In traditional business settings, organisational learning capability and total quality management are significant factors in pushing an innovation level. However, whether the same phenomenon will occur in higher educational institutions needs to be examined. The literature has different views on the success and applicability of Total Quality Management (TQM), organisational learning, and management innovation principles in Higher Education (HE). This article examines the crucial success aspects of TQM in private universities in Indonesia applying managerial innovation. Data was gathered by distributing questionnaires to 349 university faculty members. Factor Analysis was used to assess the construct commonalities, and multiple Regression Analysis was employed to examine the relationship among constructs. If HE adopts managerial innovation, training and learning, process management and benchmarking emerge as essential TQM success elements. It has been discovered that organisational learning, directly and indirectly, affects managerial innovation. This study highlights that organisational learning may strengthen and expand managerial innovation. Organisational learning is acquiring and enhancing new information and skills, enhancing an organisation's capacity for innovation.