Models of University Leadership

This section explores how operating within higher education organizations can be viewed from a variety of different vantage points. This is important to understand, because while you may examine, process, and act upon any given situation or scenario in a certain way, those that you work for and with may, and likely will, see things in a different manner. Regardless of whether you are at the beginning of your career in higher education or you are a seasoned professional, understanding the varied ways in which others approach a problem will benefit you tremendously. Through understanding, you can appreciate the myriad of approaches exhibited by those working around you, and by doing so, you will find success in any environment regardless of the organizational framework employed. In this course we present two models of leadership. The first comes Bolman and Deal (5th edition, 2013) and the second from Birnbaum (1988).