Building adaptive universities: Emerging organisational forms based on experiences of European and us universities

Abstract

Universities are facing dynamic environments to which they have to respond by developing new organisational forms often to enhance adaptation. Thereby, governance, management and leadership structures are changing ‐ aiming at increased flexibility, efficiency and effectiveness. This involves new procedures to manage the relationship with the environment, new authority structures within universities, and new ways of resource allocation. Hence, this paper will present empirical results from a cross‐national study of adaptive university structures vis‐a‐vis a changing socioeconomic environment. Based upon that, new organisational forms are introduced which better support and enhance the current trend towards more entrepreneurial universities.