Analyzing Strategic Management in Oman Higher Education Institutions

This report proposes a study analyzing the current state of strategic management within higher education institutions in Oman, aiming to identify challenges in implementation and propose solutions. The research will employ both primary and secondary data collection methods, including literature reviews and surveys of students from various Omani educational institutions. The study seeks to understand the impact of strategic management on the performance of these institutions, considering factors like strategic thinking, planning, and the integration of international educational standards. Gaps in the existing literature are addressed by focusing on the relatively recent development of higher education in Oman and the need for tailored strategic approaches. Recommendations include collaboration with international universities, recruitment of qualified managers, and the establishment of research wings to inform strategy development, ultimately aiming to enhance the quality and relevance of education in Oman.

University
Subject: Strategic Management and its Impact on the Performance
of Oman Higher education institution
Name

Table of Contents
Introduction: 3
Research Aim: 3
Research Objective: 4
Methodology: 4
Literature Review: 5
Recommendations: 7
Conclusion: 8
References 9
Appendix 10
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Introduction:
This study shall consider the Strategic Management and its impact on the performance of Oman
Higher education institution. It shall also aim at resolving the problems related to the
implementation of the strategic management programs. This study is a mere proposal of the final
study that shall be conducted in the latter stage. For the convenience of the assignment, the
method and techniques that shall be used for the analysis shall be a very diverse and broad one.
The data collection sources shall be considered from both primary as well secondary means. In
this assignment, an overall exclusive approach shall be laid off based on which the whole
primary collection of data shall be conducted in the later stage of the project. This assignment
shall also have delved deeper into considering various of the literary sources in order to
understand and lay some views upon the presence of overall strategic management and its
impacts of the education sector in the country of Oman, mainly to higher education institutions.
The study shall initiate with definite a definite aim of carrying out the whole research, inclusive
of the proposal in here. It shall be succeeded by the research objective where, the main objectives
shall be derived from the aim. Then, the methodology shall be explained by the follow of which,
the whole research shall be conducted. The methods used and techniques considered shall be
explained in here. After this, the literature review on the topic of study shall be conducted by
taking into consideration the study of various research and articles presented by eminent scholars
and researchers at various parts of the world and time. On the basis of the whole literature
review, the analysis shall be drawn related to the overall condition of strategic management and
which manner it has affected the higher education sector and the various institutions in the land
of Oman. Further, recommendation shall be drawn ending with some lines concluding the whole
study.
Research Aim:
The aim of the research would be to analyse the current state of strategic management in the
educational institutions in the Sultanate of Oman. It shall also aim at providing solutions to the
problems that have arisen in the proper implementation of the same. It is hope that the research
shall be helpful in the betterment of the current state of education in the Sultanate of Oman.
Research Objective:
Primary Objective:
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 To analyse the current state of strategic management in the educational institutions in the
Sultanate of Oman
Secondary Objectives:
 To enquire about the strategies that are put to use for managing the educational affairs.
 To collect data from various education institutions in order to draw relevant conclusions.
 To recommend some remedial measures in case of shortcomings that can be pointed out
in the overall application of strategic management in the education sector in the Sultanate
of Oman.
Methodology:
The assignment is primarily based on collecting data by making use of various of the data
sources. In order to know and find facts about the overall conditions of strategic management in
the country of Oman, especially related to the education sector shall be considered. The impacts
of the strategic management on the education sector especially belonging to the higher level shall
be known by studying different articles, books, journals and other web based information
sources. This shall be done keeping in purview the attainment of using secondary sources of
data. Apart from this, primary data collection shall also be done in the main project. A sample of
70 students shall be made based on random sampling basis in order to collect first hand reliable
data. A set of questions shall be asked to them and based on the answer that shall be received
from them, analysis shall be done and conclusions shall be drawn on it. The use of qualitative
data shall be mainly considered here. In order to collect and analyse some numerical form of data
in few places, quantitative approach shall also be taken into consideration.
