Political competence and its applications within universities

Being political is a term of opprobrium in many organisational settings, including universities, and is often associated with deviousness, manipulative behaviour and the pursuit of personal agendas. However, political competence is not the same as 'being political' - rather, it comprises skills and attributes which are integral to the achievement of organisational outcomes. This paper argues the importance of political competence as an attribute for university staff engaged in responding to and managing the challenges of competition and diversity, and explores why this might be so. The paper discusses definitions of political competence drawn largely from management and political science literature, and how these might be relevant to the work of university staff, with reference to the factors shaping Australian higher education. It focuses firstly on the relevance of political competence to effective engagement with external stakeholders, and secondly as a tool for building strong management and administrative functions within universities. It goes on to offer some suggestions as to how we might develop and apply political competence in university settings