Strategic Planning in Higher Education: Who Are the Customers

The Education Reform Act 1988 brought about a number of radical changes in the structure and funding of UK higher education institutions particularly within the “new university” and college sector. As a result,they now operate within a much greater competitive context and need therefore to incorporate a greater market orientation into their strategic planning process in order to acquire a competitive advantage over their rivals. Reports on exploratory research undertaken to assess the degree to which these higher education institutions are aware of the complexity of the student′s role and whether this complexity is considered in the development of an institutions mission statement. Assesses the degree to which institutions display an awareness of the various types of customer that need to be taken into consideration when formulating their strategic plans.