Author: Daniel Fusch

Why So Many Abrupt Exits for University Presidents? And How Can We Prevent Them?

by Patrick Sanaghan, Steven E. Titus, J.D., Ph.D., Karen M. Whitney, EdD

At four institutions, a university president exited abruptly – in a single week in June. What causes such abrupt departures? And how can they be prevented? On June 24, 2019, campus leaders and stakeholders awoke to find out that four campus presidents (Auburn, Bennett, Marist, Mullenberg) “were out, without notice or explanation”—to quote the headline Inside Higher Ed ran that day. Each president was in office less than three years.  This was startling news. Thursday that week, a fifth president “resigned,” from Hollins University. That’s a lot of exits and resignations in a single week. We believe we will continue to see more of these unexplained departures. Unfortunately, we can no longer afford them. A sudden and unexplained exit creates havoc for a campus, leaving stakeholders left in the dark, wondering what happened and plagued with unanswered questions: Why didn’t they see the warning signs? Could they have helped prevent the departure? Why did the board dismiss the president? Who will be the next president, and will they be successful under these difficult circumstances? Who would want to step in after such a sudden departure? (Will we get anyone good?) This atmosphere of instability, confusion, and even fear is not […]

The Urgent Need to Reduce Workplace Bullying on Campus

While some colleges and universities are developing workplace bullying prevention programs (we’ll list examples in a minute), it is evident that we have a lot of work yet to do. And this work needs to be done; unaddressed, workplace bullying impacts the processes of tenure and promotion, the collegiality of the department, and the academic freedom of its junior members. In this article, find out what a policy should include, and what institutions have existing policies you can learn from. by Clara Wajngurt, Ph.D. What is workplace bullying? By this term, we’re referring to hostile behavior that includes repeated harrassment, physical harm, verbal abuse, or other conduct that is viewed as threatening, humiliating, intimidating, or sabotaging – behavior that interferes with the performance of the one who is being bullied. (See Namie & Namie, “Risk Factors for Becoming a Target of Workplace Bullying and Mobbing,” in M. Duffy and D. Yamada, Workplace Bullying and Mobbing in the United States, Santa Barbara, CA: Praeger Press, 2018, 1-17.) These are the characteristics of workplace bullying: What Workplace Bullying Looks Like in Higher Ed Imagine the following scenarios of how workplace bullying manifests itself in an academic setting. SCENARIO AA unit director submits […]

As a Leader You Need Honest, Direct Feedback – Here’s How to Get It

by Patrick Sanaghan

“If you’re not getting information or feedback on a regular basis that is uncomfortable for you, go seek it out.” One of the traps a higher-ed leader can fall into is in believing that they are receiving accurate feedback when in fact their colleagues and team members are holding back. Here’s a way to break through that trap: an anonymous 360° feedback process. This article is adapted from an excerpt of Pat Sanaghan’s book How Higher-Ed Leaders Derail: A Survival Guide for Leaders. For leaders in higher ed, I cannot stress enough that you have to be proactive in encouraging (and rewarding behavior that fosters) a climate of candor and transparency. If others around you are not pushing back on your ideas, sharing different perspectives, and asking the tough questions, you may not realize how your leadership is actually being received. It’s very likely that you have an inaccurate and incomplete picture. In How Higher-Ed Leaders Derail: A Survival Guide for Leaders, I refer to this situation as “the seduction of the leader,” a common dynamic in which leaders are “seduced” into believing they have all the facts when in fact, they don’t. It is a dynamic that, if allowed […]

What a Comprehensive Academic Advising Website Can Do for Faculty Advisors and Students

On many campuses, professional and faculty advisors work separately and with great disparity in their available resources and training. by Vivek Shastry (Appalachian State University)  Vivek Shastry attended our conference “Improving Advising Effectiveness through Interpersonal and Digital Communications” in January 2019. Immediately upon returning to campus, he was able to apply the new strategies and ideas he learned at the event – a testament both to Vivek’s vision and commitment to improving academic advising, and to how actionable and practical Academic Impressions’s conferences are. (See what conferences are coming up next here.) In this article, Vivek shares the actions he and his colleagues took after the event – and some key takeaways for colleagues at other institutions. Why a Comprehensive Advising Website? Developing a comprehensive academic advising website can help you address the disparity that exists when multiple models of advising exist at an institution. This is important because professional advisors and faculty advisors can have very different needs: Sometimes, also, an institution will have split models in advising, where specific groups of students (such as undecided or undeclared majors) are advised by professional advisors, while students who have declared their major are assigned to academic units or to specific […]

Is Your Academic Program Sustainable? 5 Key Indicators

How do you measure academic program demand? The former CFO at Stanford discusses 5 key indicators that can help you gain confidence and clarity in your academic program decisions. by William F. Massy, Consultant to Higher Education, Former CFO at Stanford Universities can no longer take the sustainability of their academic programs for granted. Pressures on institutional finances and disruption and volatility in the student marketplace makes it necessary to perform systematic sustainability analyses across one’s whole portfolio of programs. Sustainability has both academic and financial dimensions. This places it close to the heart of strategic decision-making. Academic Impressions (AI) has been working on how to help people responsible for resource allocation add program sustainability as an area of focus. AI’s upcoming program on Academic Resourcing Models for Evidence-Based Decision-Making will introduce participants to the indicators, concepts, and best practices associated with program sustainability analysis. These can stimulate and inform needed conversations about sustainability among both academics and administrators. There are several reasons why such conversations help leaders get things done: Colleges and universities must deal with the inherent complexity of intellectual work and the needs and expectations of those who perform it. Academic resourcing requires the integration of disciplinary, financial, and […]

