Institutional change in the German Higher Education system: from professional dominance to managed education

University-Community Engagement: Current Tensions and Future Trends

“…One of the ways universities are responding to pressure to change is the adoption of new governance and leadership models (Gayle et al, 2003) such as NPM from the public sector, which has resulted in traditional collegial governance practices being replaced by business-oriented leadership and management styles (Enders et al, 2013;Tahar and Boutellier, 2013;Bleiklie and Lange 2010). This has had a major impact on the coordination of HE and institutional functions (Reihlen and Wenzlaff, 2014). New public management in HE emphasises key elements such as marketisation where funding is concerned; an entrepreneurial disposition; a client-oriented HE system (or student-centredness); measurement of outputs and performance; quality assurance measures; academic audits; institutional rankings; strategic planning; and increased accountability to stakeholders such as policy-makers and the public (Reihlen and Wenzlaff, 2014;Musselin, 2013;Bleiklie and Lange 2010;Ferlie et al, 2008).…”

“…This has had a major impact on the coordination of HE and institutional functions (Reihlen and Wenzlaff, 2014). New public management in HE emphasises key elements such as marketisation where funding is concerned; an entrepreneurial disposition; a client-oriented HE system (or student-centredness); measurement of outputs and performance; quality assurance measures; academic audits; institutional rankings; strategic planning; and increased accountability to stakeholders such as policy-makers and the public (Reihlen and Wenzlaff, 2014;Musselin, 2013;Bleiklie and Lange 2010;Ferlie et al, 2008). However, some scholars (Alonderiene and Majauskaite, 2016;Ferlie et al, 2008;Winter, 2009) have raised doubts about NPM's suitability for this sector.…”

Entrepreneurial University Archetypes

“…In particular, we see entrepreneurialism in higher education as a strategic choice to engage in innovative and entrepreneurial activities, in response to changing socio-cultural expectations about the role of modern universities in the broader economic context and society in general. This entrepreneurial drift in higher education is closely related to the rise of managed education which is based on a market ideology that fosters autonomy and competition and has led to policy changes and reform of higher education systems in most western countries (Reihlen and Wenzlaff, 2014). Our study suggests that the institutional shift towards academic entrepreneurialism does not, however, represent uncontested prescriptions for change and adaptation on the organizational level, as we recognize the emergence of more diverse organizational responses than traditionally assumed (see, for example, Münch, 2011).…”

“…The rise of new public management (Gruening, 2001) has disrupted the institutional setting of higher education (Teichler 1996;Neave 1995;Dill and Sporn 1995), increasing pressures to comply with new rules, requirements and expectations from government and other stakeholders. The rise of managed education implies a more active role of government in monitoring and auditing educational organizations, while at the same time promoting autonomy and competition in the name of academic excellence and efficient exploitation of knowledge (Münch, 2011;Reihlen and Wenzlaff, 2014 (Powell and DiMaggio, 1991), at the same time market deregulation and increased autonomy foster the emergence of distinctive structures. Hence, this paradoxical policed deregulation stimulates creative strategic responses and novel organizational configurations, which have been described as the entrepreneurial university (Clark, 1998;Sporn, 2001;Kirby, 2006), third-generation university (Wissema, 2009) or the Triple Helix model of university-industry relations (Etzkowitz, 2003a;Etzkowitz and Ranga, 2010).…”

Governance of professional service firms: a configurational approach

“…The emergence of entrepreneurial governance has been reported in diverse professional settings (Clark 1998;Maister 1993;Wissema 2009). Interestingly, the entrepreneurial governance model has also been observed and subject to intensive debates in the higher education field in Germany (Reihlen and Wenzlaff 2014) and around the world (Clark 1998).…”