Investing in People: Advancing the Professional Development of University Teachers

Chinese universities commonly face structural imbalances in resource allocation, as institutional funding tends to prioritize physical infrastructure over human capital investment. This hardware-biased allocation pattern undermines faculty development and impedes the high-quality and sustainable development of higher education. Based on human capital theory and the capability approach, this paper defines the concept of "investing in people" in the university context with two core dimensions: professional competency training and holistic developmental empowerment. This study clarifies the interactive relationship between physical and human resource investment and challenges the prevalent zero-sum game assumption in resource governance. It argues that the two types of investment complement and reinforce each other. This paper suggests that universities should establish a people-centered and balanced investment system to support teachers' full-cycle professional development.