1.
INTO THE FRONTLINE OF THE WAR OF
DYNAMICS.
THE ROLES OF THE ACADEMIC MIDDLE
MANAGERS
Ton Kallenberg
ROC Leiden - March 18, 2011

2.
THE QUESTION
An introduction about:
(1) the role(s) of middle managers
within innovation and change;
Discuss:
(2) change into competency focused
education
(3) management-tools of the middle
manager.

3.
(AND ... MAYBE YOU CAN TELL US A LITTLE BIT MORE ASOUT ... )
1) What about change management?
2) How to prepare?
3) Where do I have to pay attention
to?
4) What are [in relation to change
processes] differences and similarities
between small and big schools?
5) Can you give us some ideas and
tips?
6) Can you indicate some pitfalls?

4.
I AM ...
... in the last phase of my Ph.D. about
the role of academic middle managers
in strategic innovation in Higher
Education.
... teacher, head educational affairs,
educational manager, interuniversitair
coordinator, head Staf Education,
Director Centre of Excellence Learning
and Teaching, Professor Teacher
Training, Director Education.
... basketball trainer/coach, head
trainer Dutch Basketball Association.
... always busy with change and
innovation ...
TON KALLENBERG

5.
THREE
BLOCKS
1. ROC Leiden and change
2. Why change and
innovation?
2. Academic Middle
Manager and change

6.
New Building of ROC Leiden

7.
OLD

8.
NEW

9.
THE QUESTION
•Suggest on basis of the
Strategic Plan to a
prioritization of three
subjects for change
•join as much as possible the
existing initiatives
•Form a projectteam and a
sounding board (arrange the
feedback)
february 10, 2010

10.
STRATEGIC POLICY PLAN
2010-2015
The mission for education:
•Clarify our educational
concept,
•Improve our educational
quality,
•Take care of an tailored
educational logistics (on the
new building)
•Unburden teachers by
improving the supportive
processes
March 16, 2010

11.
THEME’S EDUCATION
1. articulation of the
educational vision (now!)
2. working through
The Leiden Educational
Model (from sept 2011)
3. realization of educational
yields (in terms of
efficiency / quality)
(from sept 2011)
April 19, 2010

12.
THINKING ABOUT THE TOPICS
end of november 2010

13.
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14.
THE LEIDEN
EDUCATIONAL MODEL
Building blocks are:
• customing (student aimed)
• collaborative learning
• professional context
• workplace learning
May 21, 2010

15.
UPCOMING PERIOD
1. fine tuning of the text
Leiden Educational
Model
1. master piece (scientific secured)
2. markt/student proof
2. building the change
organization:
1. activities
2. et cetera
19 september 2010

16.
THREE
BLOCKS
1. ROC Leiden and change
2. Why change and
innovation?
3. Academic Middle
Manager and change

17.
WHY CHANGE AND
INNOVATION?
Social trends
Educational trends

18.
waves of renewal
SOCIAL TRENDS
•social-cultural
(ageing, individualization,
cultural variety)
• market (from an industrial to a
knowledge society, globalization,
competitive)
• legislation
(step-down government)
• technologic (intelligent systems)
• scientific (new educational
insight)
These developments lead to new prospects toward: learning, education and the organization

19.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
1. from teaching to learning
•learning process is the starting-
point
•teaching is not the same as
learning
•learning is an active process of
(knowledge) construction
•effective studying is hard and
motivated working on relevant
tasks in a inspiring learning-
environment

20.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
2. from individual learning
to collaborative learning
•learning in teams
•together responsible for proces
and product
•future work in teams
•more effective learning
processes
•peer-review with work-pieces
and projects

21.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
3. from subjects to
intellectual capabilities
•methodological ways in
solving problems
•communicative skills
•professional content as tools for
productive tasks

22.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
4. from summative to
formative grades
•grades drives the activities of
students and teachers
•regular feedback is necessary
for the learning process of the
student
•formative grading rules the
feedback
•summative grading is needful,
but doesn’t have a function in
the process

