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.
Abstract
The experiment has been carried out in the Syrian National Commission of Biotechnology, during the growing season 2018/2019, to study the effect of abiotic stresses (salinity and osmotic stresses) on the activity of some antioxidant enzymes and biochemical traits in Catharanthus roseus. The experiment has been laid according to (CRD) with three replications. The seeds have been sterilized by NaOCl solution (0.5% v/v), then planted on MS medium. Plantlets have been moved to MS medium enriched with NAA (1 mg.L-1) and BA (2 mg.L-1). The callus has been initiated from leaves using MS medium containing NAA (1 mg L-1) and KIN (2 mg.L-1). After 60 days, callus
... Show More
(2)
(2)
The purpose of this paper is to preparing preventive exercises supported by collagen supplements and vitamin D for handball players, and identify the effect of preventive physical exercises supported by collagen supplements and vitamin D on some physical and skill abilities of handball players. The researchers used the experimental method and designed two groups, one experimental and the other control, with both pre- and post-tests, to suit the nature of the research. The research community was selected from handball players (specialized school players), numbering (14), and they were divided into two groups, each group numbering (7) players. One of the most important results reached by the researcher is that: The exercises prepared by the r
... Show MoreThe person who wants to learn. The history of Bab’is will notice a very
starnge phenomenon that they (Babis and Baha’is) resort to visions to prove their
delusion.
The believers usually reach to each other by their visions. This phenomenon
are shared among them from Al- Ahsa’ai time till the last phase of their propaganda
which is the Baha’is propaganda, and this is due to their ignorance and under
development in doctrine of islam which was widespread in Iran and the Islamic world.
The whole secrets of Babis and Baha’is movement were restricted among
particular group, most of them were Al- Rashti’s students and knew the basic
principles of their movement which deperding or (the principles) declarati
Both of the species Typha domengensis and Phragmites communis among the most important plant endemic in flora of Iraq from monocotyledon. Due to the similarity of the two species with each other in many morphological characteristics such as the environment where they live and the form of leaves and type of leaf venation and type of stomata….ets, also both of species belong to monocots plant therefore this research work was conducted find anatomical differences that have the same as taxonomic value to help distinguishing between both species under study. Through this research, we found great importance to the anatomical characteristics which we reached by studying the roots, stems and leaves sections f
... Show MoreThe current study included the collection of 175 samples (blood-urea) of patients suffering from rheumatism, collected from Baghdad Teaching Hospital (Educational Laboratory), Al-Kindy Teaching Hospital, Al-Imamian Al-Kadhimya in Medical City in Baghdad at different duration between 2016/10/1-2017/2/1. The bacterial growth results showed that 80% of urea samples positive for bacterial culture, while the rate of samples did not show any bacterial grow this 20%. The isolation subjugates to morphological, microscopically and biochemical tests, as also diagnosis by Api system. The most frequent bacterial pathogenic is E. coli which appeared highly rate (41.97)% followed by E. cloacae (21.25)%, P. aeruginosa (12.5)%, Salmonella (10)% and the pro
... Show More
(1)
Judicial jurisprudence is one of the important legal solutions to address the shortcomings of legislation. Throughout its long history, human societies have known many cases in which the judge finds himself facing a legislative vacuum in addition to civil legal texts that are difficult for the judge to implement due to ambiguity or contradiction, which requires diligence. To rule on resolving disputes before him in order not to deny justice, but the judge in his jurisprudence was not absolute, but rather bound by certain controls represented by observing the wisdom of legislation on the one hand and taking into account the nature of the texts on the other side, and from here this research came to shed light on the jurisprudence and its cont
... Show More
(1)
(17)
The concerns about water contaminants affect most developing countries bypassing rivers over them. The issue is challenging to introduce water quality within the allowed limits for drinking, industrial and agricultural purposes. In the present study, physical-chemical parameters measurements of water samples taken from eleven stations were collected during six months in 2020 through flow path along the whole length of Tigris River inside AL Kut city (center of Wassit government) were investigated for six parameters are total hardness TH, hydrogen ion pH, biological oxygen demand BOD5, total dissolved solids TDS, nitrate NO3, and sulfate SO4. The water quality analysis results were compared with the maximum allowable limit concentrat
... Show More
(7)
(3)