Future university

Report of the thematic expert group: Future University

Future University Program speeds up the universities’ self-directed development to fulfil the future requirements of innovation society: a) the demand for differentiation of universities, and b) development of innovative leadership and organizational practices.

Description of the theme and its relevance

The criteria to successful function of economy and society have changed during the past decennia. Globalization, technological development, knowledge intensive economy and climate change are the main examples of the trends that are transforming the world. Competitiveness of nations, companies and individuals is ever more based on societal, technological and organizational innovations. The national innovation system depends both on the internal development of university institution as well as the intimate cooperation of universities, enterprises and mediating organizations.

The development challenge has been met by the most of the European universities by completed or ongoing changes concerning autonomy, administration, structures and finance.  In addition universities are faced by serious demands from the perspectives of strategic differentiation as well as innovative leadership and organizational practices.

The goal of the Future University program is to systematically speed up the development and competitive edge of universities.  The possibility to join the program will be offered to the willing universities with strategic goal to differentiate.

To develop university to meet new future requirements is crucial, demanding, and a long term task. There are many good reasons to make a joint effort by Finland and Sweden in this challenge: a) the unified university system and its high quality, b) the push for knowledge based economic growth and c) the high level of both peoples’ education and information society. Since the development by necessity takes place in global context, the challenge cannot be restricted only to Finland and Sweden. The core task of the countries is therefore to create a platform for global development of the Future University which serves and initiates international discussion, scientific research and cooperation with companies.

Goals and objectives
1) Differentiation of the university system
There is a need for all universities for a clear profile with special goals by which they differ from the other universities. Currently 90% of the universities have similar overall goals of “highest international level” in various research areas.  The universities must find the realistic focus for the possible excellence, and it needs to be developed and implemented systematically.

Differentiation refers the universities’ goals of excellence: These can be focused on (different areas of) research, education or regional development. 

Future University program offers funding and methodological support for the universities that are willing for the strategic differentiation.

2) Innovative leadership and organizational practices

The program offers research based knowledge of future requirements, innovative leadership and innovative organizational praxis for the universities that participate the program.  Various dimensions of academic leadership will be studied and dealt with.

Future University program combines research and praxis, which interact along the whole process.  In so called Living Lab methodology researchers feed the academic practitioners with scientific knowledge, and the practitioners give feedback and share their insights based on the experience. 

Future University program consists of the following actors:
- Universities that a) are willing to participate, b) have need and serious aim to differentiate, and c) have a group that is committed to the defined development work.  The real and concrete work for development of the universities is the bases for the whole program.
- Researchers of the program make an extensive study of requirements of the future university (see examples of the goals later in this paper) and feed the university groups with the results.
- The pilot groups of the participating universities and the researchers of the program form a network that is a learning platform for everyone.
- Facilitators / coordinator of the program.

Funding of the program will have two different channels. On one hand the research will have a budget based funding for the time span of the program.   On the other hand there will be special resources to be applied by the universities.  The universities that have the best proposals according to the differentiation and developmental goals of the Future University program will be chosen and funded.

The program is not only academic but aims at concrete changes in practice along the process. To meet these goals the program operates on three levels of knowledge creation:
a) Scientific bases: 
The future development of the role and institution of science is to be studied, analyzed, discussed and re-evaluated.
b) Practical development in living labs
The participating universities have a concrete goal to plan and implement the differentiation process as well as test and evaluate new forms of knowledge and innovation based leadership. 
c) Modeling the results into new operational concepts
The program will produce both academic and practical knowledge of university leadership for the future. The results are being conceptualized and modeled in the ways that are easy to understand, deliver and implement.

The goals of the Future University Program are 
1. to create living labs in the pilot universities in both countries to plan and implement differentiation as well as to develop new leadership, organizational and pedagogical practices for future university
2. to make scientific research and analyses on innovative leadership of universities, high level expert organizations and academic communities,
3. to identify the turning points in universities’ history within the past 200 years, and to analyze their roots in and impact on the surrounding society (universities represent one of the most enduring institutions in Western societies) ,
4. to define universities’ key challenges from the perspective of innovativeness  and other identified future trends,
5. to study emerging new research paradigms that correspond to the multidisciplinary character of problem solving and innovation, and to analyze  the challenges of these paradigms to leadership of  scientific research projects,
6. based on the results of the analyses (1– 4) to define the developmental needs of the future university from the perspectives of leadership (incl. organization, pedagogy, research and cooperation with society).

The outcome of the program is scientifically grounded new practices in the chosen pilot universities. The basic platform for the work is being created and organized by Finnish-Swedish cooperation, but the practical work in living labs include wide international networks and cooperation.

Proposed actions
The program is planned to take place as an open ended, self-directed process that specifies the goals and actions phase by phase based on the gained results and new understanding. To get proper results that can be widely implemented the time span of about 15 years needs to be in focus. However, the first part of Future University Program is planned to last 7 years, after which the following part of the program will be separately designed.

First phase of 18 months creates the ground for living labs in pilot universities:

1. Nomination of the academic leader, the core team, advisory board, the board and the pilot universities with responsible persons.
2. The first year of the program is dedicated mainly for the academic research in order to produce the basic material for the further work. During the first year also the pilot universities will be chosen and cooperation will get started with the researchers.
3. 2nd version of the research and living labs is created together with researchers and pilot universities.

Second phase of 2 years is for running the living labs:

1. Workshops for living lab participants: to make them acquainted with the challenges of the future university according to the research results produced during the 1st phase. The principles and goals for the living labs and the focus areas of the pilot universities are to be defined in the workshops.
2. Getting the living labs running with support by the researchers and the core team.
3. Gathering the results of the living labs and the academic research.
4. Defining the goals and designing the action plan for the 3rd phase.

Third phase of 3 years focuses on the most successful living labs and launches new processes.