Entrepreneurialism at the University of Zagreb: Managing the Sustainability of Change

Abstract

This article presents a study of the different aspects of entrepreneurialism at the University of Zagreb in the context of Croatian higher education. The recent history of changes at the University of Zagreb is described using a temporal perspective from the beginning of the development of the European Higher Education Area to the implementation of the Bologna Process in Croatia. The theoretical framework for the study has been Burton Clark's (1998) seminal analysis of the main features of academic entrepreneurialism. Each feature: the strengthening of steering capacity, the diversification of financial sources, a stimulated academic heartland, an extended periphery, and integrating entrepreneurial culture have been elaborated using the illustrative examples from university practice and university statistics. The last part of the study gives an overview of the results of the empirical study conducted among university managers, teachers, and students on their perceptions of the university's entrepreneurial culture at the level of the institution as a whole as well as at the level of their respective faculty. In the final conclusions, the main requirements for effective change management within the university context are listed.

Notes

1. The primary data source: Ministry of Science, Education and Sports (MSES) Reports and Croatian Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS).

2. Moreover, the new Tempus projects on student support services, public relations, alumni office, and lifelong learning are in the process of preparation and submission.

3. The complete data are available upon request to the authors. Because of the small number of respondents in certain categories and assymetrical distributions of responses, differences between areas were checked using a non‐parametric test (Kruskal‐Wallis).