Factors influencing the working relationship between academics and administrative support staff : a case study at Durban University of Technology

Previous research on the working relationship between academic and administrative support staff has shown that this relationship is an important one which impacts on the academic environment at Higher Education Institutions which would include Durban University of Technology. The literature indicates the pertinent factors which appear to have an effect on this relationship such as how universities have changed significantly over the years, the power dynamics in HEIs, disciplining of administrative support staff, collaboration and staff workloads, tensions within HEIs and attitudes, motivation and job satisfaction. The purpose of this case study was therefore to determine the factors that influence the working relationship between these two sectors and the effect this has at DUT. This study used a mixed methods approach utilizing a questionnaire administered to academic and administrative support staff in two faculties at DUT. In addition, interviews were conducted with senior and middle management representatives of both administrative and academic staff. The results indicate that the majority of the academic staff believe that the administrative support staff are an integral part of any department and the administrative staff also feel strongly that the work they do in a department is important. Just under fifty percent of both the academic and administrative support staff respondents believe that the academic staff are cautious of the manner in which they treat administrative support staff in order to avoid any backlash or lack of assistance. Ninety four percent of the academic staff believed that academic staff appreciate the efforts and assistance of the administrative support staff in their departments while only fifty two percent of the administrative staff believed this to be the case. Individual comments by the administrative support staff indicated that they are not happy as they do not receive credit for the work they do and they are not acknowledged nor appreciated by the academic staff. The results also revealed that while two thirds of the academic staff respondents believed that the administrative support staff wield power in their departments, less than half of the administrative support staff respondents believed this. These findings point to the fact that the administrative support staff may be completely unaware of the power, albeit informal, they hold in their departments and indeed in the university. Following an in-depth analysis of the results, this study recommends that DUT Management introduces new titles for administrative support staff that do not include the term ‘non-academic’; that the Human Resources Department revise their Staff Induction Policy which appears to be old and outdated (DUT CHED: March 2007) and that more effective selection methods and interviewing techniques may possibly be utilized by the DUT Human Resources Department if they are not presently using them. This study further suggests that Management consider making better provision for administrative support staff to share more equally in study leave benefits and conference and workshop attendance; a further recommendation is that a new DUT policy for highly skilled and knowledgeable subject specialists such as in the IT field, be created and that workshops and teambuilding exercises be offered by faculties and departments for all staff members to attend as these could aid in further discussion of the relationship between the two sectors and hopefully improve on this. Finally, staff recognition for good work in the form of non-monetary rewards or simply a letter or certificate of recognition might also be considered.