What the Chief of Staff Needs to Do on Day One

by Daniel Fusch

In this series, we’ve talked about how the chief of staff can operate as an effective liaison, what qualities presidents desire in the chief of staff, and where new chiefs of staff could look for resources. Now, in our fifth article, we want to ask: What does the new chief of staff need to do, their first day, first week, first month on the job? In this series of articles, experienced chiefs of staff offer critical advice on managing the chief of staff role. We will share their answers to questions such as these: Contributors to this series include: We hope you will enjoy the series and share each article with your peers. If you find these articles useful, please consider attending and learning from these and other experts at these virtual trainings: Today, here is the fifth installment in our series: 5. What Does the New Chief of Staff Need to Know? Academic Impressions. The four of you have served as chiefs of staff. What is one specific piece of critical advice you would offer to a new COS? Chris Romano, Ramapo College. Relationships are everything in this role. An effective chief of staff must spend his/her time among the campus and […]

What the President Looks for in a Chief of Staff

by Karen M. Whitney, EdD

Here is what a president looks for in a new chief of staff – the three qualities that matter most. In this series of articles, experienced chiefs of staff offer critical advice on managing the chief of staff role. We will share their answers to questions such as these: How do you make yourself available as a liaison to faculty without appearing as a gatekeeper for the president? What words of wisdom would you want to offer to a chief of staff who has been in the role for a while? We know the chief of staff position can feel isolating at times. Thinking back, what were some of the most helpful resources to you in getting up to speed? When considering hiring a chief of staff, what are some absolutely crucial competencies or traits that presidents look for in a candidate? What does a new chief of staff most need to know, and which relationships do you need to build from the first day of your job as chief of staff? What are key skills that chiefs of staff need to build in order to best handle crises on campus? What are one to two key steps chiefs of […]

Finding Your Feet as Chief of Staff

by Daniel Fusch

The chief of staff can be a lonely role. Here is what experienced chiefs of staff have to say about how to find your feet in the role and identify key resources you’ll need. In this series of articles, experienced chiefs of staff offer critical advice on managing the chief of staff role. We will share their answers to questions such as these: Contributors to this series include: We hope you will enjoy the series and share each article with your peers. If you find these articles useful, please consider attending and learning from these and other experts at these virtual trainings: For today, here is our third installment in this series: 3. Finding Your Feet as a New (or Relatively New) Chief of Staff Academic Impressions. We know the chief of staff position can feel isolating at times—there is usually only one chief of staff on campus, so you don’t have peers in the role on campus to compare notes with. And not a lot of training and professional development opportunities exist for chiefs of staff. There isn’t a handbook on how to be an effective chief of staff. You have each been in the position. Thinking back, what […]

What Every Experienced Chief of Staff Needs to Hear

by Daniel Fusch

Here are words of wisdom from experienced chiefs of staff to their peers – critical advice for managing the role once you’ve been in it a while. In this series of articles, experienced chiefs of staff offer critical advice on managing the chief of staff role. We will share their answers to questions such as these: Contributors to this series include: We hope you will enjoy the series and share each article with your peers. If you find these articles useful, please consider attending and learning from these and other experts at these virtual trainings: For today, here is our second installment in this series: 2. Advice for the Experienced Chief of Staff Academic Impressions. What words of wisdom would you want to offer to a Chief of Staff who has been in the role for a while? Josh Jacobs, Marietta College. We can get accustomed to just tackling the next problem that presents itself. Take time to evaluate your last year to see if you leveraged your time purposefully, in a way that added value in the most critical areas for your campus. Put another way, did you let someone else’s “urgent” prevent you from making progress on the most […]

Critical Advice for College and University Chiefs of Staff

by Daniel Fusch

The role of college or university chief of staff looks very different at each institution and requires a unique skill set for continued success. Here is critical advice from current and past chiefs of staff and (one university president). Welcome to this new series of articles, where experienced chiefs of staff offer critical advice on managing the chief of staff role. We will share their answers to questions such as these: Contributors to this series include: We hope you will enjoy the series and share each article with your peers. If you find these articles useful, please consider attending and learning from these and other experts at these virtual trainings: Now, let’s start! Here is our first installment in this series: 1. Liaison vs Gatekeeper: Finding Balance as a Chief of Staff Academic Impressions. You’re charged with being the president’s voice and implementing their initiatives, yet you are also the liaison with faculty. The faculty will come to you with disagreements and objections. How do you make yourself available without appearing as a gatekeeper for the president? Josh Jacobs, Marietta College. Whether you intend to be are or not, it is likely that you will be perceived as a gatekeeper. One strategy […]