Resource Dependency Model: Implications for Sustainable University Financing in South-South Geo-Political Zone

Abstract

This study examined Resource Dependency Model as a global business practice and its explicit implications for sustainable financing of universities. The population of the study was the 120 institutional managers, Deans of Faculties, Academic head and Directors in six universities in South–South, Nigeria. A self-designed instrument was administered to a pre-study group using test retest for data collection and calculated using Pearson product moment coefficient to establish a reliability of 0.81. Mean and Standard Deviation were used for the data analysis. Findings show that power dependency model could contribute to universities sustainable financing through commercialization of intellectual property, engagement of joint research with companies and endowments that can be reinvented and strengthened by management to significantly compensate for budgetary deficits. The study further revealed some other global business practices such as improving management capacity, quality of services, attracting business leaders’ support, creating supportive environment for business hatcheries that could be adopted by institutional leaders. Based on the findings of this study, it is recommended that the various organizational structures of universities be transformed into entrepreneurial universities adopting entrepreneurial management practices to boost their capacity to improve revenue sustainability as a resource dependence environment interface with universities would strengthen institutional capacity to finance enterprises and commercialize their intellectual property to entrepreneurs and governments.