Integrated Literature Review of Information Technology Leadership in Higher Education: Implications for Total Quality Management

Purpose: The current shortage of highly skilled employees across the country continues to be a concern for our higher education (HE) institutions. Information technology (IT) is used in a variety of ways to expand the reach of education, from distance education, simulation technology, Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs), and more. Additionally, public HE institutions face flat and decreasing funding. IT departments are responsible for identifying transformational change opportunities, implementing technologies that expand the reach of our universities, and operating efficiently with flat funding. Therefore, identifying effective IT leadership practices to enable change and reduce costs is vital to success for modern HE institutions. Methodology: This paper uses a literature review to identify leadership necessary for modern HE in general and for IT in particular. Utilizing a literature review enables the identification of both what has been accomplished in research, but also, the gap in research that is yet to be completed on these topics. Findings: Overall, the environments of HE institutions are not conducive to innovation and transformational change. Leadership is an important enabler of innovative environments, and contemporary leadership theories like transformational leadership can help create IT-enabled transformational change in HE. Value: HE institutions must find ways to adapt more quickly to the rapidly changing environment of the 21st century. Leaders in IT are uniquely positioned because they have both IT and HE knowledge, enabling them, when effective, to be invaluable partners as HE institutions figure out a way forward in the rapidly changing world.