Public interest in the performance of higher education continues to increase along with dynamic expectations of its contribution to the knowledge economy, economic growth, societal development, and environmental protection. The growing interest in performance evaluation is a consequence of some of the forces driving change in the higher education landscape including marketisation, internationalisation and globalisation. Institutional transformation of higher education raises new challenges for strategic higher education management, which call into focus the impact of change and the agility of institutional response in a national and global context.

Sustaining impactful strategic management approaches that are both locally and globally sensitive is essential in responding visibly to the demands of various stakeholders’ interests. The challenge of being publicly funded in an environment that often demands private responses also needs to be considered within the context of the University’s Third Mission; to serve society.

The continuing interaction between governments, higher education agencies and higher education institutions illustrates a dynamic and evolving relationship between state and higher education. Systems performance, the performativity of institutions regionally, nationally, and internationally are central preoccupations for higher education governance at systems and local levels. Key disrupters and challenges for strategic higher education management and governance include:

• What strategic management implications arise in response to the changing relationship between higher education and society as exemplified by state retraction of funding, the growth of corporate sponsorship, the rise of student consumerism and increased marketisation of higher education?

• How can the effectiveness and development of governance systems at systems and institutional level, provide confidence, assurance and accountability which sustains the future of our higher education institutions?

• How can the spirit of impactful learning and teaching, and independent research inquiry be sustained in the face of growing corporate sponsorship of research, and the pursuit of academic prestige driven by global league tables?

• Within the current institutional context, how are institutions managing the tensions between the production of knowledge and the integrity of the knowledge produced?

• What governance approaches exist to support institutions in fulfilling their responsibilities in this context?

• How can publicly funded institutions who operate in conditions similar to the private sector continue to serve society (meet their Third Mission responsibilities) actively and responsibly?