This work-in-progress report discusses Australia’s autonomous schooling policies and their effects on school leadership, business management and governance. In particular, it focuses on new imperatives for education business leadership, as school leaders face new demands, expectations and accountabilities around business stewardship. The research interrogates the rationale for school autonomy policies and the outcomes policymakers are hoping to achieve. It explores stricter risk management regulations, audit and compliance measures. These have been instigated as school autonomy policies have placed education business competency in the spotlight. While this qualitative research has an Australiawide focus, this work-in-progress report focuses on the first stage of the project that focuses on school autonomy activities adopted in Western Australia and the effects on School Business Managers/Officials. The report discusses the major themes emerging from the research to date and records future research plans.

Published in: Canada International Conference on Education, 2017

• Date of Conference: 26-29 June, 2017
• DOI: 10.2053/CICE.2017.0234
• Electronic ISBN: 978-1-908320-83-4
• Conference Location: University of Toronto Mississauga, Canada