Il sistema universitario italiano sta affrontando un sempre più alto grado di complessità gestionale che richiede sistemi e strumenti di management evoluti e orientati alle priorità strategiche. Il Ministero dell’università, convinto della capacità di innovazione di alcuni atenei e dell’efficacia dei processi imitativi, ha scarsamente legiferato sul tema e con disposizioni prevalentemente di indirizzo. L’articolo presenta una ricerca sullo status quo dei comportamenti manageriali negli atenei, dalla quale si evidenziano diversi atteggiamenti in termini di orientamento alla gestione strategica e alla gestione del portafoglio delle attività. Viene inoltre registrata un’evoluzione rispetto a tendenze precedenti (descritte in altre ricerche), ma a un tasso di innovazione non adeguato alla veloce metamorfosi del nuovo contesto. Emergono inoltre tendenze di bad-practice nell’area amministrativa con riguardo all’attitudine alla delega decisionale.
Management in Higher Education is facing a high level of complexity. Therefore it is necessary a strategic management supported by modern tools and methodologies. As the HE Minister believes that some universities are exploring and implementing new management attitudes and thus provoking an imitative effect by other universities, it has till yet issued few laws on the subject with “feeble” contents. The research object is to test the status quo in HE’s strategic management attitudes. Results show that strategic management is not so widespread; some differences are linked to activity-mix and there is an improvement in respect to past behaviours (as depicted by past research works). Nevertheless, the improvement rate is not adequate to the quick evolution of the environment. Moreover there are bad-practices in the organisation of non-academy staff and especially about empowerment.
Management in Higher Education is facing a high level of complexity. Therefore it is necessary a strategic management supported by modern tools and methodologies. As the HE Minister believes that some universities are exploring and implementing new management attitudes and thus provoking an imitative effect by other universities, it has till yet issued few laws on the subject with “feeble” contents. The research object is to test the status quo in HE’s strategic management attitudes. Results show that strategic management is not so widespread; some differences are linked to activity-mix and there is an improvement in respect to past behaviours (as depicted by past research works). Nevertheless, the improvement rate is not adequate to the quick evolution of the environment. Moreover there are bad-practices in the organisation of non-academy staff and especially about empowerment.