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ERIC Number: ED666843
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 174
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: 979-8-5055-4129-6
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Learning Agility and Its Applicability to Higher Education
Suzanne Maria Murphy
ProQuest LLC, Ed.D. Dissertation, Teachers College, Columbia University
Learning Agility (LA) is catapulting our understanding of the relationship between the measurement of LA and leadership success, a critical component for succeeding in a volatile, uncertain, complex (VUCA) environment. While the business sector has benefited from the research and practice around LA, this exploratory study takes an initial look at the applicability of LA to higher education leadership through in-depth interviews with eleven college presidents, coupled with the results of the Burke Learning Assessment Inventory (BLAI). Administered to the presidents and their senior teams, the BLAI was created by W. Warner Burke to measure nine dimensions that demonstrate specific behaviors related to LA. Overall, both the interviews with the presidents and BLAI scores evidenced strong LA views and behaviors. A close examination of the senior team roles and the need for LA revealed strengths and alignment with key dimensions of the BLAI, while noticeable gaps surfaced between the presidents' views and BLAI self-ratings, illuminating opportunities for growth and further research. A strong relationship was revealed between presidents' BLAI scores and those she deemed higher performers across the critical dimensions, providing a snapshot of the LA behaviors of successful higher education leaders. All presidents acknowledged a relationship between LA and higher education leadership success, with 64% stating that there was a strong relationship, and the remaining 36% stating that there was a relationship, but to varying degrees, identifying some of the key dimensions as less applicable to higher education. While the overall LA framework was embraced and substantiated, a theme that surfaced and was then supported by the BLAI dimension scores was a schism between being learning agile within an environment that was described as "steeped in tradition" and one with "inherent structural impediments to change." Given that presidents consistently ranked highest in all BLAI dimensions coupled with the state of the sector and the urgency to evolve and keep pace accordingly, presidents can take the lead in being explicit about LA behaviors, reward and incentivize those behaviors, and claim LA as an institutional priority. Furthermore, the LA literature is expanded by the inclusion of research on this sector. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]
ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway, P.O. Box 1346, Ann Arbor, MI 48106. Tel: 800-521-0600; Web site: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml
Publication Type: Dissertations/Theses - Doctoral Dissertations; Tests/Questionnaires
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A