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The purpose of this study is twofold: first, to gain insight into the direct effect of accreditation on motivation and higher education performance, and the direct effect of motivation on higher education performance. Second, to examine the indirect effect of accreditation on higher education performance through motivation in the university setting. The study uses a quantitative research approach and collects data from administrative managers at 105 Pakistani universities through face-to-face and online survey methods, and the said data is subsequently analyzed using PLS-SEM. The findings reveal that accreditation has a substantial effect on motivation and higher education performance, and motivation has a considerable effect on higher education performance. Also, accreditation has an indirect effect on higher education performance through motivation. The study contributes empirically by examining the effects of accreditation on motivation and higher education performance and broadens theoretical understanding by introducing motivation as a mediator related to accreditation and higher education performance. Policymakers, administrators, and quality managers can leverage the findings of this study by motivating their academic staff to effectively implement accreditation standards. Furthermore, operationalizing higher education performance through teaching, research, and service will assist policymakers in bringing excellence to their universities by emphasizing these three roles/missions equally.

The present study aims to examine how organizational performance has been operationalized in previous studies and to identify the most predominant areas of organizational performance in a global higher education context. The current study used two approaches: first, a PRISMA approach was applied for the systematic identification, screening, and selection of eligible articles; subsequently, eligible articles were reviewed to identify key areas and dimensions of organizational performance. Second, an affinity diagram was used to organize the resulting dimensions into various groups. The systematic review of the literature reveals how previous researchers have perceived organizational performance and further proposed 15 areas of organizational performance in the context of global higher education for the future direction of researchers. The study is restricted to 36 articles retrieved from four databases, including Scopus, Emerald Insight, ProQuest, and Google Scholar, from 2015 to 2022. This study contributes to current knowledge of higher education by revealing key areas for organizational performance; however, emerging areas need to be verified empirically before being generalized throughout the world. Keywords: higher education, higher education performance, organizational performance, university performance

PurposeThis study aims to examine the effect of accreditation on higher education performance, directly and indirectly, through the quality culture as a mediator in the context of higher education, based on the perceptions of administrative and quality managers.Design/methodology/approachThis is a quantitative study using stratified random sampling techniques to collect data through a nationwide survey of universities in Pakistan. Of the 150 questionnaires distributed, 105 are found to be valid, while the data are analyzed by partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM).FindingsThe results provide interesting insights, including significant effects of accreditation on quality culture and higher education performance, significant effects of quality culture on higher education performance and the mediating role of quality culture in relation to accreditation and higher education performance.Research limitations/implicationsLimitations of the study include a relatively smaller sample size and the selection of administrative managers as the sole respondents. This study extends the theoretical understanding by introducing several linkages, including the link between accreditation and higher education performance, accreditation and quality culture, and by introducing quality culture as a mediator. Furthermore, the study also provides empirical evidence for all proposed links in the university setting. This study has implications for administrative and quality managers, in terms of effectively implementing accreditation standards by cultivating a quality culture at their respective universities, resulting in improved university performance.Originality/valueThis study is the first to introduce quality culture as a mediator between accreditation and higher education performance and examines the effect of accreditation and quality culture on higher education performance in the university context. Also, the interdisciplinary nature of the study makes it relevant and interesting to administrative and quality managers in the fields of higher education and quality management.