Abstract:
Globally, higher education institutions (HEIs) have continued to record varied sustainable
development (SD) implementation performances. This variance has been attributed to the presence
of certain organisational factors. Whereas previous studies have successfully identified the factors
influencing SD implementation performance in HEIs, few studies have attempted to explore the
relationship between these factors and the influence of such a relationship on the management
of SD implementation in HEIs. This is the objective of this study. Understandably, knowledge
of such relationships will facilitate the development of appropriate frameworks for managing SD
implementation in HEIs. Relying on a case study of a South African University of Technology (SAUoT),
this study elicits data through a focus group discussion session. An interpretative structural modelling
(ISM) focus group protocol indicating extant pair-wise relationships between identified organisational
factor categories was extensively discussed. The emergent data was recorded, transcribed verbatim
and subsequently analysed. The findings suggest that communication was critical to the prevalence
of other factors, hence indicating its centrality to the e ective management of SD implementation
in HEIs. These findings will guide implementing agents in HEIs towards developing appropriate
mechanisms for communicating SD implementation strategies.
