Abstract
The chapter presents good practices in university management regarding the external accreditation process based on the analysis of national as well as international experiences in this field which were gathered by the Jagiellonian University Quality Assurance Team. Emphasis is placed on the initial phase of this process (i.e., the preparatory phase). The following research questions were posed: What communication strategy related to the accreditation process should be applied? What other activities should be considered in order to increase the quality of the preparations? What kind of communication actions should be taken to make the process of external accreditation at the university run smoothly? Qualitative methodology was applied, and document analysis and expert interviews using MAXQDA 2022 were carried out. The results of the research indicate the necessity to include various stakeholders in the communication strategy and to conduct personalized communication activities.
TopIntroduction
Internationalization in higher education can be observed in increasing competition in the market of educational services, and the global quest for research grants and projects, which raises the activity and mobility of scholars, as well as the quality of their teaching. The challenges of the modern, competitive academic world call for the development of a new approach to strategic planning, taking international university accreditation into consideration.
Higher education institutions are a special type of organization that plays a significant role in public, social and business spaces. They also face contemporary challenges resulting from changes taking place in the economic, political, socio-cultural, technological, and international environment. The survival and development of a university are determined by its competitiveness and an appropriate strategy that allows it to react quickly to these shifts. The competitiveness of a university is often determined by the quality of education and the quality of research (Bugaj, Szarucki 2019). Assumptions for the accreditation of external and internal education quality systems can be found on the ENQA website (www.eqar.eu). In the case of Poland, external quality assurance is one of the basic tasks of the Polish Accreditation Committee (PKA), as an independent institution working to improve the quality of education.
Every higher education institution is responsible for the internal quality management system (IQMS). It should be treated as a dynamic system, open to modifications (Barnett, 2010) so that it can respond to the challenges of the external environment: the requirements of employers, expectations, and possibilities of students, the influence of competition from other higher education institutions, and the possibilities and needs of universities. The adopted communication strategy is a part of this system, enabling the flow of information about its assumptions, requirements, obligations, and the tasks of its participants. The effectiveness and regularity of communication enable ongoing problem solving, providing the necessary information and, as a result, the efficient building of intra-university relationships. The right approach to communication means activities within the area of strategic communication. As part of such communication, a communication strategy should be developed that emphasizes the aspect of proactivity. According to communication theory, one can distinguish between the proactive and reactive types of communication; proactive communication activities occupy a special place here (Allen 2016: 72): „Proactivity has come to refer to a more or less unspecified set of non-defensive or nonreactive practices through which organizations handle their relations”. As Allen (Ibidem) notes quoting Cheney and Christensen: “the proactive organization attempts to influence and shape external developments in ways considered favorable in terms of its own aspirations”. It is equally important to build long-term relationships with people within the organization and with people who come in contact with the organization. These actions should be part of the organization’s broader strategy.
Key Terms in this Chapter
Strategic Management: Management of an organization’s resources to achieve its goals and objectives, procedures of the University governance and society implementing the university’s strategy and using specific strategic communication.
External Accreditation Process in Poland: External accreditation process in Poland is managed by the Polish Accreditation Committee (Polish: Polska Komisja Akredytacyjna, PKA), which is an institution acting independently for the enhancement of the quality of education in Poland. Since its establishment in 2002, the PKA has covered all public and non-public higher education institutions in the territory of the Republic of Poland. The PKA carries out its mission by making mandatory program evaluations and formulating opinions on applications for granting the right to conduct studies.
Strategic Communication: The purposeful use of communication by an entity to engage in conversations of strategic significance to its goals. Specific goals are achieved by means of communication under conditions of limited resources and uncertainty. There can be internal and external strategic communication. One can also distinguish more proactive or more reactive types of communication. The use of selected strategic communication can support the building of the desired image of a higher education institution.