Scott C. Beardsley wrote the book on the subject. Higher Calling: The Rise of Nontraditional Leaders in Academia derives from his own experience in moving from a career at McKinsey & Company, a management-consultant firm, to becoming dean of the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia, as well as his research.
No standard definition of a nontraditional college president is to be found, Beardsley concluded. Based on his own definition — a leader who has never been on the tenure track — as many as a third of the liberal-arts colleges he surveyed had nontraditional presidents.
Academe is a very different culture than business, government, or NGOs. But careful listening and good guidance from senior cabinet members can help a new leader acclimatize to shared governance and establish a good working relationship with faculty.
In an interview, he offered advice to leaders from outside academe who are pursuing, or beginning, leadership positions — although he notes that much of it could apply to new traditional leaders as well.
- Cultivate advisers. Seek out “a set of mentors — a kitchen cabinet, if you will. People you can talk to who know higher education but also know your institution, who could give you behind-the-scenes advice.”
- Be humble. “Everybody will ask you a hundred times as the new leader, ‘What is your vision?’ ” If you answer in any detail, you’re missing an opportunity to engage and collaborate with your campus to build a collective vision. Besides, there are many things you just won’t know or understand. It’s important “not to be afraid to say, ‘I don’t know.’ ”
- Know your strengths. That’s crucial for building your team. “If you’re not as organized or more spontaneous, you might want to make sure you have somebody around you who is going to keep you on track and manage your time.”
- Communicate enthusiastically. “You need to communicate a lot. You need to be a source of energy for the organization. It’s very difficult for the institution to get energized if you’re not.”
- Prove it every day. Beardsley repeats a saying: “If you want somebody to think you’re funny, tell them a joke, don’t tell them you’re funny.” New leaders must “lead from their actions, and come in with a servant-leader mind-set — that they’re here to serve others.”
Lee Gardner writes about the management of colleges and universities, higher-education marketing, and other topics. Follow him on Twitter @_lee_g, or email him at lee.gardner@chronicle.com.