Data Collection:
For the collection of primary data, students of educational institutions such as Sultan Qaboos
University, College of Sharia Sciences, six colleges of applied science, six colleges of
technology in Al-Masanna, A'Sharqiyah University, Fire Safety Engineering College, Majan
College, Modern College of Business & Science, Middle East College and Mazoon College for
Management and Applied Sciences and Higher college of technology in Muscat, shall be asked
different forms of questions (McCaffery, 2018). On basis of that, analysis shall be made. In case
of secondary data, books, journals and other form of literary sources shall be considered. The
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total time for collection has been shown with a help of a Gantt Chart attached in the appendix
section of this study.
Data Analysis:
The data that shall be collected shall be analysed by making use of tables. Comparing the
secondary and primary data, the most rational argument shall be drawn and valid conclusions
shall be made.
Literature Review:
The practice of strategic management involves the formulation of goals for an organization after
the internal and external conditions and also the resources of the organization are analysed
(Morden, 2016). Strategies therefore, have to do with the long term vision of an organization and
it primarily aims at providing the organization with a direction towards which it can progress and
subsequently grow in a consistent manner (Ibe.unesco.org, 2018). It has to be kept in mind that
there are two aspects to strategic management: one involves the formulation of the strategy after
proper consideration of the various factors and the other has to do with the implementation of the
same so that the goals that have been defined by the management can be realized (Bergh et al.
2016). Therefore, implementation basically involves with the pragmatic aspects of the strategy. It
concerns with the proper allocation of the resources and the efficient management of the staff
members so that they can be aware of the goals of the organization and strive towards the
achievement of the same (Robson, 2015).
It also has to be understood that there are ways of conceiving a strategy. While on most common
terms, it is understood to be a plan which shall help in increasing the organization’s productivity
and performance in the long run, there are many alternative ways in which a strategy can be
looked at (Hill, 2017). For product based companies it can be a ploy that shall be used to outwit a
competitor. For educational institutions which concerns the present research proposal, it can be
the development of an educational structure that can enhance the professional skills of the
students (Michael, Storey and Thomas, 2017).
The development of a strategy is further characterized by the adoption of two methodologies
namely, strategic thinking and strategic planning. Strategic thinking is more abstract and
subjective in nature as it involves the thinking of the managers in innovative and unconventional
ways on order to devise better approaches at resource allocation and productivity (Hill, Jones and
Schilling, 2014). It requires creative faculties on the part of the managers so that they can come
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up with intelligent solutions to the problems that are at hand. Strategic planning on the other
hand is analytical in nature and as a consequence, there is little room for exercising creativity
(Rothaermel, 2015). It is more of a scientific process and comprises of formal procedures that aid
in finding out data and information that shall in turn help in strategic thinking.
Gaps in literature:
Establishment of higher education in the Sultanate of Oman is a relatively recent phenomenon.
The first university, Sultan Qaboos University was founded in 1986. Subsequently Muscat
University was formed in 2003 followed by A’Sharqiya University in 2010. Therefore, it can be
understood that these universities on account of their recent origin, shall require some time to
fully develop into an efficient and effective structure. Keeping in mind the need of quality
education in the present day for professional requirements the Ministry of Higher Education has
initiated a wide range of reforms within the educational structure of the country (Belwal, Al
Balushi, and Belwal, 2015). Strategic management was a part of the reform project that aimed
for the achievement of educational excellence. Strategic management shall greatly help in
developing an administrative system which shall focus on the formulation and the subsequent
implementation of long term goals keeping in mind the interests of the students and international
standards of education. However, there have been several problems relating to the efficient
implementation of the strategic management system in the educational institutions. For example,
because of the lack of experience of the universities, there is not any scope for the managements
to conduct research regarding the previous management processes in order to determine the
effective approaches towards education in the specific context of the Sultanate of Oman (Sallis,
2014). Therefore, it becomes quite risky for the management to devise completely new
approaches towards the furthering of education which shall have a high risk factor of failure.
Therefore, the management bodies of the universities have been a little ambivalent towards the
incorporation of completely new strategies (James, 2015). Therefore, the entire point behind the
implementation of strategic management fails its purpose. Therefore, a proper knowledge
foundation regarding the current system prevailing in Oman has to be created which shall
subsequently act as reference from which the current strategies can be formulated.
