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I historically compare changes in institutional frameworks creating academic positions linked to temporary employment by analyzing university employment statistics in Chile, Colombia, Germany, and the USA. I find that temporary academic positions were institutionalized through the creation of previously inexistent academic categories called a contrata in Chile, de cátedra in Colombia, “junior professor” without tenure in Germany and “postdoc” in the USA; used in higher education and employment laws since 1989, 1992, 2002, and 1974, respectively. Under institutional frameworks demanding the maximization of students and research, universities have increasingly contracted academics through temporary contracts under rationales that differ between regions. In Colombia and Chile, public university leaders and owners of private universities contract such teaching positions to expand student numbers through lowering costs. In Germany and the USA, employment insecurity is mostly driven by temporary scientific positions under a main rationale of scientific expansion. The share of temporary positions has increased exponentially in Colombia and Germany in recent decades, whereas in the USA there has only been an increase since 2012. Moreover, in Chile, the share of permanent positions has decreased since 2012. The common trend is one of isomorphism of vertical academic structures sharing a pyramidal form, with a wide base of academics working under conditions of contractual insecurity. Such trends follow a rationale for maximization of student numbers as well as administration, and scientific production that is in tension with prioritizing wellbeing and improvement of academics’ working conditions. Yet, in these environments, the institution of tenure in the USA and recent Chilean regulations on accreditation represent mechanisms counteracting precarious employment.

Municipalities have the potential to become models of the circular economy (CE). This paper aims to examine the impact of the municipal council’s characteristics on municipal CE disclosure and promotion.

This paper is based on the resource dependence and upper echelons theories. For a sample of the 100 largest cities in Canada, a mixed methodology is used to code and analyze data and test the hypotheses.

Municipal councillors’ education and experience related to the environment or sustainability are both likely to affect CE disclosure, and their sector membership (public or private) moderates the relationship between CE disclosure and councillors’ experience. This experience may be reinforced by membership in the private sector, which has applied CE principles more extensively than the public sector has. Municipal councils with a greater number of councillors from the private sector appear to perform better in matters of transparency and to disclose more CE information on their public websites.

Municipalities could use the findings to foster their transition to CE by implementing a CE-related training plan for their councillors. A CE-dedicated section on their websites could improve transparency and inform and educate residents about CE.

The public sector could learn from the private sector’s best practices regarding CE.

This paper contributes to the literature by providing empirical evidence of the transparency and engagement of municipalities toward CE. The authors extend the resource dependence and upper echelons theories to a new context, that of public organizations.

This paper aims to identify the factors affecting the implementation of Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) in the education sector.

Based on Scopus and adopting the protocol of Staples and Niazi (2007), this systematic literature review examined 21 articles on PPPs in the education sector. Content analysis is adopted to identify research gaps and provide information on critical issues in the cases.

The findings have identified the critical success factors of PPPs in the education sector in 12 countries, revealing varying degrees of success and implementation challenges. They reflect the importance of clear objectives, effective communication, and robust partnerships between the public and private sectors to achieve success. These insights contribute to an in-depth understanding of PPP implementation in education, which can guide future projects.

The critical success factors identified in PPPs implementation in education across various countries may provide a comprehensive worldwide perspective for researchers, practitioners and policymakers.

This chapter examines the internationalisation of public higher education in Brazil using the theoretical triptych of internationalisation as developed by leading scholars in the field: internationalisation at home (IaH), internationalisation abroad (IA), and internationalisation at a distance (IaD). This framework – while rooted in knowledge, systems, and scholarship from researchers and institutions in the Global North – is a constructive tool for categorising and understanding internationalisation at Brazil’s higher education institutions (HEIs) when coupled with an exploration of the history, context, policy, and dynamics of internationalisation efforts. The chapter then summarises and underscores recent and important scholarship by Brazilian researchers and others in the Global South that describes the history of the nation’s internationalisation efforts. It also critiques the powerful influence that Global North-centred objectives and priorities for internationalisation have on the process at Brazilian HEIs. Following a discussion of the theoretical framework and relevant literature, the chapter provides a case study of internationalisation efforts and initiatives of an elite public university, the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (UFMG). Content analysis of UFMG’s website and publicly available reports and data demonstrates a high level of institutional internationalisation that has unfolded in recent years, stimulated by federal funding and guided by a strategic framework developed within the Ministry of Education. An analysis of UFMG’s mission, partnerships and programmes finds that the institution serves as an example of internationalisation in Brazil’s public higher education context, as its programmes and initiatives exemplify the overarching objectives of internationalisation in Brazilian higher education.

