that leaders in the twenty-first century are required to navigate an increasingly complex landscape and that the types of challenges individuals and organisations face in the knowledge era require the capacity to adapt and respond to continual fluctuations and change. Outcomes from previous leadership research, combined…

The term "organisational learning" was popularised by Peter Senge in "The Fifth Discipline", his seminal book from 1990. Since then, the term has become widely accepted among those interested in organisational learning and change management. However, partly due to the somewhat ambiguous situation which arises in a university…

This quantitative study provides a snapshot of the eating behaviour of more than 300 international students studying across four campuses of an Australian university. It explores what the students are eating and drinking, their knowledge of nutrition, the extent to which they prepare their own food or rely on fast food and if their behaviour is…

Student-staff ratios (SSRs) in higher education have a significant impact on teaching and learning and critical financial implications for organisations. While SSRs are often used as a currency for quality both externally for political reasons and internally within universities for resource allocations, there is a considerable amount of ambiguity…

This paper presents a practitioner's view on student system implementations in the Australian university sector. A student information system is a core system of any university and integral to its operations and services to students. These systems are constantly on the list of major projects and at any point in time, a university is either…

New models of leadership are needed for the higher education sector to continue to graduate students with leading edge capabilities. While multiple theories of leadership exist, the higher education sector requires a less hierarchical approach that takes account of its specialised and professional context. Over the last decade the sector has…

We report on a succession planning pilot project in an Australian university health faculty. The programme aimed to enhance organisational stability and develop leadership capacity in middle level academics. Six monthly sessions addressed university and general leadership topics, communication, decision-making, working with change, self-management…

Within the framework of the strategic journey undertaken between 2005 and 2010, this paper seeks to examine how the University of Melbourne sought to differentiate itself through the introduction and reconceptualisation of a "third stream" of academic work. Specifically, this paper seeks to investigate, through qualitative methods, how those in…

The process of reforming Hong Kong's higher education sector commenced in 2001, and the system moved into the post-massification era. Within five years, the post-secondary participation rate for the 17-20 age cohort had increased to 66 per cent. This target was achieved much earlier than the Government had planned. More educational opportunities…

Just over a decade ago, the Australian Government introduced funding mechanisms which aimed at reducing doctoral candidates' attrition rate and completion times, and increasing reported student satisfaction. Publicly available documents from six universities of three different classifications of universities in five Australian states were analysed…

This paper undertakes a critique of the gendered nature of leadership in modern universities in Kenya. The paper argues that the inclusive nature of African feminism makes it easier for both men and women to join in this discussion since African feminism demands a more holistic perspective that does not pit men against women but encourages them to…

This paper analyses a survey of leadership development needs and current challenges of senior women at two different Australian universities. It found that their leadership development needs were quite similar: over 80 per cent of respondents considered that a senior women's leadership programme would provide knowledge and skills for leadership in…

This paper describes an empirical study that addresses the question of how higher education institutions can disseminate effectively the outcomes of projects that seek to achieve large-scale change in teaching and learning. Traditionally, dissemination of innovation and good practice is strongly advocated within universities, but little…

This article examines the introduction of variable tuition fees for university students in the UK--an initiative that has become totemic in British higher education policy. The article seeks to identify the origin of this policy, using the work of Michael Oakeshott (1962) as a framework for discussing the rationality of new Labour. The rhetoric of…