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Recommendations:
Regarding the context of the educational system of Oman several recommendations can be made
in order to improve the current system of strategic management. Oman’s universities have
always collaborated with other highly advanced foreign universities in United States and UK.
There should be attempts towards the initiation of dialogues with the management of those
universities for receiving technical assistance in the implementation of strategic management
(Lane-Kelso, 2016). There should also be recruitment of highly qualified and able decision
makers and managers who can take right steps at the right time.
An exclusive team of professionals shall be applied in order to form a research wing whose task
would be the collection and the analysis of relevant information that shall be helpful in the
devising of relevant strategies (Mohamed Emam, 2016). Apart from that, project managers shall
have to be employed who would integrate the functions of the various departments so that they
can work in a synchronous manner towards the attainment of common goals.
Furthermore, since the students shall have to receive quality education, their opinions and
perspectives shall also have to be taken into account. Therefore, the management should be able
to communicate with the students in order to receive insights about their needs and educational
requirements.
Conclusion:
It can thus be observed that the problem of the implementation of strategic management has
been approached from a holistic point of view. The research shall be constituted of both
quantitative and qualitative aspects. While the former shall concern with data, the latter shall aim
at deducing accurate inferences regarding the prevailing conditions of education. The gaps in the
current system have been highlighted in detail and it is hoped that the present project shall be
successful in addressing the problems and subsequently resolve them. The major concern shall
be to devise an appropriate strategy that is compatible with the present educational framework of
the Sultanate of Oman.
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References
Belwal, R., Al Balushi, H. and Belwal, S., 2015. Students’ perception of entrepreneurship and
enterprise education in Oman. Education+ Training, 57(8/9), pp.924-947.
Bergh, D.D., Aguinis, H., Heavey, C., Ketchen, D.J., Boyd, B.K., Su, P., Lau, C.L. and Joo, H.,
2016. Using meta analytic structural equation modeling to advance strategic management‐
research: Guidelines and an empirical illustration via the strategic leadership performance‐
relationship. Strategic Management Journal, 37(3), pp.477-497.
Hill, C.W., Jones, G.R. and Schilling, M.A., 2014. Strategic management: theory: an integrated
approach. Cengage Learning.
Hill, T., 2017. Manufacturing strategy: the strategic management of the manufacturing function.
Macmillan International Higher Education.
Ibe.unesco.org. (2018). National report on quality education in Oman. [online] Available at:
http://www.ibe.unesco.org/International/ICE47/English/Natreps/reports/oman_part_1.pdf
[Accessed 8 Nov. 2018].
James, R., 2015. Evaluation of critical thinking in higher education in Oman. International
Journal of Higher Education, 4(3), p.33.
Lane-Kelso, M., 2016. Fast-Tracking Technology Integration Toward Global Education in
Oman. In Fast forwarding Higher Education Institutions for Global Challenges pp. 1-10.
Springer, Singapore.
McCaffery, P., 2018. The higher education manager's handbook: effective leadership and
management in universities and colleges. Routledge.
Michael, S., Storey, D. and Thomas, H., 2017. Discovery and coordination in strategic
management and entrepreneurship. Strategic entrepreneurship: Creating a new mindset, pp.45-
65.
Mohamed Emam, M., 2016. Management of inclusive education in Oman: A framework for
Action. Support for Learning, 31(4), pp.296-312.
Morden, T., 2016. Principles of strategic management. Routledge.
Robson, W., 2015. Strategic management and information systems. Pearson Higher Ed.
Rothaermel, F.T., 2015. Strategic management. McGraw-Hill Education.
Sallis, E., 2014. Total quality management in education. Routledge.
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Appendix
Main
activities and
stages
Week 1 Week 2
to 9
Week 9
to 15
Week 15
to 20
Week
20 23
Week 23
to 25
Week 26
Selection of
the topic
★
Planning the
proper layout
★ ★
Reviewing
literature
★
Development
of research
plan
★
Selecting
research
technique
★ ★ ★
Gathering
primary data
★ ★
Data analysis ★ ★
Interpretation
of findings
★
Conclusion
preparation
★
Project rough
overdraft
★
9

Final
submission
★
10