DIGITAL ACADEMIC LEADERSHIP FOR CHINESE HIGHER EDUCATION

Abstract

This paper discusses the development of digital academic leadership for higher education innovation management in the digital age. It explains its concepts and theoretical foundations from the perspectives of educational administration, higher education administration, digital transformation, and innovation management. It also analyzes its role in strategic capability, organizational change, digital governance, and sustainable innovation management. The development of digital academic leadership shows several trends, such as the transformation of higher education leadership structures, stronger cross-cultural features, the transformation of digital governance systems, and the reorganization of academic administration and innovation management structures. In the development of digital academic leadership, Chinese higher education still faces problems such as the limitations of traditional academic leadership, digital fragmentation, organizational resistance, insufficient data sharing, and weak cross-departmental coordination. To improve digital academic leadership capacity, universities need to strengthen digital leadership training, improve digital governance systems, build an organizational culture that supports openness, cooperation, and exploration, and establish collaborative and data-informed innovation management systems. Digital academic leadership can support higher education governance modernization, improve organizational adaptability, promote evidence-based decision-making, and strengthen sustainable innovation development.