Digital competencies of university transformation project teams from different countries

Abstract

At the moment, many authors are exploring the issues of digitalization of universities and the need to develop digital competencies. The importance of transferring project activities to a digital platform is also actively discussed. However, the problem of the lack of sound digital competencies for university transformation project teams is relevant and has not yet been fully resolved in many countries. In accordance with this, the purpose of the research presented in the article was to identify a set of digital competencies that are most important for the implementation of transformation projects of universities in different countries. The scientific hypothesis tested in the course of the research sounds like an assumption that a certain set of digital competencies of team members is required for the success of transformation projects and their significance in the overall structure of competencies is high. The conclusion hypothesis was the statement that digital tools and the corresponding digital competencies are currently being used insufficiently by universities. The study was conducted in 2021-2022 in two stages using semi-structured interview and questionnaire methods. The questionnaire survey was conducted in four countries — Russia, Georgia, Serbia, and Iran. The survey covered 203 experts — representatives of universities in these countries with extensive experience in project activities. Interviews were conducted with 116 representatives of the administrative and managerial staff of five major universities in Russia. The main results were: firstly, the influence of competencies on the success of university transformation projects was confirmed; secondly, the high importance of digital competencies in the structure of other groups of competencies required for teams of university transformation projects is revealed; thirdly, facts are presented that indicate that digital competencies are used, but to an insufficiently high degree. These results have scientific novelty, as they contribute to the development of the concept of competence approach, clarifying digital competencies, as well as the development of project management, clarifying the requirements for the qualitative parameters of project teams in the context of digitalization of universities. The practical significance of the study is that universities receive information about the directions of development of digital competencies of transformation project teams.