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Purpose – Leadership in educational settings has been established as a key factor that impacts student learning outcomes, consequently it is important to understand how academic leadership is conceptualised and enacted. The paper aims to discuss this issue. Design/methodology/approach – This qualitative study investigated the nature and demands of academic leadership in the New Zealand polytechnic sector by analysing documentary evidence and investigating the perceptions held of the role by 15 academic leaders in four institutions who were interviewed. Findings – Findings of the study highlight the four roles of organisational leadership, curriculum leadership, academic management and academic currency. Participants confirmed that they struggle with ambiguity and tensions. The importance of teams, collaboration and communication are established and the study concludes that an understanding of role complexity to reduce ambiguity and provision of support to perform the role should be key institutional concerns. Originality/value – This is one of very few research studies into conceptualising and researching the enactment of academic leadership in a polytechnic setting. The findings could impact the design of future leadership development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose -- The paper aims to empirically investigate the effectiveness of the entrepreneurship curriculum delivered in Malaysian polytechnics. Design/methodology/approach -- The data were collected through survey questionnaires, in-depth interviews, document reviews and focus group discussions. The respondents were drawn from Malaysian polytechnics -- training director, centre managers, entrepreneurship instructors in the centre, and polytechnic students who were purposively selected. Findings -- The study identifies that the entrepreneurship curriculum in polytechnics is not effective. Students are not imbued with entrepreneurial knowledge, skills and attributes during their study. Teaching approaches appear to be inappropriate and polytechnic lecturers do not appear to have relevant entrepreneurial skills, knowledge or training. Research limitations/implications -- The sample size was small to be wholly reliable for generalising the findings to a similar problem in other higher learning institutions. However, the insights gained are a crucial basis for further research and give some variables to be investigated on their significance in shaping entrepreneurship education, especially in a developing country like Malaysia. Practical implications -- The findings provide valuable insights for institutional, educators, and policy makers. Stakeholders could use this study to revisit the existing education system and to improve the teaching methodologies in the area of entrepreneurship education in the higher learning institutions. Originality/value -- This is one of the first comprehensive studies to explore how entrepreneurship education is delivered within Malaysian polytechnics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]