Transformation of higher education in innovation systems in China and Finland – 79 Chapter 4 Driving strategic development in Finnish universities: Refecting on two case study examples Vuokko Kohtamäki Introduction This paper focuses on the very topical subject of strategic management and deve- lopment in universities from a practical point of view. The area is deemed to have prominent connections to the fields of management, organisational and administra- tive studies. However, strategic management and strategic development are relatively new phenomena in the university context (e.g. Seidl, 2007). This is certainly the case also in Finnish higher education institutions. Thus far, the strategic management of Finnish universities has not been widely researched; only a few relevant studies can be found (e.g. Kasvio 1999; Lammi 2003; Mälkiä & Vakkuri 1999; Malkki 1999; 2002). Finnish universities are taking their first tentative in the new dynamic envi- ronment following the national university reform. This entails that the universities develop their strategic management and other management systems under totally different circumstances than in the collegially-oriented management cultures and structures of earlier days. The section entitled ‘Finnish university reform’ will briefly specify the main elements of the new management frameworks of the universities. The purpose of this paper is to explore the strategies of two Finnish universities by analysing the environmental factors identified by strategies of each university, the strategic priorities articulated by the universities in their strategy documents Published in Cai Y. & Kohtamäki V. (eds) Transformation of higher education in innovation systems in China and Finland (pp. 79-97). Tampere: Tampere University Press. ISBN 978-951-44-9269-3. 2014. http://urn.fi/URN:ISBN:978-951-44-9269-3