Abstract/Summary

This study examined the managerial roles of presidents at the tertiary level within the province of Ontario, Canada in an effort to understand the importance of their position at the apex of their educational institutions, as well as, reveal and substantiate the challenges faced by them within the context of the twenty-first century. In particular, the study aimed to identify the extent to which the new public management ideologies, that impacted over the past decade the area of higher education, influenced their managerial roles. Determining how college Presidents understand their role, particularly how they act in that role, is extremely important since there is evidence that they contribute significantly to the achievement of strategic goals of the colleges. Moreover, there are reasons to believe that the findings of this study will help the Board of Governors in making hiring decisions in the future, as well as, determine if particular training is required for the candidates chosen for such position. Central to this study was the Role Theory. The research model used was based on Mintzberg’s taxonomy of managerial roles. The study used a mixed research methodology for providing answers to the proposed research questions. According to the findings of this study, it can be concluded that the job of postsecondary college presidents has changed in the past two decades or so, to become more managerial in nature.