23.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
5. from separate subjects to
integration of subjects
(modules)
•current programms exist of
separated subjects.
•New programms are aimed at the
integration of knowledge and skills
by theme’s, projects, cases and
problem solving education
•learning situations which are equal
on subsequent working situations
•competence aimed environment

24.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
6. from once graduated to life
long learning
•fast changes in knowledge are
typical for the knowledge society
•Therefore life long learning is
necessarity
•The educational programm has to
prepare the student for this, and
not seem if it’s all over after
graduating

25.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
7. integration of IT in
Education
•The importance of IT is raising in
content as well in methodology
•Digital information sources,
digital communication,
simulations, modelling,
databases, …
•Connectivity (everywhere)
•Ubiquitous learning (24 * 7)
•Any time, any device, any how!

26.
EDUCATIONAL TRENDS
CONSEQUENCES
new customers in education with
consequences for:
•establishment of education
•tasks and roles of teachers
•the learning environment
•educational management

27.
THREE
BLOCKS
1. ROC Leiden and change
2. Why change and
innovation?
3. Academic Middle
Manager and change

28.
Introduction: (1) the role of middle management
within change
MIDDLE MANAGEMENT
(1) “...directly above the level of
the frontline supervisors and
straight under the management
level with the total responsibility
of the whole firm / school or an
strategic business unit (depends
on the size of the
organization).” (Mintzberg)
(2) line versus staff

29.
Introduction: (1) the role of middle management
within change
MIDDLE MANAGEMENT
(3) Academic middle manager:
...is integral responsible for the
curriculum of the programm(s) (from
strategy - including participation
during the decisionmaking process of
institutional strategy and responsibility
for School/faculty strategy - until
educational management - including
the oversee about education and
researchprogramms and student
relations) within the bound of the
central board of the organization.
(Kallenberg, 2007).

30.
Introduction: (1) the role of middle management
within change
MIDDLE MANAGEMENT
(4) Paradoxal position:
“You’re damned if you do and you’re
damned if you don’t.”
“You’re in the line of fire whether
you want it or not”
•top down versus bottom up
processes
•professionalism versus
managerialism
•education versus research
•hierarchy versus collegiality

31.
CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

32.
VARIABLES
• organizational variables
(i.r.t. innovation)
topics: actual dependencies, borders of
the playing field
• professional variables (i.r.t.
innovation)
topics: qualifications, skills, knowledge,
loyality
• personal variables (related
to innovation) (“what’s in it
for me?”)
uncertainty about own function, status,
authonomy
topics: values, motives, trust, norms

33.
Relation between Small influence Large influence
Organizational variables
Context Stable Turbulence
Structure Fixed Lose
Culture Conservative Innovative
Personal variables
Age Old Joung
Sexe Man Women
Education level Low High
Professional Variables
Commitment Indifferent Driven
Autonomy Limited Independent
Academic leaderschip / authority Manager Leader

34.
Introduction: (1) the role of middle management
within change
MIDDLE MANAGEMENT
(5) Tasks
Control (quality education; education plan;
finance)
Coordination (time-table, students,
administration)
Governing (vision, strategy, plans)
Producing (correspondence, returns [of
investments)
Associate (bring in ideas; contacts; representing
the school)
Innovating (update developments,
Escort (performance appraisals, orientate
programms, coaching, training)
Facilitating (meetings, teambuilding,
conflictmanagement, knowledge dissimination)

35.
Introduction: (1) the role of middle management
within change
CHANGE
(Kotter)
1. determine urgency or need of change
2. form a leading coalition (stakeholders) with a
great degree of willingness to change
3. develop vision and strategy with this leading
coalition
4. communicate this vision in “hundred
ways” (who ever wants to hear it)
5. create an broad base by training and coaching
6. achieve and celebrate short term successes
(within the whole school or department)
7. communicate innovations, tune these together
(if need be more changes!)
8. anchor new approaches in the
organization(culture)

36.
Introduction: (1) the role of middle management
within change
CHANGE
1.Question: WHAT does the middle
manager?
2.Answer: visible behavior / roles
•ascribed position
•achieved position
•assumed:
(on behalf of position: certain
appreciation / certain expectation) ->
role performance
•rolset, but not ‘definitive’
•‘role taking’ vs ‘role making’

37.
MIDDLE MANAGEMENT
ON SMALL SCHOOLS
‣cooperative leader (problem
hierarchy-collegiality) frontline
management
‣limited policy making capacity
(quality and direction of change
depends on [interest] of some people)
‣high maneuverability on
possible developments
‣(inflatable) “row-boat”, which
means: amendable by all forcers.

