DEVELOPMENT OF A STRATEGIC FORESIGHT FRAMEWORK FOR CONTINUOUS PROFESSIONAL TRAINING FOR RESEARCH, INNOVATION, AND SERVICE EXTENSION (RISE)

Abstract

Higher education institutions are increasingly challenged to strengthen research, innovation, and service extension amid rapid technological, societal, and policy changes, highlighting the need for future-oriented professional development. This study aimed to develop a Strategic Foresight Framework for Continuous Professional Training in Research, Innovation, and Service Extension (RISE) through a qualitative grounded theory approach. Thirty-five participants comprising faculty members, researchers, extension practitioners, and academic administrators were purposively selected from higher education institutions. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions, document analysis, and field observations and analyzed using the constant comparative method involving open, axial, and selective coding. The findings revealed four interrelated themes: (1) Navigating Professional Growth Amid Emerging Institutional and Societal Demands; (2) Strategic Foresight as a Catalyst for Future-Ready Professional Practice; (3) Building Sustainable Professional Training through Collaborative and Adaptive Systems; and (4) the Emergence of the Strategic Foresight-Driven Continuous Professional Training Theory. The substantive theory explains that sustainable professional capacity develops through four interconnected processes: environmental intelligence, strategic capacity building, collaborative knowledge integration, and adaptive institutional transformation, supported by strategic foresight as the core organizational capability. These processes informed the development of the proposed Strategic Foresight Framework for Continuous Professional Training in Research, Innovation, and Service Extension (RISE), which provides an evidence-based guide for designing future-oriented professional development policies and institutional capacity-building initiatives. The study contributes to the literature by advancing a grounded theoretical framework that integrates strategic foresight with continuous professional learning, organizational resilience, and institutional transformation, offering practical implications for higher education institutions seeking to strengthen research productivity, innovation performance, extension effectiveness, and long-term sustainability.