To build new and better higher education systems, it is vital to consider all aspects of systems in the recent past. Measures should be taken to identify and address deficiencies, of which academic isolation and the prevalence of a silo mentality is a prominent example. The central question of this paper to be answered is how to effectively combat…

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has taught everyone that long-term planning and execution, which have always been taken for granted, are not a given. In many contexts, stagnation was the initial outcome of hard lockdowns. As international travel ground to a halt, the lack of mobility seriously hampered scholarly personal interaction as an essential…

Physical distancing, isolation and an absence of face-to-face meetings with participants and respondents, as ramifications of the current COVID-19 pandemic, have an adverse effect on research projects, research processes and data generation. Furthermore, researchers' professional development and career prospects are seriously hampered, most…

An increase in research productivity is of vital importance in the development of countries worldwide. However, when research outputs are measured, many higher education faculties neither meet the expectations regarding quality nor quantity despite the increasing drive towards publications. This paper examines how academic managers can reform a…