An assessment of COVID-19’s impact on Finnish University Leadership

Abstract

This article maps the management actions that Finnish universities have taken during the COVID-19 pandemic and studies how managers in Finnish higher education coped during the crisis and how they feel about it. The article uses action mapping and a survey that was administered to top-and mid-level managers at Finnish universities, and the findings highlight the importance of collegial coordination and maintenance work abilities among managers.

Blended and (not so) splendid teaching and learning: Higher education insights from university teachers during the Covid-19 pandemic

“…Without activating links between the various elements of the university system, it is not possible to implement ‘adaptive surprise management’ ( Pekkola et al., 2021 ). Instead, existing policies and decision-making protocols result in quick-fix solutions, each with its own load of unforeseen consequences, as the not so splendid experiences of 2020 have showed.…”

Gender Inequalities in Tech-driven Research and Innovation

“…Although introduced only in 2010 in Finland, the tenure track model has shaped the ways in which a successful and valued academic career is made sense of. By 2019, it was already the most common way to recruit professors in Finland (Pekkola et al, 2020), creating elitism and polarization between those who are on this track and the vast majority working outside of it (Herbert and Tienari, 2013;Pietilä, 2019). The tenure track system puts those senior researchers, who in this study are called academic entrepreneurs, in an awkward situation: they are, de facto, too qualified and established for the tenure track since these positions are usually targeted at rather early career academics.…”

“…This means that achieving a professorship typically occurs in a rather late career phase, often when candidates are already in their 50s. However, this has gradually changed since 2010 when the tenure track system was introduced in Finland (Pekkola et al, 2020). Universities have implemented the system in different ways but common to all is that those recruited into the tenure track progress from a fixed-term appointment to a tenured full professorship if they pass their performance assessment (Herbert and Tienari, 2013;Pietilä, 2015Pietilä, , 2019.…”

“…Universities have implemented the system in different ways but common to all is that those recruited into the tenure track progress from a fixed-term appointment to a tenured full professorship if they pass their performance assessment (Herbert and Tienari, 2013;Pietilä, 2015Pietilä, , 2019. Although candidates need to be already-established scholars, their future potential has become an important selection criterion as tenure track recruitments usually take place at a rather early career phase (Pekkola et al, 2020). This increasingly leaves room for subjective and unreflexive elements in the assessments, including ones related to subtle gender biases (van den Brink and Benschop, 2011;Herschberg et al, 2019).…”

Management and leadership in university education: Approaches and perspectives

“…Managers who exercise leadership are formed by the system itself through the execution of tasks related to their position (González et The shift of leadership in times of crisis must be from the inside out, to promote proactive decision-making, social skills, teamwork, and emotional intelligence (Véliz et al, 2021). The use of technological tools, focusing objectives and policies on the new context, and greater organizational fluidity will be necessary (Pekkola et al, 2021;Pandit & Agrawal, 2021).…”