This study aimed to determine the impact of Business Intelligence (BI) applications on accounting department contributions to the development and quality assurance of university accounting education in Jordan. A questionnaire was given to accounting faculty members in 25 universities, and the results showed that BI applications had a significant effect on the development and quality assurance of university accounting education. Private universities had a greater impact than public universities. Recommendations of this study include improving awareness of BI applications, focusing on decision support systems in private universities and risk analysis in public universities, and promoting cooperation between public and private universities to achieve excellence in an increasingly competitive global environment.

After the decision of the Egyptian government to adhere to the Equal Pay International Coalition in 2020, a great deal needs to be done to guarantee ‘equal pay for equal work’. The authors provide a comprehensive, in-depth, up-to-date analysis of the gender wage gap in Egypt, as well as its evolution over the last 20 years, disaggregated by public and private sector. The authors also provide an analysis of the cultural determinants of Egypt's low female participation.

The authors apply the Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition (with sample selection) to assess the gender wage gap at the mean of the wage distribution in the public and private sector. The authors also implement a re-centred influence function decomposition to assess the extent of ‘discrimination’ along the wage distribution in both sectors. An inverse-probability-weighted regression adjustment procedure is used to assess the joint impact of gender and firm-ownership. A female participation equation taking into account gender equality attitude is provided.

The authors find a sizable and increasing gender wage gap in the private sector almost entirely due to ‘discrimination’. The authors also find evidence of a sticky floor in the private sector and a glass ceiling in the public one. Cultural barriers play a major role in determining female participation.

This is the first paper on the evolution of gender equality in Egypt that takes into account the effect of the 'Arab Spring’ of 2011. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is also the first time that an IPWRA procedure is applied to study the interaction effect of gender and firm-ownership.

This chapter provides an in-depth examination of the quality assurance process in the higher education system of Iraq and the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) in terms of standards, processes, and procedures. More specifically, the chapter aims to examine the impact of the quality assurance process on the quality development of education in Iraq and Kurdistan Region, as well as identify the challenges that staff (top management and faculty members) face at various higher education institutions therein. For this purpose, a qualitative/quantitative analysis was conducted, which involved reviewing existing official policies, reports, and forms; interviewing top officials (presidents, vice-presidents, quality assurance directors) at a few higher education institutions (public and private); and developing a survey questionnaire that detected the perspective of top officials and faculty members regarding the level of impact quality assurance has had on the development of higher education. A total of 284 university staff members were surveyed from different universities in Iraq and Kurdistan. A total of 29 universities from Iraq and Kurdistan were represented in the survey. The respondents came from a variety of colleges and departments at public and private universities, with 79% of respondents coming from public universities. Study results demonstrate that quality assurance has contributed significantly to the improvement of university staff performance. There are a number of recommendations made within this chapter for educational leaders, which could lead to the further development of quality practices and the upgrading of the higher education system.

Digital technology has been widely applied in zakat collection. Millennials, who are now dominating the productive phase and at their peak carrier path, are the potential target for zakat collection as their number reached 31.3% of the Indonesian population. On the other hand, public and private zakat institutions have attempted to optimize the country’s zakat potential, reaching 233.6tn rupiahs, through development of a digital platform for zakat collection. However, the gap between the actual collection of zakat with its potential is still large. This study aims to analyse the factors affecting millennials in paying zakat through direct payment or through digital platform of private or public zakat institutions.

Multinomial logistic regression method, which signifies the contribution of this study, is used to analyse factors influencing millennials in their zakat payment. In addition, cross-tabulation is used to classify the characteristics of respondents. Respondents are selected conveniently through a digital questionnaire distributed in February–March 2021. Respondents are also selected purposively based on their experience in paying zakat through direct, private or public zakat institutions, which are consisted of 50 respondents per each category; thus, the total becomes 150 respondents.

Based on the results, three variables, namely, education, accessibility and age, are found to have a significant influence on zakat payment through online platforms provided by private zakat institutions. Meanwhile, variables that influence zakat payment through online platforms provided by public zakat institutions are education, accessibility and income. This study also finds that millennials have the highest probability to select online platforms provided by private zakat institutions as a channel of their zakat payment. However, the overall result shows that millennials tend to pay directly to the mustahik (zakat recipients) rather than via online platforms, presumably because of their limited zakat literacy.

