Statistically, the challenge of maintaining a national cadre of effective academic administrators is a daunting one. There are over 4,000 universities and colleges in the United States, each equipped with an array of leaders stretching from department chair to chancellor/president. If, as articles in the Times Higher Education and ACAD Leader report, the average length of service of each is an estimated 4 to 5 years, it follows that hundreds of newly-appointed leaders, mostly drawn from the academic ranks, will hit the ground running every year. Despite the valiant efforts of groups like HERS, CIC (and, of course, ACAD) in helping develop leaders within academic administration as a “second discipline,” many will have little or no training, preparation or even understanding of the challenges to come. This is not a recipe for widespread success.
I served in academic administration for 44 years, 29 of them as dean, and have seen generations of fellow leaders come and go. Some were outstanding, some adequate and others doomed from the start to failure and breathtakingly short tenures. Collectively their performance has revealed certain traits (and flaws) which helped to ensure their success or sealed their fate.
On reflection, none of the key components of successful leadership suggested here seem particularly profound; They are all basic, commonsense observations that underlie everyday actions and promote long-term strategic planning. Based upon my experience, I offer ten basic tips that I believe can help to build a solid foundation for any new academic leader embarking on a potentially rewarding but challenging career transition—not really a route map, but a broad set of principles to reflect upon when trying to embrace the essence of effective leadership.
1. Think BIG
As soon as you start your administrative role, you are likely to be inundated with minutiae—paperwork, reports, appointments and committee meetings to name a few. If you are not careful, these routine activities will fill every minute of your working day and beyond. While they probably have to be dealt with at some point, they are not the priority of good leadership. Right from the start, you have to take time to see the Big Picture. Focus on the important, long-range goals. Wherever possible, filter out the less urgent details, the “yes, buts” and the messy, time-consuming difficulties, and keep your eyes on the horizon. If not, you will quickly get immersed in specifics that clutter and confuse the development of a clear vision. Carve out time during your day (or at least your week) to concentrate on broader issues to avoid drowning in a sea of paperwork, which no one will ever thank you for doing. After all, paperwork and related routine tasks are only a means to an end, not the desired end result itself.
2. Talk Straight
Someone once said: “Sincerity is the key to good leadership — if you can fake that, you’re in.”
This is not necessarily the sagest advice, as the bumpy progress of many a politician has shown. However, every day as an academic leader, you will talk to many people, often on the same subject. If you spin a different story to one and not the other for the sake of expediency, popularity, or a quiet life, you will be caught out, maybe not immediately. But when you are discovered, your credibility goes out of the window, and you may never get it back.
Tell the truth at all times. But be economical with it — everyone doesn’t need to know everything. Be direct and consistently honest, even if it may be uncomfortable at times. In the long run, it’s better to be known as a trusted and honest leader whose words have credibility and consistency than as an unreliable dissembler.
3. Then Simplify Again
There are endless complications, nuances, and complexities in everyday administration. Once you’ve cleared the noise to give you a chance to Think Big, don’t blow it by Talking Gibberish. Reduce your message to manageable concepts—short sentences, clear examples, minimal jargon and appropriate metaphors—and repeat as often as possible. Eschew obfuscation—in fact, never use terms like “eschew obfuscation.” Alter the tone and length depending on the audience, but keep it simple, and only elaborate when asked.
4. Borrow Freely
Very little is new in academic administration. A lot of very smart people have come before us, and they’ve tried just about everything. Don’t reinvent the wheel. Find out what others have done and shamelessly appropriate the ideas, adapting them as necessary. My colleagues and I have been pilfering each other’s ideas for years—the phrase “bubonic plagiarist” has been used on more than one occasion—and we usually improve upon each other’s performance. Give attribution generously, but adopt, adapt and improve liberally (for example, this catchy, apposite mantra is actually the motto of Round Table International, but it makes the point better than I could).
5. Make Sense of it All
Semesters begin with a bang, hurtle at breakneck speed through final examinations and end abruptly at graduation in December and May. Despite everyone’s best efforts, progress towards programmatic goals and even a clear awareness of the program’s evolving identity may be unclear or unfamiliar to the players in the frantic rush to get the regular work done.
