Leading Academic Innovation With Integrity: A Case Study in Using Systems Thinking

Leaders in higher education must meaningfully interpret and respond to information from a complex external environment as they plan for the future of their institutions. Importantly, this information must be explored alongside internal considerations of institutional integrity if institutions are to avoid compromising important values and social goods. This paper describes how systems leadership informed a framework for institutional innovation that guides navigation of tensions inherent in balancing external market opportunities and institutional integrity. Framing the work in this way has allowed organizational leaders to better identify impediments to innovation, develop strategies to empower innovative thinking across institutional silos for greater agility and responsiveness to emergent opportunities, and critically evaluate innovative opportunities.