The ‘Golden Braid’ Model: Courage, Compassion and Resilience in Higher Education Leadership

Abstract

This paper explores the state of leadership in UK universities in the face of external pressures and turmoil, and makes the case for a new model of leadership constructed of a 'golden braid' of three threads of courage, compassion and resilience. Each thread is discussed with the intention of developing a framework that can be used to support leadership development to lead our universities effectively through the current chaos. Even before Covid-19 hit the world, UK higher education was perceived as being in a state of huge flux and chaos: the "old order" of a traditionally male-dominated elitist system funded by central government (O'Connor, 2015), has been dismantled and replaced with mass participation and student fees leading to an increase in marketization and government regulation for which academic leadership is generally under-prepared (Deem, 2004;Flückiger, Y. 2021). As such, this is the crucial time for us to embark upon a sectorwide discussion of what we want our universities to look like in this post-pandemic period -how we want to be teaching, researching and working and what we want the core values to be. In this paper, I suggest that the 'values' we had before will no longer be the ones we want to take forwards. For this, therefore, we need the 'golden braid' of courage, compassion and resilience in leadership discussed herewith.

Cultivating staff equality, diversity, and inclusion in higher education in the post-pandemic era: an organizational compassion perspective

“…The impact of neoliberal managerialism on EDI in higher education has become more evident as the landscape has undergone significant changes (Maratos et al, 2019;Denney, 2020;Waddington, 2021). This shift has created a global atmosphere of competitiveness, complexity, and uncertainty, particularly in the UK, where higher education is in a perpetual state of change and turbulence (Denney, 2021b). Neoliberalism's influence on higher education in the UK dates back to the 1970s, coinciding with the political leadership of Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan and the subsequent global spread of four key changes in political economy capitalism: privatization, deregulation, financialization, and globalization (Radice, 2013).…”

“…The UK's higher education system finds itself amidst upheaval, as it navigates a global atmosphere of competitiveness, complexity, and uncertainty (Maratos et al, 2019;Denney, 2020Denney, , 2021bDenney, , 2023Waddington, 2021). Factors such as increasing market competition, managerialism, workplace inequality, and continuous workload pressure have contributed to heightened mental health risks among academic staff (Kinman, 2001;Wallmark et al, 2013;Waddington, 2016;Denney, 2020;Urbina-Garcia, 2020;Shen and Slater, 2021;D'Cruz et al, 2023).…”

“Get on with it. Cope.” The compassion-experience during COVID-19 in UK universities

“…As is written elsewhere (c.f. Waddington, 2016 , 2021 ; Denney, 2020a , 2021a , b ) neoliberalism and market approaches to higher education have contributed to a compassion deficit in universities and an increase in staff and student suffering. COVID-19 was a period where everyone was experiencing stress and uncertainty and where the working from home situation was less than ideal.…”

Compassion: From Neuroscience to New Horizons and Innovative, Inclusive Research Agendas

“…As is written elsewhere (c.f. Waddington, 2016Waddington, , 2021Denney, 2020aDenney, , 2021a neoliberalism and market approaches to higher education have contributed to a compassion deficit in universities and an increase in staff and student suffering. COVID-19 was a period where everyone was experiencing stress and uncertainty and where the working from home situation was less than ideal.…”