Challenges facing Universities in a Global Market: Guest blog by Professor Nigel Thrift, Vice-Chancellor of Warwick University

Higher education is increasingly being noticed as a lucrative and growing business sector, especially where attracting international students is concerned. This provides many opportunities for forward looking universities and also many challenges. Professor Nigel Thrift*, Vice-Chancellor of Warwick University, attended a summit in Ottawa, Canada to discuss how universities worldwide are adapting to the swiftly changing global and technological landscape.  SIN was lucky enough to have Professor Thrift share his views at a Science Salon given at the British High Commission while in Ottawa. His talk is summarized here in a guest blog by Professor Nigel Thrift:

Managing a kaleidoscope of constituencies: The implications of external actors on institutional decision making and how university leaders can successfully manage relationships with international consortia of universities, government &, industry.

I don’t think anyone would argue with the fact that one of the prime responsibilities of universities today is to solve global challenges.  This is not something that can be done in isolation: the global challenges of the 21st century demand cooperation, hence the trend toward consortia of government, industry and universities. My own institution, the University of Warwick, is a partner in New York’s new ‘Center for Urban Science and Progress’, or CUSP, which is a prime example of this type of collaboration.  This initiative sees universities, global technology corporations and city government partners working together to create new solutions to the pressing and complex challenges confronting the world’s cities. The implications for universities of this trend for collaboration across sectors and beyond national boundaries are significant.

Firstly, it has meant that universities have necessarily grown in scale.  The idea that universities can now be run as though they are congregations of schoolmen is simply fantastical. Even universities like Oxford and Cambridge in the UK which are still loose federations of colleges and departments have had to take on centralised functions as they have grown in scale.  With the plethora of public and private relationships comes an increased need for centralized management to facilitate central institutional decision-making on strategic issues.  The number of university administrators is much larger than in the past, lay governing bodies have increased power and there has been a rise in adjunct faculty.

Secondly, these significant changes undoubtedly bring tensions and there is inevitable concern within universities surrounding external influence on institutional decision-making. A kaleidoscope of constituencies believe that they have a stake in what the university should be resulting in a need for staff to be put in place facing towards each of these constituencies to manage the internal and external relationships successfully.

Thirdly, working across a divide between internal and external interests, across national boundaries and collaborating with industry and government also brings a set of unique challenges in terms of cultural difference. A global, internationally-oriented University is, of course, categorically different to the multinational corporation, for example.   In venturing to expand its influence overseas the university does not seek cheaper sources of labour nor expanded markets for its products and services.  What it seeks is relevance and influence – an ability, in keeping with its fundamental values, to address, through research and commentary, issues of global concern, and, through teaching, to expand the knowledge base of societies.

What are the implications of all this for universities and university leaders? Clearly, meeting the interests of all parties involved in these consortia is a delicate balancing act and it is the role of university leaders to manage this successfully, advising and consulting with colleagues across the institution. I think in future, universities will become large networks exchanging staff and students on a regular basis. There is clearly a need therefore for university leaders to travel extensively developing relations and initiatives with a wide range of contacts overseas.  Then, there is a need for universities to significantly develop their teleconference facilities; to use geographical differences such as campus networks and time zones positively; to remember that international sources of income are an integral part of what an institution does and not simply an add-on.

*Professor Nigel Thrift is the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Warwick. Since taking up the position in 2006, Professor Thrift has; established high-profile partnerships and research collaborations with leading universities in the US, Australia, India, Asia and Europe; increased Warwick’s international profile through initiatives such as Warwick in Africa and the International Gateway for Gifted Youth; and been instrumental in building on Warwick’s strong links with business and industry, both nationally and internationally. Professor Thrift writes a blog, WorldWise.