Executive Leadership Programme (ELP)
About the Programme
The IAU Executive Leadership Programme (ELP) is unique. It is radically global in its ambition to support university leaders across all higher education systems and types. It focuses on common issues and challenges and covers central aspects of higher education management for a sustainable running of the institution. The ELP empowers university leaders to navigate the contextual and political dimensions of university leadership. In short, the programme provides a framework with which to confront the big managerial, ethical, economic and societal questions universities face.
The programme starts and ends with in-person meetings and continues online throughout the year. The programme is designed for current or emerging heads of institutions, and participants will be awarded a learning badge after the successful completion of the whole programme. It is designed in modular form, and each of the modules consists of a thematic workshop and action learning group sessions – separated into current and emerging leaders for real peer-to-peer engagement.
The participants draw on their collective experience and examine best practices to address common challenges. Through peer-to-peer exchange, the participants learn how to mobilise collective efforts to address immediate issues and proactively shape their institutional future. The modules are facilitated by eminent higher education leaders with ample experience in coaching and workshop facilitation.
In between the in-person modules at IAU conferences, online sessions will enable the participant to connect and carry out this capacity building programme from anywhere in the world.
Session Topics 2024 - 2025
The Changing Mission of Universities
Effective Leadership, Governance, and Risk Management
Building Partnerships Across the Global Higher Education Landscape
Creating and Managing Effective Teams
Forming Transformative Partnerships with Students
Navigating the Strategic Planning Process
Budgeting, Financial Strategy, and Administration
Diversifying Income Streams and Fundraising Strategies in HE
Shaping Higher Education in an Increasingly Digital World
Towards a Transformation of Higher Education
Charting a Sustainable Future for Higher Education
Communicating the Role of Higher Education in Society
Learning Outcomes:
Enhanced Strategic Thinking and Planning: Gain a new perspective on different aspects of global higher education to improve scenario thinking for the implications for your current strategy and future plans.
Understand Your Leadership Capabilities: Gain better knowledge of the different dimensions of strategic leadership to become a globally engaged leader of change.
Develop Effective Teams: Explore leadership expectations and improve interpersonal management skills to unlock the full potential of diverse high-performing teams.
Build a Global Network of Peers: Create long-term partnerships, connect with colleagues from all over the world, and share experiences to learn from each other.
2025-2026 Cohort
The IAU is now accepting applications for the 2025-2026 cohort of the ELP. The 2025-2026 cohort will begin on 24 October 2025 at the IAU 2025 International Conference in Kigali, Rwanda and will continue through the IAU 17th General Conference to be held in Autumn 2026. The ELP will meet in person and online over the course of one year. Each module is complimented by Action Leadership Groups, separated into current and emerging leaders for true peer-to-peer exchange.
Scholarship Opportunity
The Prof Hesham Metwalli ELP Scholarship supports the participation of a higher education leader from a Least Developed Country (LDC) in the IAU Executive Leadership Programme. It covers one year’s tuition for a selected participant. Please read the full scholarship description and eligibility criteria here.
Programme Facilitators
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Andrew Deeks
President of Murdoch University, Australia and IAU President
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Renée T. White
Former Provost, Executive Vice President, and Professor of Sociology, The New School, USA
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Noah Sobe
Chief of Section for Higher Education, UNESCO
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Paul Tiyambe Zeleza
Senior Advisor for Strategic Initiatives and Professor, Howard University USA, and Former Vice Chancellor, United Sates International University, Kenya
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Teri Balser
Immediate Past Provost and Vice President, University of Calgary, Canada
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Chris Brink
Former Vice Chancellor, Newcastle University, UK
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Sandra Guarin Tarquino
Vice Chancellor International, Universidad del Rosario, Colombia
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Jacob Blasius
Executive Director, Global Student Forum, Denmark
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Pam Fredman
Former Rector Gothenburg University and IAU Immediate Past President
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Manja Kelemencic
Professor of Higher Education, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia, and Fellow at Harvard University, USA
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Patrick Deane
Principal and Vice Chancellor, Queen’s University, Canada
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Andreas Corcoran
IAU Deputy Secretary General
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Shalini Randeria
President and Rector, Central European University, Austria
Past Leadership Programmes
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The first iteration of the IAU Executive Leadership Programme was launched at the IAU 2023 International Conference in Doha, Qatar. The pilot programme welcomed 17 participants from 14 countries around the world. The pilot programme brochure may be read here.
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The quality of higher education leadership is essential to the well-being of universities, but expectations and responsibilities of higher education institutions are expanding while the local and global context is continuously changing, making leadership more complex. Recognizing the challenges, the IAU developed the LGEU programme to support new and future leaders of Higher Education Institutions building on its unique capacity to bring together experts and peers from different parts of the world. The programme took place two times a year and moved from region to region, hosted by members of the IAU.
The programme provided information about global challenges and examples of how national higher education systems respond to global challenges. It provided concepts and tools for leading a globally engaged university. The programme was built on peer-to-peer learning and participants were able to analyze different aspects related to leadership and exchange with peers providing different perspectives and experiences from around the world.
The programme was designed for recently appointed or upcoming senior higher education leaders.
The LGEU Programme ended in 2019 at the onset of the Covid-19 Pandemic. The Leadership priority area reimagined this capacity building programme into the Executive Leadership Programme.