Tenure Standards at Aladdin Business School

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In 2015, Dean Alan Patrick of Aladdin Business School (ABS) faced resistance from faculty members regarding new tenure standards introduced by the School’s Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure Committee. ABS, a leading business school in Egypt, aimed to enhance its reputation by achieving international accreditations like AACSB, which required significant research output. The new tenure policy emphasized publishing in top-tier journals, a shift from previous, less-defined performance standards. Several junior and senior faculty members expressed concerns over these heightened expectations, arguing they were unrealistic given existing teaching workloads and the lack of adequate research resources. They also critiqued the perceived lack of consultation, claiming the new standards undermined shared governance. Dean Patrick, however, defended the policy as a necessary step towards aligning the school with global standards and improving both research and teaching quality. Despite efforts to support faculty through development initiatives, the changes sparked anxiety among faculty who feared the new standards would prioritize research at the expense of teaching, potentially creating a divide between tenured and non-tenured faculty. The case highlights tensions between institutional strategic goals, individual faculty expectations and the challenges of implementing performance-based tenure in a changing academic environment.