Abstract:

Globalization and the Industrial Revolution 4.0 have profound implications for many aspects of life, including leadership and education. The function of higher education institutions in fostering high-quality talent to ensure sustainable economic growth in the country is crucial. Private Higher Education (PHE) is one of the rapidly growing sectors in higher education of emerging countries. Sustaining the performance of PHE institutions is a critical agenda among leaders in these institutions as they manage stiff competition and ride the wave of digitalization.

Empirical evidence indicated that leadership significantly impacted organizational performance. Recent research in leadership has evolved rapidly due to technology evolution, institutional and geopolitical changes. Adopting the methodology of Systematic Literature Review, this paper synthesized previous research related to leadership in education in the past decade.

Results show several literature gaps and uncover elements of leadership being examined in previous studies. Subsequently, dimensions related to the context of PHE are identified and discussed. This paper then developed a holistic framework of digital leadership incorporating the interplay of three key elements found to significantly influence sustainable performance of PHE institutions. Specifically, the roles of global vision leadership, digital-age learning culture, and digital citizenship are justified as fundamentals of leading PHE institutions towards sustainable performance in today’s digital age.

Leaders of higher education should take full responsibility and expertise from potential opportunities in Industrial Revolution 4.0 by providing their institutions with sustainable digital leadership. Strong and competent leadership is required to ensure the long-term viability of e-learning in higher education institutions. When the institution’s vision is clear, effective leadership will inspire and motivate the academic community to develop in accordance with that vision. When an individual receives leadership training, their ability to function in leadership roles within the organization will be enhanced. A leader's entrepreneurial mindset, creative use of technological devices and risk taking have a tremendous impact on organizational performance. Furthermore, education leaders must have the skills and information necessary to lead all stakeholders to implement the new millennium way of learning, as well as a learning method to empower students with 21st century skill, experience, and knowledge. In addition, today’s leaders need to drive the organization to understand the social, ethical, and legal concerns and responsibilities as it embarks into digital culture.

In conclusion, the holistic digital leadership model discussed in this paper will guide players in the higher education industry to assess and strategically implement effective leadership. Consequently, this provides dynamic capabilities to the institutions towards sustainable performance in Education 5.0 Era.

Keywords:

Digital Leadership, Higher Education Institutions, Emerging Market, Conceptual paper.