Globalisation and rapid environmental change have created many challenges for public and private organisations across Iraq as a developing country, particularly in the higher education sector. This includes, for example, decreases in government funding; increased demand for higher education; a need for economic transformation, and related competitiveness of organizations. Such challenges require exceptional leaders and strategic planning in order to take action to improve. In Iraq, the higher education sector is still one of the main foundations in progressing the knowledge economy. Studies into leadership style, strategic planning processes, and the importance of leadership and organisational culture to an organisation’s success have been used to assist both public and private Iraqi colleges in responding to the challenges they face. Although, some studies have examined the interaction between leadership and strategic planning, and leadership and organisational success, there has been no empirical study that has investigated how these three variables interact together. Thus, this study aimed, firstly, to identify the current leadership styles and strategic planning processes in the colleges and the challenges they faced, and to gain an understanding from the perspective of the senior leaders themselves as to how they might best respond to the current situation. Secondly, based on the participants’ experiences, knowledge and perceptions, the study aimed to identify implications for both practice and policy to help improve the colleges’ outcomes. The study involved a mixed-methods approach and was conducted in two stages. During the first stage, the researcher gathered quantitative data by administering a survey package to 129 leaders (deans, associate deans, and heads of departments) across both public and private colleges in the capital city of Baghdad. During the second stage, the researcher gathered qualitative data to more deeply explore the survey results by conducting individual interviews with a sub-sample of 21 leaders from both college types (ten public and 11 private). In the data analyses stages, both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were applied to compiling tables and charts, and to test hypotheses, by employing the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS), Microsoft Excel, and NVivo. The results of study showed that both transformational and transactional leadership styles played a varied and vital role in the colleges’ strategic planning processes, and in turn their success. The fact that private colleges were ‘for profit’ and public colleges were ‘not for profit’, as well as their contrasting funding models, highlighted key differences between the two college types’ leadership and general modus operandi. While it was found that both transformative leadership and transactional leadership styles were necessary to address the challenges colleges faced in the Iraqi educational context, the impetus for change extended far beyond the need for professional development of leaders. The embracing of information communication technologies, and reliable Internet was seen as necessary in all aspects of the colleges’ work and provision for teaching and learning, and students’ success. This applied to both college types along with the need for closer adherence to government regulations and more focused government coordination of colleges’ administrative functions. Furthermore, implications for making successful improvements to practice also identified the need to manage the challenge of sociocultural influences on the appointments and promotions of leaders. It was concluded that a greater emphasis on teamwork and provision of incentives for staff, along with a ‘boost’ to pedagogy and practice, which could be provided through the adoption of information communication technologies and appropriate professional development strategies, would enhance the colleges’ ranks and the status of their qualifications. Also, theoretically, the study offers a value-add to leadership, strategic planning process, and organisational success literature in the form of a conceptual model that links these variables in the context of Iraqi higher education sector.
The present paper applies Fanon Psychological reading of the problem of the Black introduced in his book Black Skin White Mask to Crooks, The black Character in John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men. The analysis of this character infers three essential points regarding the artistic achievement of the author. First, he uses a fictional character that offers a psychological interpretation of the black problem of alienation and loneliness in a way that does not disgrace the black. Second, he applies Fanon’s way of showing the various attitudes that the black adopts in contact with the white society. Third, he affirms that the black inferiority complex comes as a result of double proc
... Show MoreThis study aims to examine the relationship between emotional intelligence and academic adaptation among a sample of gifted students in intermediate and high schools in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The study also seeks to examine the differences between group means in emotional intelligence and academic adaptation due to demographic variables (gender and school level). In addition, the study aims to examine the role of emotional intelligence in predicting the level of academic adaptation. The researcher performed the descriptive, correlational, predictive, and comparative approaches to collect the data from a sample comprised of (309) gifted students using the emotional intelligence scale developed by Bar-on (2000), whi
... Show MoreAbstract
The current research is attempt to test the reflection of the lean management on the human resources management practices of two of the most important communication companies operating in Iraq (`Zain & Asia cell), The research aims to Determine the extent of adoption of the lean management approach in the two researched companies, as it improving human resource management practices. The research problem represented in the existence of lack of in some aspects of the application the lean management approach in service sector and neglecting the impact of its tools on the human resource management practices. For this purpose three principle research hypotheses has been formulated, first there is a correlation rel
... Show More
The current research aims at identifying the new marketing directions that in the picture because if the changes and challenges that face the business nowadays, these effect on the future of the new product.
The problem of the research concentrate on the new marketing activities and how to make it appropriate between the product and the market's need, and to fulfill the needs and desire of the customer and it's importance for achieving the economical goals of the organization for a long relationship with the customer.
The resume of the research is about the impact of nowadays marketing and it's effect on knowing the customer instead of concentrating on the important roll of mark
... Show More
(2)
This research is represented by exploring the experience of "the theater of the oppressed" by (Augusto Boal) as an experiment that represents a different aesthetic pattern in the presentation of theatrical performance which is in contrast with the Aristotelian and Brechtian patterns, and as a result of the increasing problems of the individual in societies according to his needs and an attempt to express the suffering of human and the loss of his rights in general.
The research also tries to uncover the power of identification and the alienation of existence in the theater of the oppressed as that power, with its diversity of legal, legitimate, religious, political, economic and social capabilities has become a burden instead of being
The Reasons behind the decadence of the studies concerning the evening school in Salah al Deen A field study
The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) is commonly used as a measure of land surface greenness based on the assumption that NDVI value is positively proportional to the amount of green vegetation in an image pixel area. The Normalized Difference Vegetation Index data set of Landsat based on the remote sensing information is used to estimate the area of plant cover in region west of Baghdad during 1990-2001. The results show that in the period of 1990 and 2001 the plant area in region of Baghdad increased from (44760.25) hectare to (75410.67) hectare. The vegetation area increased during the period 1990-2001, and decreases the exposed area.
(1)
The present work included qualitative study of epiphytic algae on dead and living stems, leaves of the aquatic plant Phragmitesaustralis Trin ex Stand, in Tigris River in AL- Jadria Site in Baghdad during Autumn 2014, Winter 2015, Spring 2015, and Summer 2015. The physical and chemical parameters of River’s water were studied (water temperature, pH, electric conductivity, Salinity, TSS, TDS, turbidity, light intensity, dissolve oxygen, BOD5, alkalinity, total hardness, calcium, magnesium and plant nutrient). A total of 142 isolates of epiphytic algae were identified. Diatoms were dominant by 117 isolates followed by Cyanobacteria (13isolates), Chlorophyta (11 isolates) and Rhodophyta (1 isolate), Variations in the isolates number were rec
... Show More
(14)
(3)