Strategic management of marketing and human resources in further education colleges

The business environment facing UK colleges of further education has changed substantially over the past decade. Public accountability has increased and competitive pressures within the sector have grown enormously. These changes make it imperative that human resources are deployed to maximum effect and that colleges learn how to implement effective marketing strategies. In this paper it is argued that for an organisation delivering a complex service such as tertiary education, marketing and human resource strategies are inextricably linked. Conceptual models from the marketing and human resource management literature are examined in the context of three in-depth case studies of colleges in a highly competitive urban location. Recommendations are made for the effective integration of marketing and human resource strategies.