By Riccardo Mussari, Professor of Public financial management, University of Siena

1.  DEPARTMENT OF BUSINESS AND LAW STUDIES – UNIVERSITY OF
SIENA
Prof. Riccardo Mussari – Professor of Public financial management
Higher Education and
Governance

2.  Introduction
 The governance issue
 Governance in Higher education
 Cooperation in Higher education governance field
 Capacity building project and governance
improvement
Agenda

3.  One of the oldest in
Europe
 Located in a Mediaval
city
in the Centre of Italy
www.unisi.it
The University of Siena

4. • Analysis and evaluation of accounting systems
• Management control systems and tools
• Performance measurement
• Corporate and public governance
• Public policies evaluation
• Higher education governance
The Department of Business and Law
School of Economics and Management
www.disag.unisi.it

5. • A very ancient origin: from Latin gubernare, from
Greek kybernan or kubernentes, meaning
“helmsman of ships” (who indicate the route)
• Closely related to the idea of steering
• Nowadays it is a multidimensional concept that
includes many other aspects beyond the idea of
steering
• Difficult to identify a shared definition in the
literature that includes them all
• Governance vs government
The Governance issue

6. The Governance issue
Pollitt states that “because of its broad scope, great
flexibility and positive ‘spin’ we dub it ‘magic’
concepts”. He identifies 4 features:
• Broadness
• Normative attractiveness (hard to be “against”)
• Implication of consensus
• Global marketability

7.  Clark identifies three primary forces which identifies
higher education systems: State authority, Market,
Academic Oligarchy;
 The triangle explains the evolution of the
relationships among actors in a higher education
system
Governance in Higher education:
Actors and models proposed by literature
Clark’s triangle of coordination. Adapted from Clark
Source: Findikli 2017
Braun’s cube of governance. Adapted from Braun
Source: Findikli 2017
Braun identify three variables:
Substantial control by the state;
Procedural control by the state;
Utilitarian/non-utilitarian value-oriented (cultural
value-oriented);
The combination gives rise to four models:
BUREAUCRATIC
OLIGARCHIC
NEW
MANAGERIALIST
COLLEGIUM MARKET

8. Governance in Higher education:
Actors and models proposed by literature
HE governance shifts in four countries
Source: De Boer
De Boer, Enders and Schimank model: Five dimensions
driving changes in the HEI governance model
STATE
REGULATION
ACADEMIC SELF-
GOVERNANCE
STAKEHOLDER
GUIDANCE
MANAGERIAL
SELF-
GOVERNANCE
COMPETITION
Dobbins model: 3 ideal-type models
STATE CENTRED
MODEL
MARKET
ORIENTED
MODEL
HUMBOLD
MODEL

9. Governance in Higher education:
Actors and models
Work Bank screening card
Source: Word Bank
World Bank screening card: Five dimensions for benchmarking
governance issue
MISSION AUTONOMYMANAGEMENT
ACCOUNTABILITY PARTICIPATION

10. Cooperation in Higher education
governance field
Different higher education governance arrangements across
Europe according to different contexts
Different contexts beyond Europe and in MENA region
How to cooperate for an effective support for governance
improvement?
 There is no ‘one best way”: the art of reform lies in
adaptation (often very extensive) to fit local contexts (Pollit)
 General vs tailored solutions
 Support for self evaluation diagnosis and clear definition of
dimensions and main concepts
 Support for the identification of specific priorities

11. The UniGov diagnostic tool
 Erasmus+ - Capacity building project UniGov: Improving Governance
Practices and Palestinian Higher Education Institutions
 5 Palestinian institutions and 4 European Partners
DIAGNOSTIC TOOL: 2 STEPs
Careful
diagnosis
Tailored
training
Remediation
Actions
Self evaluation for diagnosis of
current
governance arrangements
(for each dimensions, sub
dimensions, indicators)
AHP methodology for
identification of specific priorities

12. The UniGov diagnostic tool
Combination of scores and
weights support the definition
of training needs and
remediation actions
STEP2: Choose priorities
WEIGHTS (Ahp methodology)
STEP 1: The matrix for self-
evaluation SCORES

13.  Erasmus+ - Capacity building project SAGESSE: Amélioration de la
Gouvernance dans le système de l’Enseignement Supérieur en Tunisie
 Tunisian universities and Ministry of Higher education and Scientific
Research
 To be succesful the training sections need to be tailored and adapted
according the local context
2 STEPS:
 Training of trainers in the European niversities
 Training in the Tunisian universities
SAGESSE: training as capacity building
tool
Careful
diagnosis
Tailored
training
Actions

14. Thank you for your attention