Neoliberal reforms in higher education have resulted in corporate managerial practices in universities and a drive for efficiency and productivity in teaching and research. As a result, there has been an intensification of academic work, increased stress for academics and an emphasis on accountability and performativity in universities. This paper critically examines these developments in institutions and draws on evidence from universities across the sector and a detailed case study in one university to identify the impacts of these changes on academic work. Given its ubiquity and the link of academic productivity to institutional experience, the paper argues that assumptions underpinning academic performance management need to be rethought to recognise the fundamentally intrinsic motivational nature of academic work. The paper explores the effects of performance management on individual academics as a case study in one institution and proposes a re-design of academic performance management to improve productivity based on the evidence.
History
Publication title
Higher Education
Volume
74
Issue
5
Pagination
897-913
ISSN
0018-1560
Department/School
Faculty of Education
Publisher
Springer Netherlands
Place of publication
Netherlands
Rights statement
Copyright Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2016
Repository Status
Restricted
Socio-economic Objectives
Other education and training not elsewhere classified