Theme 5: Governance, leadership and democracy

Thursday 23 April, 11.45am – 1.15pm

After the university? Transformations of higher education governance in an era of global polycrisis

Panellists:

• Daniel Nehring, Senior Lecturer in Sociology, Department of Criminology, Sociology and Social Policy, Swansea University
• Professor Kristiina Brunila (Faculty of Educational Sciences, University of Helsinki, Finland): The Accelerated University: Power, Governance, and Academic Subjectivities in an Era of Global Crisis
• Dr. Daniel Leyton (School of Education, University of Exeter, United Kingdom): Struggles over Academics’ Becoming: New Discourses and Actors of Self-Optimisation in Higher Education
• Dr. Daniel Nehring (Department of Criminology, Sociology and Social Policy, Swansea University, United Kingdom): Universities for the post-neoliberal age: rethinking higher education governance at the intersection of academic capitalism and the authoritarian turn
• Dr. Yadi Zhang (School of Journalism & Communication, Chongqing University, China)
• Dr. Mengwei Tu (Department of Criminology, Sociology and Social Policy, Swansea University, United Kingdom): Privileged and exploited? Higher education governance and China’s high-end talent recruitment schemes

In this panel, we argue that the equity crisis of global higher education forms part of a broader structural transformation of the university, at the intersection of academic capitalism, questions about the social, economic, and political role of public higher education, and an authoritarian turn in global politics. Around the world, universities find themselves in a deep crisis. In countries such as Argentina and the USA, the political success of authoritarian populism poses profound challenges for universities, from governments’ efforts at defunding them to escalating challenges to free speech. In the UK, the long-term underfunding and commercialisation of public universities have led to sweeping closures of humanities and social science programmes and mass sackings of scholars. At the same time, emerging stealthy initiatives aim at conforming scholars’ endurance and sensibilities towards optimisation agendas for economic growth has greatly narrowed the thematic remit of ‘high-value’ research and research funding. In the Nordic countries, long-standing egalitarian ideals meet accelerating marketisation and performance governance, reshaping universities’ social missions and academic work. In turn, China is accelerating its global superpower status in knowledge production, systematically inserting itself into the systems of global academic capitalism while stringently curtailing academic freedom.

The foregoing are salient instances of deep, wide-ranging transformations at the international level of what universities are, how universities are governed, and how scholars can think and work. In response, this panel examines to what extent and in which ways contemporary higher education organisations can still be characterised as universities, in the classic, for example Humboldtian, sense of the term. Drawing on empirical research on diverse international contexts, the panel’s four papers particularly seek to theorise contemporary relationships between contemporary higher education governance and practice, academic freedom, and democratic politics, against the backdrop of global polycrisis.

Thursday 23 April, 2.15pm – 3.45pm

University governance in a time of democratic decline: Student participation and the future of institutional structures in higher education

Panellists:

• Dr. Shannon Hutcheson, McGill University
• Dr. Olivier Bégin-Caouette, Université de Montréal
• Dr. Emma Harden Wolfson, McGill University
• Dr. Shikha Diwakar, McGill University
• Yvonne Zhang, McGill University
• Lucia Dikaczova, McGill University

Authoritarianism is on the rise, as democracy is on the decline globally (Graham & Svolik, 2020; Grumbach, 2023; Nord, 2025). At the same time, higher education institutions have a vital role in how democracy in society is shaped (Biesta, 2007; Cook & Nation, 2016). Besides being sites of knowledge production, colleges, universities, and other postsecondary institutions strengthen and advance democracy by equipping students with information and critical skills necessary for informed civic participation (Tierney, 2021).

However, this democratic potential is often undermined by the internal governance structures of higher education institutions, which are increasingly influenced by market-driven logics that prioritize efficiency, material gain, and privatization (Del Paggio, 2025). Many universities globally operate with centralized decision-making models that limit meaningful input from students, which raises questions about how organizational structures within universities reflect or resist democratic values.

There is a growing research interest in understanding how university governance works in practice and how it reflects broader tensions between democratic ideals and neoliberal imperatives. This panel explores various organizational structures of higher education institutions, specifically in the UK and in Canada, and how they are theoretically and practically designed to balance diverse voices within the university. It examines the role of governing bodies and how their composition and power dynamics can sometimes include and sometimes marginalize student perspectives.

