The blended professional: barriers and boundaries to collaborative institutional cultures

This chapter explores the recent experiences and reflections of a professional staff member combining professional and academic roles, and their attempts to navigate the barriers, or the potential “glass walls” that are encountered when crossing institutional boundaries, in the pursuit of collaborative cultures to deliver an excellent student experience. Reflecting on recent literature, the chapter argues that, whilst there has been a recognition of the changing roles within university structures for over 30 years, a more focused discussion has emerged from the research into the blurring of staffing boundaries by the third space professional, and the need to reduce and remove silos and divisions created by a perceived divide between academic and professional staff. It will explore how colleagues in different institutions can identify ways to collaborate and challenge potential structural barriers to increase opportunities to boundary span, in order to shape institutional culture toward excellent student experiences.