Over worked and undervalued? Knotted tensions of identity, purpose, and change in contemporary higher education

Whilst concerns about rising managerialism­ have reverberated around the higher education sector for decades, there is evidence that the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated such trends and deepened cracks within the system. Whilst it is relatively easy for such discussions to become polarised – where ‘managers’ are pitched against ‘staff’ – the reality is far more complex. In this paper we analyse and interpret findings from a survey of 780 academic and professional services staff who have left, or are considering leaving, UK higher education. Drawing on thematic coding of qualitative responses that indicate interdependencies between respondents’ views on positive and negative aspects of working in the sector we reveal fault lines within popular accounts of the erosion of academic and professional identities and the demonisation of university leaders. The discussion explores ‘knotted’ tensions associated with identity, purpose and change, that provide insights for leadership and management policy, practice and development that might help stem the flow of staff from the sector and create a greater sense of engagement amongst those who remain. We conclude with calls for a more nuanced critique that acknowledges the interdependencies between different aspects of university life. It is this unravelling of the effects of relational difference that we argue is necessary for navigating the current crisis within global higher education.