By analyzing policies and bylaws related to student participation in university governance, this panel seeks to uncover how internal university structures may both reflect and reinforce authoritarian tendencies, even within institutions traditionally seen as democratic spaces. The panel further explores the implications of these governance models for the democratic mission of higher education and raises critical questions about what kind of future these institutions are shaping: one that empowers civic engagement, or one that consolidates power and limits democratic practice.

Friday 24 April, 9am – 10.30am

Diversifying leadership in global higher education

Speakers:

• Professor Sarah Aiston, Professor in Higher Education and Public Policy, Teesside University
• Professor Vikki Boliver, Professor of Sociology, Durham University
• Dr Ayca Gunaydin Kaymakciogl, Post-Doctoral Researcher, Teesside University

Discussants:

• Professor Angela Yung-chi Hou, National Chengchi University, Taiwan
• David Bass, Director of EDI, Advance HE
• Professor Ka-Ho Mok, Provost and Vice President (Academic & Research), Hang Seng University of Hong Kong
• Jamie Cumming-Wesley, Senior Partner, WittKieffer

Global higher education is confronting a multifaceted crisis, with persistent inequalities and a lack of diversity in senior executive leadership standing out as a critical concern. A cursory glance of the roll call of names across the world’s most elite universities reveal the dominance of predominantly white males in positions of power and influence. But what is our understanding of the biographies of those who lead elite universities globally? And what are the wider implications for diversifying leadership at this level?

This panel will present evidence from the Diversifying Leadership in Elite Universities: The Development of an Empirically Grounded Recruitment Framework for the Global Higher Education Sector project, funded by the ESRC. Currently, the ‘success’ factors that lead to being appointed as a Vice Chancellor/President are obscure. This project seeks to identify and interrogate these success factors to make the implicit explicit; to deconstruct unwritten assumptions and the concept of ‘cultural fit’. Importantly, the role of Executive Search Firms, governing bodies and, in some national contexts, the state in the recruitment process is considered. The analysis of 89 institutions that feature, at least twice, in international rankings (THE, QS, ARWU) reveals that university leaders remain overwhelmingly male, predominantly elite-educated, and frequently promoted from within their own institutions. Advanced statistical techniques highlight patterns of institutional and career ‘in-breeding’. These patterns highlight the structural barriers in recruitment and career progression, shaped by implicit biases and institutional practices. This panel responds directly to these challenges by drawing on findings from the project to interrogate the dynamics of leadership trajectories in elite universities.

This panel will be led by Professor Aiston (Teesside University), Principal Investigator of the ESRC-funded project Diversifying Leadership in Elite Universities. Her research highlights the barriers to diversifying senior leadership and the systemic changes required to foster equality at the highest levels of academia. Invited discussants will bring complementary perspectives from policy, practice, and international contexts. David Bass (Advance HE) will contribute insights from sector-wide equality, diversity, and inclusion initiatives, reflecting on strategies for institutional change. Professor Mok (Hang Seng University of Hong Kong) and Professor Hou (National Chengchi University, Taiwan) will situate the debate in Asian higher education systems, where global competitiveness intersects with social equality. Jamie Cumming-Wesley (WittKieffer) will provide perspectives from executive leadership recruitment, addressing how shifting priorities in Vice-Chancellor/President selection affect opportunities for more diverse leadership pipelines. Together, the panel will critically examine how leadership, recruitment practices, and institutional cultures contribute to, or mitigate, inequalities in higher education. By linking empirical research with practice and international policy perspectives, the session aims to spark dialogue on critical approaches in higher education leadership.

Friday 24 April, 11am – 12.30pm

Talent attraction, retention and management: Comparative perspectives

Panellists:

• Prof Shen Wenqin, Peking University (paper on Mainland China)
• Prof Angela Hou, National Chengchi University, Taiwan (Paper on Taiwan region)
• Prof Ka Ho Mok, The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong (Paper on Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia)
• Dr Ayo Oladosu, The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong (Paper on Hong Kong, Singapore and Malaysia)
• Prof Lisa Lucas, University of Bristol, UK (Paper on the UK)
• Prof Thandi Lewin, University of Johannesburg (Paper on Africa)
• Dr Obert Hodzi, University of Liverpool (Paper on China and Africa)

This panel sets out in the broader context when global economic conditions are becoming unstable, while investments in higher education encounter challenges. Invited panelists will discuss their recent research experiences related to talent attraction and retention issues from different geographical locations. Comparative insights and international perspectives will enrich our cross-cultural understanding of policies and practices when mangaging the war for talent happening across different parts of the globe.

View full conference programme for Days 1 and 2.