Impact Of Higher Education Leadership Practice On Academic Culture From Staff Perspective

Culture change requires leaders to recognize the problematic nature of the existing culture and to have the motivation and ability to change the cultural process(Schein,1991).The government has an Omanization strategy to strengthen the economy with young Omani citizens and reduce the number of expatriates working in various sectors(Information,1998).Higher education in Oman faces many difficulties and challenges.One of these problems is that leadership positions are filled by non-Omani nationals due to the lack of role models for young Omani academics,and Omani leaders may not have a solid foundation in academic culture.In addition,a large number of Omani higher education institutions hire international leaders for various administrative positions such as chairs and deans.The difference between academic cultures can present several obstacles for staff and students.This study aims to determine the current state of higher education leadership in Oman and explore the effect of leadership on the academic culture of higher education institutions.In this study,researchers employed a mixedmethod approach to address three research questions: 1)How does Oman’s higher education staff perceive leadership practices? 2)How does staff perceive the academic culture of higher education institutions in Oman? 3)How does staff perceive the impact of leadership practices on academic culture?Quantitative data were derived from a questionnaire distributed to 110 respondents selected by random sampling.Descriptive statistics and independent T-test analysis were applied.In the qualitative method,on the other hand,a purposefully selected sample of eight participants was chosen,and one-on-one interviews were conducted.The study wаs соnduсted аt оne рubliсuniversity аnd twо рrivаte соlleges.According to the survey results,the highest category was Enable others to act,while the lowest was Challenging the Process.The practice with the highest score,Enable others to act,appears to accurately reflect the nature of leadership in higher education in Oman.The results reveal that a leader’s behavior has a direct impact on academic work and the academic environment.The practices of leaders will affect staff performance in various fields of work and,eventually,the academic culture of their institutions.Based on research findings,following implications were providing to improve academic culture in higher education institutions: 1)Decisions regarding academic work should involve the academic team of each college and not simply be imposed by the leaders.2)Transformational leadership,which includes listening to and empowering staff,is an advisable approach for leaders in order to avoid potential conflicts between them and their staff.3)Leaders must know what situation need to follow the guidelines and policy of the institution and when they have to be guided by their own thought and principles.