The Dean's Dilemma: Using Information to Solve Problems in Higher Education Administration

• In Event: Organizational Theory/Organizational Practice

Abstract

Business organizations demonstrate that human resource practices that cultivate employees’ talents and knowledge contribute to improved organizational performance as well as favorable financial outcomes for the firm. Extending this finding, we propose that these lessons ought to apply to educational institutions as well. Therefore, the present research employs grounded analytic methods to explore how academic administrators use information to solve problems in higher education. We begin with a summary of our conceptual model of information use in problem solving in academic administration and follow with examples drawn from the data. We also suggest ideas for embarking on organizational experiments and provide a rubric of questions for administrators to clarify their thinking about the role of information in decision making.

Authors

• Rebecca Brower, Florida State University

• Robert A. Schwartz, Florida State University

• Bradley E. Cox, Florida State University

• Ralph Brower, Florida State University