Work groups, focus groups and group effectiveness in self-study processes and continuous improvement of the HEO

Abstract

Working groups that evaluate institutional performance are constant and key elements in Higher Education Organizations. This research report presents, first of all, a theoretical review on the notion of working group, paying attention to factors that intervene in group effectiveness. Subsequently, the case study of the Universidad Motolinía del Pedregal (UMP) is presented, along with its self-study for the Accreditation of Federation of Mexican Private Higher Education Institutions (FIMPES), based on the available documentation and interviews with the actors involved. It is concluded that, given the working subgroups difficulty to coordinate between themselves, internal processes improve when there are actors working on mediation, communication and streamlining the information exchange.