Risk mitigation strategies in Latin American higher education institutions

Washington Guevara-Piedra; Carmen Gonzále-Zapatero; Javier González-Benito

doi:10.17561/ree.n2.2026.9638

Authors

Washington Guevara-Piedra Universidad Estatal de Milagro https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6391-1624
Carmen Gonzále-Zapatero Universidad de Salamanca
Javier González-Benito Universidad de Salamanca https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5317-9671

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.17561/ree.n2.2026.9638

Keywords:

gestión del riesgo, educación superior, universidad, mitigación del riesgo

Abstract

La adecuada gestión del riesgo resulta imprescindible para la supervivencia de cualquier organización. Las instituciones de educación superior no son una excepción. Sin embargo, a diferencia de otros sectores (por ejemplo, la manufactura), para los cuales se han recopilado y especificado parámetros claros de gestión del riesgo (por ejemplo, factores de riesgo, dimensiones del riesgo y estrategias de mitigación del riesgo), no existen marcos conceptuales claros para analizar la gestión del riesgo en el ámbito de la gestión universitaria. Las particularidades de la gestión universitaria dificultan extrapolar las conclusiones alcanzadas en otros contextos, lo que pone de manifiesto la necesidad de generar marcos conceptuales que identifiquen parámetros relevantes y revelen las relaciones entre ellos. En la consecución de estos objetivos, el presente estudio identifica y clasifica los riesgos potenciales según los tres principales procesos de la actividad universitaria (es decir, docencia, investigación y transferencia de conocimiento), así como diferentes prácticas de gestión orientadas a mitigar dichos riesgos. Un análisis empírico del efecto de estas prácticas sobre la reducción del riesgo permite, a su vez, identificar las opciones más eficaces.

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Author Biographies

Washington Guevara-Piedra, Universidad Estatal de Milagro

Washington Guevara Piedra is the Vice Chancellor of the Universidad Estatal de Milagro (UNEMI) in Ecuador. He is an experienced academic leader with a strong background in higher education management and institutional development. He has been instrumental in fostering academic innovation and research initiatives at UNEMI. His research interests include educational policies, strategic management, risk management and quality assurance in higher education. He has participated in national and international conferences and collaborated with various academic institutions to promote research and development. Prior to his current role, he held several leadership positions at UNEMI, contributing to its growth and recognition as a leading institution in the region.
Javier González-Benito, Universidad de Salamanca

Dr Javier Gonzalez-Benito is a Professor in Management in the University of Salamanca, and member of its Multidisciplinary Research Institute (IME). His research focuses on operations management and environmental issues and he has published in journals such as the Journal of Operations Management, Journal of Management, International Journal of Production Research, Ecological Economics, British Journal of Management, International Journal of Operations and Production Management, or International Journal of Production Economics.

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