On the Road to Mediocrity? Governance and Management of Australian Higher Education in the Market Place

The question of how best to optimise the performance of the higher education sector has generated much debate both at institutional and system levels. In part, the debate has been fuelled by the steep growth in higher education participation rates and the pressures on higher education institutions to find increasing proportions of their operating grants from sources other than the public purse. Concerns regarding the relevance of higher education to the labour market and to economic growth and prosperity have also focused attention on this sector. A common theme in the performance debate has been the adequacy of existing institutional governance and management structures and processes to meet stakeholder expectations. However, neither in Australia nor elsewhere is the debate on how best to govern and manage higher education new.