The purposive sampling technique used to determine the research samples limits the generalization of the study.

This paper establishes a new approach in analysing millennials preference in their zakat payment with digital inclusiveness. The use of a multinomial logistic approach, which has not been widely applied in such research, strengthens the analysis that is relevant to the need of both private and public zakat institutions to analyse determinants of millennials in paying their zakat through online platform. This study can be used as a reference to formulate a more effective marketing strategy for zakat collection. This paper also serves as an estimate of the preference with some selected typical characteristics of millennials by using a multinomial logistic approach.

Formal payment through the zakat institution theoretically is more preferable than direct payment to mustahik (zakat recipients) in the zakat campaign. However, based on this research, despite digital marketing and platforms having been well-used by both private and public zakat institutions, the millennials still prefer direct zakat payment than through online platforms. The findings of this research suggest the importance of strengthening zakat literacy through a more effective digital marketing strategy of zakat institutions which target the millennials.

This study fills the gap in the literature on how millennials choose their zakat payment method, whether through digital platforms developed by private and public zakat institutions or directly to the targeted zakat recipients. The use of multinomial logistic regression approach adds the novelty of this research.

Integrating e-learning into higher education institutions (HEIs) is a complex process. Several universities had tried to impart learning online, especially amid the spread of COVID-19. However, they failed miserably due to the many barriers to online learning platforms’ delivery and acceptance. This study aims to explore the barriers and facilitators in adopting e-learning in HEIs of Pakistan by taking the perspective of key stakeholders involved in the management and administration of HEIs.

The authors recruited participants using purposive and snowball sampling. Interviews were conducted from a variety of participants, including academicians, administrators and information technology (IT) personnel. Data recorded was transcribed into verbatim and then analyzed using thematic analysis.

The analysis identified barriers and facilitators to the e-learning implementation. Barriers included lack of resources and training, lack of infrastructure, inadequate e-learning policies, absence of positive mindset among teachers and students and reservations and concerns about e-learning of parents and teachers. By contrast, facilitators included prior training and awareness (provided by HEIs regarding e-learning), the assistance of government and regulatory bodies (in terms of policy and training on e-learning), the role of IT (in development and implementation of online learning system) and good computer knowledge and skills of students and faculty. Moreover, respondents believed that teaching subjects online requires the availability of proper and complete gadgets, but these were hardly available due to high demand. Finally, the academicians and administrators believed that e-learning is indispensable in health emergencies such as COVID-19 and similar events ahead.

For the HEIs to sustain and grow, the adoption of e-learning is fundamental. Therefore, the government should provide the essential infrastructure for the HEIs to deploy e-learning modules, train faculty and ensure the availability of necessary equipment (e.g. network) and gadgets to faculty and students. From a theoretical perspective, the study provides a framework for similar future studies in other emerging markets, whereas practical implications of the study can assist the governments and HEIs of emerging markets in implementing the e-learning modes of education in times of health emergencies, such as COVID-19.

The rapid adoption of social media has resulted in a fundamental shift in the way communication and collaboration take place. While social media is recognized as an important marketing communication tool, it has become overlooked how social media marketing activities (user-generated and firm-generated content) influence brand equity creation in the higher education sector. Drawing from social identity theory, this study identifies how higher education institutions develop customer-based brand equity using social media marketing and social brand engagement, taking cross-comparison between high and low subjective norms.

A survey was used to collect data from a sample of 936 undergraduates of private higher education institutions in Sri Lanka and Vietnam. These data were gathered using purposive sampling, and in testing the hypothesis and structure among the variables, structural equation modeling was used to determine the relationship between the study variables.

For the conceptual framework, the authors found that the structural equation model complies with the empirical data. The structural equation model shows that social brand engagement mediates the relationship between user-generated content, firm-generated content and brand equity. Further, the subjective norms were found to moderate the relationship between user-generated content, firm-generated content and social brand engagement, highlighting that the lower the subjective norms the higher the influence on social brand engagement as students receive low pressure and influence from external parties.

The study was conducted at private higher education institutes in Sri Lanka and Vietnam. Future research could benefit from the perceptions of undergraduates in public higher education institutes. Future researchers could widen the diversity of service settings in the sample and replicate this investigation to discover if the results are consistent across the whole services sector.

The current research contributes to the services marketing and branding literature in the higher education context. The paper presents the crucial elements in building brand equity for higher education institutes to fill the existing gaps in higher education branding literature. The findings of the current study provide strategies to improve the higher education sector.