Abstract
Vietnamese higher education has been subjected to constant pressures and major changes in the last few decades so as to meet the country’s needs for socio-economic development and to better prepare graduates for employment and personal growth. There has been greater recognition for the role of mid-level academic managers as key contributors to effective institutional performance and success. However, an understanding of what constitutes a competent mid-level academic manager, who are heads of faculties, departments, academic offices and specialized centers, for the context of Vietnam is limited. This study employs an exploratory and mixed-method approach to identify the core competencies required for mid-level academic managers at Vietnamese higher education institutions. Findings from focus group discussions and a survey conclude five professional domains for effective mid-level academic management and sustainable development yet, in the meantime, reveal the gap between institutional expectations and the actual competencies of academic heads as perceived by academic heads themselves, their supervisors and their team members.
Highlights
The higher education sector around the world has undergone profound changes in their missions and functions, fueled by accelerating globalization, technological advances [1,2,3,4,5], and public demands for accountability
Commenting on how the success and competitiveness of higher education institutions necessarily requires the effective functioning of mid-level academic management, Jones [13] argues that “there is no way in which the university’s expectations will be realised if HODs [head of departments] as ‘middle managers’ are unable or unwilling to put them into action” [13]
The data collected from the survey show a high level of agreement between heads of departments, faculty members, and senior leaders with regard to the key tasks needed to be performed by academic managers at the middle level and the essential competencies required for effectively performing these tasks
Summary
The higher education sector around the world has undergone profound changes in their missions and functions, fueled by accelerating globalization, technological advances [1,2,3,4,5], and public demands for accountability. Commenting on how the success and competitiveness of higher education institutions necessarily requires the effective functioning of mid-level academic management, Jones [13] argues that “there is no way in which the university’s expectations will be realised if HODs [head of departments] as ‘middle managers’ are unable or unwilling to put them into action” [13]. The Prime Minister of Vietnam has launched a national project to improve the quality of managers of higher education institutions in the 2019–2030 period [15]. This project has been central to the needs to meet the requirements of fundamental and comprehensive innovation in education and training. Vietnam education is growing in fast pace, with significant rise in the position of Vietnam universities in the university rankings and scientific output [16,17,18], the quality of the leadership and management will contribute significantly to maintain the momentum of the development, as well as setting the conditions for future sustainability
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