SaMnet
Barriers to change
by
Prof Alex Radloff (former PV-C CQU)
Change is not always possible and the educational world is littered with worthy but, ultimately,
heroic failures. An organisation or a sub unit within it will have problems managing change if it:
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is unclear about its mission and strategic direction
has managers that operate on unclear and/or inconsistent values
has forms of leadership which fail to nurture and give direction to the organisation or sub unit
lacks a competent management group
has inappropriate structures for its purposes and tasks
has people, structures and systems that are not controlled and co-ordinated
selects employees who are unable to perform to the required standards of competence
has individuals/groups who fail to learn skills, acquire relevant knowledge and develop necessary
attitudes
has staff who have stagnated and who lack challenge in their jobs
has inadequate communication within and external to the organisation
has people who fail to work together effectively in groups
is characterised by lack of energy, commitment and creativity
has low morale and lacks individual reward systems
Source: Pennington, G. (2003). Guidelines for promoting and facilitating change. LTSN Generic Centre.
Leading US educators who convened to design The National Academy's January 2000 workshop
Leading Institutional Change: A National Workshop for College and University Teams,
brainstormed the following potential barriers to change:
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a tendency to mandate change from the top
organization-wide initiatives that lose sight of individual units
overwhelming people with too much at once
operating from wrong cultural assumptions
the desire for instant success on the part of the leadership
appropriate resources not available
change by memo with no discussion, no ownership
comfort with the status quo
constant reinforcement (celebration) of "how good we are": so why change?
a reward system that doesn't match reality
some people thrive on chaos and don't want issues solved
competing cultures: trustees, students, faculty, staff, each thinking they "own" the institution and
not agreeing in fundamental areas
a culture that supports working independently
a "public" image that does not fit with the reality internal to the institution
comfort with going it alone
an organizational structure that doesn't facilitate cooperation, that encourages competition
a habit of critique: faculty are more comfortable critiquing than working together
lack of knowledge on the part of leaders about team building, conflict resolution, the change
process, etc.
Source: The National Academy for Academic Leadership
http://www.thenationalacademy.org/ready/change.html
Alex Radloff: Bringing about institutional change to enhance student engagement.
ACER Student Engagement Forum, 2 July 2009
SaMnet
References and resources
Bender, D. S., & Weimer, M. (April, 2005). The phenomenology of change. How do individual faculty
manage the instructional change process? Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the AERA,
Montreal.
Boyce, M. E. (2003). Organizational learning is essential to achieving and sustaining change in Higher
Education. Innovative Higher Education, 28(2), 119-136.
Clark, B. R. (2004). Sustaining change in universities. Maidenhead, Berkshire: SRHE & Open University
Press.
Coates, H. (2005). The value of student engagement for Higher Education quality assurance. Quality in
Higher Education 11(1), 25-36.
Erickson, A., Shaw, J. B., & Agabe, Z. (2007). An empirical investigation of the antecedents, behaviors,
and outcomes of bad leadership. Journal of Leadership Studies, 1(3), 26-43.
Gjerding, A. N., Wilderom, C.P.M., Cameron, S.P.B., & Taylor, A. (2006). Twenty practices of an
entrepreneurial university. Higher Education Management and Policy, 18(3), 1-28.
Kezar, A., & Kinzie, J. (2006). Examining the ways institutions create student engagement: The role of
mission. Journal of College Student Development, 47(2), 149-172.
Kotter, J. P. (2008). A sense of urgency. Harvard, MA: Harvard Business Press.
Kotter, J. P. (1996). Leading change. Harvard, MA: Harvard Business School Press.
Krause, K-L. (September, 2006). Accommodating diverse approaches to student engagement. Seminar
Paper, Quality Enhancement Meeting, Wellington, NZ.
Outram, S. nd 53 ways of managing resistance to change. Discussion Paper 7. The Higher Education
Academy.
Pennington, G. (2003). Guidelines for promoting and facilitating change. LTSN Generic Centre.
Ramaley, J. A. (2000). Change as a scholarly act: Higher Education research transfer to practice. New
Directions for Higher Education, Summer, 75-88.
Scott, G. (2003). Effective change management in Higher Education. Educause Review, Nov/Dec, 64-80.
Sullivan, P. (2005). Leading and managing change. A cautionary tale. In Practice, Issue 5. Leadership
Foundation for Higher Education.
Umbach, P.D., & Wawrzynski, M.R. (2005). Faculty do matter: The role of faculty in student learning
and engagement. Research in Higher Education, 46(2), 153-184.
Walton, M. S. (2004). Generating buy-in. Mastering the language of leadership. New York: AMACOM.
Alex Radloff: Bringing about institutional change to enhance student engagement.
ACER Student Engagement Forum, 2 July 2009