HEI employer-engagement – a practitioner's reflections using institutional logics lenses

Abstract

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are increasingly engaging with businesses to provide opportunities for their students whilst also promoting their own relevance and impact in society. However, this engagement often involves navigating multiple internal processes and practices. This paper presents an employer-engagement practitioner's reflections on HEI employer-engagement, using the lens of two institutional logics – professional and corporate logics. This paper considers how these logics are shaping HEI employer-engagement, the challenges for employer engagement middle managers (EE-MM), and tensions with senior leadership teams (SLT). This paper is framed and located from the point of view of a middle manager working within employer engagement, reflecting the challenges being faced by myself and seven other EE-MM across five English HEIs as part of my doctoral research. It explores the tensions between EE-MM and HEI-wide SLT; highlighting the competing demands between day-to-day management and strategic overview.