The paper analyses the professional development of the academic staff in higher education institutions in Latvia over the last decade. Characterising the history, trends and challenges of the professional development of the academic staff in Latvia in the context of the Bologna process, normative documents of the European and national level pertaining to higher education have been analysed. The paper reveals the framework in the experience of the universities in the implementation of the professional development of the academic staff in Latvia as well as formulates the challenges faced by the academic staff in their professional activity, and the necessary transformations. The experience of institutionalising the professional development of the academic staff in the case of the University of Latvia has been analyzed in detail.