ERIC Number: EJ1121650
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2014
Pages: 9
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1065-0741
EISSN: N/A
You Can't Always Get What You Want: Change Management in Higher Education
Brown, Stephen
Campus-Wide Information Systems, v31 n4 p208-216 2014
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to qualitatively describe an attempt to enhance curriculum design and delivery processes in universities through the development and introduction of new information systems and procedures. Design/methodology/approach: The author examines the experiences of five out of the total 27 institutions involved in the UK JISC Curriculum Design and Delivery programme as they attempted to implement campus-wide changes. Findings: Common themes that emerged across all five projects were the interconnectedness of university systems, proliferation of alternative "feral" systems, a tendency for project remits to drift, resistance from other parts of the institution, planning imperatives, staff turnover and dependency failures. Conclusions are that cultural change underpins effective innovation and that cultural change is harder than technical innovation. Practical implications: Change is best achieved through participatory, campus-wide approaches, although a "submarine" strategy may be necessary to deflect opposition. Stakeholders should be kept informed about benefits to them and it is important for projects to be responsive and adaptive and to recognize that participatory approaches may be institutionally risky. The paper concludes with practical recommendations for achieving lasting large-scale change in the higher education environment. Originality/value: The JISC Curriculum Design and Delivery programme was arguably the largest single co-ordinated Information and Communication Technology-based change management programme yet seen in the UK and the findings of this study provide insights into common barriers to effective change in universities and how to overcome them.
Descriptors: Information Systems, Higher Education, Curriculum Design, College Curriculum, Change, Foreign Countries, Resistance to Change, Planning, Labor Turnover, Innovation
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: United Kingdom
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A