Advance HE has published What Works: Promoting Behavioural Change, a new report designed to offer practical insights to promote positive cultural and behavioural change through staff engagement.
Following a ‘rapid review’ of publications from the Leadership Foundation for Higher Education (one of Advance HE’s legacy agencies), the report summarises evidence related to effective interventions in promoting behavioural change.
The report notes that while there are several effective forms of staff engagement to promote behavioural change - including mentoring and coaching schemes, the use of distributed leadership and the introduction of more informal networks – these tend to benefit early-career staff as opposed to mid-career staff. Barriers therefore continue to exist in terms of promoting institution-wide positive behavioural change, which can be overcome through more authentic forms of communication among staff and increasing collaboration within teaching, research and beyond.
A number of approaches are summarised in the report, with case studies included on how these have been successful within an institutional context, such as:
• Talent management and career support
• Devolved or collegiate leadership
• Performance management and goal setting
• Staff development and training
• Coaching and mentoring
• Communication and feedback
• Collaboration, team-working and networks
• Workload management and staff wellbeing
• Staff engagement for teaching
• Staff engagement for research
Kevin Guyan, Advance HE Head of Knowledge and Research, said,
“We know that institutions value practical approaches to encourage change. This report is particularly useful as it provides ideas and prompts to do things differently, particularly in regards to the career progression of women and institutional initiatives to improve equality, diversity and inclusion.”
Details about the recommendations are included in the full report What Works: Promoting Behavioural Change.