Again, keep your eyes on the horizon and don’t lose sight of the Big Picture. Day to day minutiae, the latest crises and administrative clutter will fill your life and distract you with short term survival and minor accomplishments. You have the luxury to take the long view—don’t waste it. Try and develop a detached, critical overview of your program or unit, its history, its character, its stated goals, and be the commentator—the storyteller, if you will—of its development. Such stories are useful for presentations to alumnae and other external groups, and help you to create a comprehensive internal narrative about your institution. Making sense of everything is a useful skill, one that communicates the essence of your program to your constituents and helps to engage your colleagues in constructive discourse about its future.
6. Don’t Hold a Grudge
Every day, people will really get your goat. They may not mean to, or they may have every intention of driving you to distraction. Whatever the cause, there will be irritation — it’s the nature of your job. Being in a position of authority, you may have the opportunity to get back at the irritant in question in big ways (denying tenure or pay increases) or in small ways (withholding travel funding or prime teaching assignments). In other words, you may be tempted to retaliate.
Don’t.
A good administrator doesn’t have the luxury to adopt the maxim “Don’t get mad, get even.” Firstly, it really doesn’t feel good, but more importantly, if your actions are viewed as petty and vindictive, your stock as a leader is diminished. Learn to rise above the irritation—it’s a more sustainable, appropriate, and ultimately satisfying response for a leader.
7. See the Best in Everyone and the Bright Side of Everything
You may not believe all your colleagues are doing things the way you want them done or that aspects of the program are as good as they should be. Do the best you can as the first among equals to effect positive change—that’s your job. However, remember that, despite all your efforts, you may not entirely succeed. What next? Systems of tenure and shared governance being what they are, forcing change may be hard, frustrating and ultimately unsuccessful. Try a change in attitude—yours.
Try and look for the best and most positive attributes in all people and try to work with them individually. Sure, Professor X is not the most active senior member of the department and hasn’t done a lick of research in twenty years. But he’s a pretty good teacher, popular with the students and alumni, and is quite used to being “underappreciated” by his colleagues. Encourage his teaching, take him out to an alumni event, or nominate him for a teaching award. You may be surprised by the response. Of course, it may not work at all, but it’s worth a try if he re-engages just a little.
8. It’s All About People
Regardless of mission statements, written curricula, and action plans, it all boils down to people — faculty, staff and students — to make it all work in the end. With tenure or unions giving colleagues seemingly permanent status and stabilizing the playing field for sometimes lengthy periods, an important role for the administrator is to work with individuals — one-on-one where possible — and to help them be as effective as possible in their respective roles. When you have the time or need a break, wander around the offices, studios or laboratories. If it is not intrusive or uncomfortable, chat with your colleagues on their turf about their work, their aspirations and plans, and try to help where possible. Put them forward for awards, fund their requests wherever practicable (even a token sum can create a powerful, supportive message), send them congratulatory notes on their achievements, and take an active, personal role in their career development. Even a seemingly trivial note of appreciation, which costs nothing, can mean a lot.
9. Go with Your Strengths
Administrators all have different styles and different strengths. If you’re a detail-oriented person focused on the inner workings of your school, be careful if you enter an arena that expects you to be the Vision Person, the Outside Dean or the Rainmaking Fundraiser—the transition may be difficult. Play to your strengths, be true to your core characteristics, and choose a role and/or a school which is compatible with your skills. Even if the match isn’t perfect, the results are likely to be better than if you try to retool mid-assignment.
10. Do it with Humor
Leaders are constantly asked to say a few words, speak at a conference or meeting, or provide opening remarks at any number of events. Humor is an essential tool that can set the tone, leaven otherwise doughty comments, and actually increase the likelihood that your words are being heard. People listen more if they are interested and/or being entertained.
Of course, not everyone is a natural comedian, so choose your material very carefully. Keep a file of short jokes, anecdotes, quotations, statistics or lists — anything that might one day be relevant to commentary you have to make. Even the dullest of bureaucrats can light up a presentation with a well-chosen quotation, appropriate aphorism or insightful story.
A Final Note
While there is no secret recipe to sustaining a long and successful career in the increasingly complicated and challenging world of academic leadership, developing skill sets that attitudinally engage you more with your colleagues and your program are a good first step in becoming an effective leader. Stick to basics and maintain a mantra of broad principles which provide guidelines to everyday and long-term actions. Take advantage of the existing leadership development programs and literature provided by universities and organizations like ACAD.
And good luck.