38.
MIDDLE MANAGEMENT
ON LARGE SCHOOLS
‣caught in the middle (problem
professionalism vs managerialism)
‣broad policy making capacity
(staff departments who create work
for each other)
‣limited maneuverability on
possible developments
‣“Tanker” (can resist a sturdy)

39.
(And ...) (1) What about changemanagement?
HOW DOES IT LOOK LIKE?
Small schools
Concrete visible projects
External Coalitions
Limited political undercurrent
Visible “Hands on” - “Hands off”
Large schools
Several projects
Internal Coalitions
Several (political) undercurrent
Invisible commitment

40.
EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP
• authority (Yieldler & Codling)
(1) content knowledge,
(2) experience in the field,
(3) respect among colleague’s
• expert leadership (Leithwood):
(1) charism, inspiration, vision
(2) attention, respect, care for teachers
(3) take care for intellectual incentives

41.
LEADER VERSUS MANAGER
• academic leadership:
doing the good things
(vision, strategy, change)
• educational management:
doing the things good
(monitoring & controlling)
• academic leader = “in”
position
• managerial leader = “an”
position

42.
Relation between Small influence Large influence
Organizational variables
Context Stable Turbulence
Structure Fixed Lose
Culture Conservative Innovative
Personal variables
Age Old Joung
Sexe Man Women
Education level Low High
Professional Variables
Commitment Indifferent Driven
Autonomy Limited Independent
Academic leaderschip / authority Manager Leader

43.
(And ...) (2) How to prepare?
PREPARATION
‣ Join the need / question
‣ Make the advantage / need clear
‣ Create space in the workload
‣ Take your time for problem
formulation
‣ Blueprint the idea, but not as a strait-
jacket

44.
(And ...) (3) Where do I have to pay attention to?
PAY ATTENTION TO:
‣ Clarity content
‣ Obvious goals
‣ Celebrate (small) results
‣ Commitment
‣ Undercurrent
‣ Flexibility (input and participation)
‣ Anchor (pickets)
‣ Finance !

45.
(And ...) (4) What are [in relation to change processes] differences and
similarities between small and big schools?
DIFFERENCES /
SIMILARITIES
Differences
‣ Dimension proces
‣ Endorsement / support
‣ Ambitions (think big start small)
‣ Progress (quirky vs. stickyness)
‣ Leadership vs. Manager
Similarities
‣ Importance of the role of the middle
manager (especially in turbulent
environment)
‣ Professionality: driven commitment,
independent autonomy; educational
leadership

46.
(And ...) (5) Can you give us some ideas and tips?
TIPS FOR THE MANAGER
‣ Know how far you have to go
‣ No (surplus) rules and regulations
‣ Know your people
‣ Build a team (volunteers)
‣ Delegate
‣ Raise a sens of urgency
‣ Choose a short powerful slogan
‣ Focus on action (be flexibel, do not
hasitate, but act!)
‣ Communicate, communicate, ...
‣ Do not give up!
‣ Keep the moment

47.
(And ...) (6) Can you indicate some pitfalls?
PITFALLS
‣ Know what you’re starting
‣ Strategic vs. tactical
‣ Paradox of change and stability
‣ Between say and act
‣ Distancing and quick fixes
‣ Change management Iceberg
‣ DIY (do it yourself)!

48.
T H A N K Y O U F O R Y O U R AT T E N T I O N
Ton Kallenberg - Director Education - ROC Leiden