Visualizing strategic change in an educational development centre with product-based analysis

Abstract

AcknowledgementsThanks are due to colleagues for their friendly critique on early drafts of this paper and the development of the two strategies it contains, as well as to all those who have supported the development of the PBA technique over the years.PRINCE2® is a trade mark of the Office of Government Commerce, UK. Notes on contributorsVirginia King is a UK-based higher education consultant. Specializing in project management and educational research evaluation, she works with a range of higher education institutions. In diverse international roles as editor, conference convenor, peer reviewer, collaborator and critical friend, she has helped numerous colleagues refine and publish their research. Her own publications concern visualization techniques, change, and education research communities.* Email: v.c.king@coventry.ac.uk Visualizing strategic change in an educational development centre with product based analysisProduct based analysis (PBA) is a new way of modelling the strategic direction of an educational development centre (EDC). It was developed within an English EDC to complement other strategic techniques, providing a means of visualizing the overall strategy. This critique of PBA is set in the context of global university reforms, restructurings and economic constraints which EDCs mirror in miniature. The case for PBA is demonstrated through two exemplars, one retrospective, the other applied to the same group, now dispersed several years on, as it sets out a collaborative strategy to address the future uncertainties shared by many EDCs.