Scottish universities enjoy an excellent reputation for working collaboratively on staff development activities and the launch of the Leadership Foundation in Scotland in June 2004 has proved to be no exception.
From the UHI based in Inverness, working in a virtual capacity for much of its teaching, to the colleges of art, the academy of music and the ancient universities with their rich histories, through to the more recent Robbins and post '92 institutions, Scottish HEIs are diverse - in terms of their size, communities served and delivery methods employed.
Our work in Scotland has been guided by the results of an audit, undertaken to gain a deeper understanding of what has, and by implication what has not, worked in such diverse institutions in recent times. As a direct consequence of consultations, a number of important common themes emerged from the audit process, which principals and their teams were particularly keen to address. These seven themes are:
This group ensures continuity of links with Scottish HEIs, develops business outcomes which result from strategic leadership interventions and monitors overall the impact of Leadership Foundation work in the Scottish sector. A full list of members of the Advisory Group can be found here
The Leadership Foundation has worked with the seven major themes and outcomes from four are now coming on stream.
The succession planning theme was clearly identified as one of the most important issues facing Scottish HEI leadership and received almost universal mention from Scottish HEIs. There was a sense that, as a sector, there ought to be more innovative in this area and that there should be a far greater pool of talent available from which to choose future leaders. Succession Planning represents a major focus for work currently under way with the Leadership Foundation, and the Scottish dimension will contribute fully to the overall picture.
There has been much mention of a need for senior members of staff with responsibility for leading academic departments, or administrative and support sections, to receive specific skills training and relevant information about the leadership agenda which is particularly pertinent to Scotland. The Heads of Department Series in Scotland has been launched especially to meet the needs of the Scottish HEIs. For more information on the series and dates for the next run can be found on the programme page
There are many interpretations of what is actually meant by 'organisational development' and Scottish HEIs have recognised that each institution is at a different stage in the evolution of the process. There is a sense that collaborating in the collection of materials for a series of case studies may, in the first instance, be a way to kick-start the process of analysing organisational and leadership development activities across institutions. The first Organisational Development event was a Partnership Working half day seminar which took place in Dundee in April 2006.
The Leadership Foundation feels that it is important to continue to feedback to Scotland and publishes SCOTTISH UPDATE. PDF versions of issues can be found from these links
Issue 1, 2005
Issue 2, 2005
Issue 3, 2006
Issue 4, 2007
Issue 5, June 2008
For more information on the Leadership Foundation's work in Scotland, contact Ginnie Willis, Director Leadership Development, Scotland