The Evolution of a Stakeholder Model for DIT as it Enters a Merger of Three Institutes of Technology in Terms of Policy Definition and Control of Implementation
As the Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT) prepares to amalgamate with the Institute of Technology Blanchardstown (ITB) and Institute of Technology Tallaght (ITT) in advance of becoming a technical university, we present a comparison of stakeholder research from 2008 and 2016, questioning how DIT might become better able to respond to the radically changing environment it faces. Using the McNay Model and Fourth Generation Evaluation, we consider the views of two groups of DIT stakeholders on the best model for change. In both years, it was felt that the entrepreneurial university model from the USA was unlikely to be successful, largely because of DIT’s inability to raise sufficient funding. A corporate model was also rejected at both times and it was concluded that a European style of university incorporating collegial innovation was most appropriate. What was perceived as excessive bureaucracy in 2008 was considered to have increased by 2016 and current stakeholders fear that the culture of bureaucracy will survive beyond the merger, hampering progress and stifling innovation. We find the stakeholder is less convinced that change will happen on a large enough scale and at a fast enough pace for the Institute to survive into the 21st century
