The EDUCAUSE Guide to Technology, Leadership and Culture



The EDUCAUSE Guide to Technology, Leadership and Culture

At EDUCAUSE, we are committed to enabling sustained growth in organizations, culture, and individuals. Long-term and lasting progress will require time, sustained effort, and the cumulative impact of incremental and individual actions.

For EDUCAUSE and higher education, the value of organization and culture is manifest in at least three interrelated dimensions:

  • Successful teams bring a range of perspectives.

  • IT and academic technology organizations often do not reflect the constituents their institutions serve.

  • Student success depends on educational environments that are welcoming to all students

We recognize that people and organizations have different kinds of organizational culture, that they will take different approaches to cultivating culture, and that they will move at different speeds.

The resources on this page include action steps to put these principles into practice.

An Invitation to Advance Your Journey

Acknowledging that organizational culture is critical for higher education institutions and their students, faculty, and staff to thrive is the first step, but how do you get started? Where can you apply your time and energy to build and maintain momentum?

The steps below include discrete activities that can guide and sustain your personal journey to create a more positive and productive work environment, as well as that of your organization. The activities are organized into three starting points—Explore, Engage, and Transform—allowing you to tailor your approach based on your circumstances.

  • Explore: Exploring a new topic is a good way to better understand it. These activities offer a proactive beginning to organizational awareness.

  • Engage: Once you understand something new, it's time to get involved. These action items help you form and build relationships and will vary depending on your journey and comfort level.

  • Transform: This step moves from participation to immersive involvement for sustainable change.

Use the steps to become more aware of and involved in exemplary organizational culture, moving from commitment to action.

The Steps: From Commitment to Action

Explore

  • Explore relevant sites and frameworks such as this EDUCAUSE guide.

  • Subscribe to relevant newsletters

  • Subscribe to relevant EDUCAUSE Community Groups and other related industry groups

  • Read articles, listen to podcasts, and watch videos at EDUCAUSE Review

  • Continue your education by consuming resources recommended by our community or recommending new books or resources to your colleagues.

Engage

  • Connect with related campus or system offices about available resources.

  • Host and/or discuss topics related to organizational culture during your division/unit meetings.

  • Invite speakers to speak with your team.

  • Complete training opportunities offered at your institution.

Transform

  • Create a way to share stories or references with staff (e.g., newsletters, social media, Slack channel).

  • Include organizational culture efforts in the IT annual report.

  • Create a Committee to develop efforts that can be measured and shared.

Explore

  • Explore how different approaches to writing job descriptions shape the applicant pool.

  • Learn how job descriptions can help applicants feel welcome in the organization (retention).

  • Update institutional communications (e.g., websites, documents, social media) to promote a better organizational culture.

Engage

  • Use co-chair model for hiring committees.

  • Ensure hiring committee members have received training in good hiring practices.

  • Partner with appropriate campus groups

Transform

  • Partner with HR and conduct a post-search review for improvement.

  • Ensure that members have a variety of opportunities to build networks, are provided resources and time for professional development, and are engaging in conversations with their supervisors about their career development and professional paths.

Explore

  • Review the EDUCAUSE workforce studies.

  • Review the CUPA-HR workforce resources.

Engage

  • Engage in higher-education-IT-adjacent associations such as CUPA-HR or NACUBO.

  • Engage with institutional libraries and data custodians to keep data updated.

Transform

  • Serve on professional boards and/or committees to influence the visibility of organizational culture within our organizations and the profession.

  • Regularly publish technology workforce data in annual reports or in strategic plans.

Explore

Engage

  • Partner with the institutional research office on data that is used to support reporting efforts.

  • Support an institutional dashboard related to organizational culture.

Transform

  • Facilitate internship opportunities with regional workforce development offices.

  • Fund and hire a position dedicated to planning, strategy, and organizational change.

Explore

  • Review which existing STEM curricular programs are active at your institution.

Engage

  • Collaborate with STEM departments to create internships and employment opportunities for engagement with IT.

  • Support and elevate research computing and data roles as distinct and highly-valued career paths (partner with CaRCC).

Transform

  • Partner with academic departments in co-creating curriculum for students interested in computer science, data sciences, and other technology-related fields. Including executive, online, and continuing education.

  • Collaborate with local high schools and other institutions to offer workshops in STEM fields, as has been done at the Information Technology Academy at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Explore

  • Review the leadership landscape in your profession (e.g., professional organizations, STEM organizations, student associations).

Engage

  • Volunteer and meet with groups at your institution with similar goals and interests.

  • Get support or partner with senior administrators on national initiatives and projects advocating for better organizational culture.

  • Build professional networks.

Transform

  • Engage in tech organizations such as NCWIT.

  • Lead and participate in education at a national level.

  • Dedicate funds to supporting professional development and enacting plans related to cultivating technology, leadership and culture.

Share Your Feedback

If you have resources, comments, or suggestions to share with our community, please contact us.