Towards Strategic Agility Universities A Study on a Sample of Private Universities in the Kurdistan Region – Iraq

Abstract

This study aims to identify the correlation and effect between entrepreneurial alertness dimensions and strategic agility in a number of private universities in the Kurdistan Region – Iraq. To achieve the above aim, two hypotheses were developed: the first states that there is a significant correlation between entrepreneurial alertness dimensions and strategic agility (collectively and individually), while the second states that entrepreneurial alertness dimensions have a significant impact on strategic agility (collectively and individually). A questionnaire with 30 questions was designed to measure the related dimensions and variables. The questionnaire was distributed to managerial leaders in the universities under study. Using non-random sampling technique, sixty questionnaire forms were handed out; forty-nine of them were valid for analysis. The percentage of response reached (81.66%). The study used a group of statistical tools to analyze data by employing the (SPSS) package. The findings show that there is agreement among respondents on the availability of the dimensions of both entrepreneurial alertness and strategic agility in the universities under study. The findings also show that there is a significant correlation and effect between entrepreneurial alertness dimensions and strategic agility in the considered universities. In light of the results in the present study, the researchers suggest that the universities under study may need to involve their leaders in the process of strategic formulation. This will help university leaders to be more confident, in addition to enhancing their collective commitment towards carrying out their universities’ strategic plans. To embed strategic agility, universities need to establish an entrepreneurial culture that encourages opportunity-based thinking, which in turn leads universities to having a competitive edge. Furthermore, universities need to foster supportive environments in which appropriate resources and work systems are available for reallocation, which will enable and allow universities to quickly respond to environmental changes.