Key points:
- Technologies have profoundly impacted how people interact, learn, and advance
- The authors’ new book examines the dynamics of leadership in an increasingly globalized and mediated world
- See related article: How higher-ed leaders can move their institutions forward
Questions regarding the role of technology in our personal and professional lives are a common feature of contemporary life. In a recent letter signed by hundreds of AI scientists, researchers, and other industry leaders, experts warned that “mitigating the risk of extinction from AI should be a global priority alongside other societal-scale risks such as pandemics and nuclear war.”
This warning comes on the heels of the release of a new Surgeon General Advisory by United States Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy calling attention to the public health crisis of loneliness, isolation, and lack of connection in the United States. As the report highlights, “a variety of technologies have quickly and dramatically changed how we live, work, communicate, and socialize. These technologies include social media, smartphones, virtual reality, remote work, artificial intelligence, and assistive technologies.”
With this backdrop in mind, it seems appropriate to direct our attention to the broader set of implications for those engaged in leadership in an increasingly mediated world. For many leaders in higher education and across industries, the focus on leadership in digital contexts is far from new. For others, it is a topic that continues to grow in intensity and urgency, perhaps accelerated by the shift to more hybrid or remote ways of working in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The implications of these technologies for institutions of higher education are potentially profound. In a recently published special feature in the Chronicle of Higher Education, several thought leaders from across higher education offered perspective on the ways in which AI will change higher education, from “admissions to assessment, academic integrity to scholarly research, university operations to disappearing jobs.”
Ralph A. Gigliotti, Ph.D. is Assistant Vice President for Strategic Programs in the Office of University Strategy and Director of the Center for Organizational Leadership at Rutgers University, where he provides executive leadership for the portfolio of signature academic leadership programs, consultation services, and research initiatives. He holds part-time faculty appointments in the Department of Communication, Ph.D. Program in Higher Education, Rutgers Business School, and Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School. His research and consulting interests explore topics related to leadership, crisis, strategy, team dynamics, organizational communication, and training and development within the context of higher education. Ralph is author and editor of 10 books and 50 journal articles and book chapters.
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