Towards Strategic Staff Development in Higher Education

“All members of the academic community - staff and students - are indebted to the authors of this exciting new publication which gives voice to those who have quietly and effectively redefined the staff development imperative and repositioned its professional agenda at the heart of organisational change and development.” Professor Dianne Willcocks, Principal, York St John College“Towards Strategic Staff Development in Higher Education is an important addition to items of essential reading for senior managers as well as staff developers. This collection of essays will stimulate discussion, debate and action among members of the higher education community.” Professor Robert Burgess, Vice-Chancellor, University of LeicesterThis book focuses on strategic staff development in higher education, a sector in which staff development has been largely viewed as an operational activity with little organizational relevance. The book demonstrates how staff development needs to engage with recent scholarship on ‘organizational learning’, aligning itself with institutional and departmental needs as well as the needs of individual staff. Using a broad definition of staff development, the book seeks to cover all aspects of the academic role and the interests of all staff. Authors are drawn from a range of backgrounds including senior staff, and thus the book addresses a wider readership than just the staff development community. Towards Strategic Staff Development in Higher Education combines a scholarly review of relevant literature with practical strategies and suggestions for readers.

Table of Contents:
Preface Setting the scene Rethinking strategic staff development Academic roles and relationships The challenge of lifelong learning Promoting entrepreneurship in higher education Extra-institutional influences Disciplines and the development of a scholarship of teaching and learning Developing the subject dimension to staff development A new approach to professionalizing teaching and accrediting training The Institute for Learning and Teaching in Higher Education Just another initiative? Investors in People in higher education Leadership and management development an overview Intra-institutional matters Developing departments Research and teaching making the link Embedding eLearning practices in higher education Career development for research staff Case studies Creating a local research culture The best 100 pounds learning works in the University of Glasgow Using a student-focussed learning perspective to align academic development with institutional quality assurance References Index.

About the Author :
Richard Blackwell is Senior Adviser in the LTSN Generic Centre, UK. Previously he was Director of Training and Staff Development at University of Nottingham. An industrial relations specialist by background, for 10 years he researched and taught human resource management, including at Coventry and Oxford Universities. He is a member of the Research Committee of the Staff and Educational Development Association and of the governing council of the Society for Research into Higher Education. Recent publications focus on staff development and quality enhancement. Paul Blackmore is Director of the Centre for Academic Practice at the University of Warwick and was formerly at De Montfort University. He developed teaching accreditation programmes at both institutions. At Warwick he is responsible for the University's strategy and policy in academic staff development. His research interests are in conceptualizations of professional expertise and in the development of higher level capabilities. He is convenor of the Standing Conference on Academic Practice, a grouping of heads of academic development in research-intensive institutions.