I began my new presidency in January 2021, when the campus was sheltering in place and delivering 96 percent of its courses remotely. This was my third presidency so I knew what to expect in the early months of a new position. But I also knew that, thanks to Covid, this first year in office would be decidedly different, particularly when it came to meeting people. I was mentally prepared.
And it worked out very well. My team and I organized weeks of back-to-back virtual meetings and events, videos, and social-media campaigns that allowed me to connect authentically with our important stakeholders. Without long travel times between meetings, I was able to meet more people more quickly than in previous new presidencies. Virtual meetings gave everyone a front row view of me. Chat and Q&A functions allowed everyone a voice.
Still, I looked forward to the day when the pandemic would be over and I could resume my previous ways of connecting and building a new network — walking around a crowded campus, interacting with people at large events, networking in person before board meetings, shaking hands with local and regional leaders at fund-raising dinners.
Gratefully, we are in a different place with the virus now. Almost 70 percent of our course sections are in-person or hybrid (compared with 75 percent prepandemic). In our region, infection rates and hospitalizations are low and vaccination rates are high. Mandatory surveillance testing and mask requirements have been rescinded and it is a joy to see more and more students, professors, and staff members populating our campus.
However, in terms of my still-new presidency, things have not returned to prepandemic normal, and probably never will. This is not unique to me. I believe we’re entering a new era of leadership — one I call the new hybrid presidency — that will require forethought, adaptation, and customization. Here I offer a few of my early observations and actions.
Hybrid presidents may need a second first-year on the job. Virtual platforms allowed me to connect with local leaders in education, nonprofit organizations, economic development, and government to a certain extent. But when it comes to establishing partnerships that will benefit the university, there is no substitute for in-person relationship building. With hybrid meetings now the norm, even when I attend in person, I come into contact with about half of the people I would have in the past. Vital pre- and post-meeting interactions — when a lot of business gets done and connections made — continue to be severely truncated.
I have also noticed a degree of reluctance, or inertia, about re-establishing in-person routines. Even seasoned leaders appear to default to their immediate comfortable remote environments more than I expected. To counter this new normal, I’ve intentionally and proactively gone back to my original “new president outreach list” and have extended a long list of invitations for one-on-one meetings to community members at their location, while also offering a masked or outdoor option. Fortunately, my overtures have been greeted with enthusiastic acceptance.
Similarly, I have scheduled informal in-person meetings throughout the year with each and every academic and administrative department, and on their turf. It’s especially important to honor staff and faculty members who adapted and pivoted again and again to keep the institution going during the pandemic. For students, I have scheduled a “meet the presidents” table with the student-government president. We will set up shop during the noon hour at our student union, a couple of times a month.
I admit I feel a bit cheated out of my opportunity to interact with people in the pre-Covid range of informal ways. So in this new hybrid presidency, it’s on me to take action. This year is no longer my second year as president, but my second “first year” as president, centered once again on reaching out and connecting with a wide array of constituents.
Err on the side of small and personalized. My previous presidencies were punctuated by numerous large evening events, award ceremonies, and galas that could occur as often as several times a week. We would purchase tickets to a table or otherwise sponsor the event in exchange for having our logo displayed on a screen or program. These “see and be seen” events literally evaporated during the pandemic.
Now that large events have resumed, I am questioning if attending quite so many of them is the best use of a president’s time. Yes, these big events offer some networking opportunities in the cocktail hour before dinner. Many events allow us to honor extremely committed leaders and advocates. These events certainly support the local hotel and hospitality industry. Despite those benefits, I know that, going forward, I will be more selective about which large events I say “yes” to, either as a host or a participant.
Instead, I will organize small gatherings that encourage more meaningful conversations and connections. I was recently invited to a “Jeffersonian Dinner,” modeled after the kind of tablewide discussions that the former president used to host. The one I attended was a gathering of 12 to 15 people, some known and some new to me. In planning my own dinner meetings, I may not follow the Jeffersonian format exactly. However, the concept and group size fit with my post-pandemic goals of shifting from large-event mode to small, less formal, and more meaningful. I will try quality over quantity for a while.
Embrace technology and its limits. Campus forums of any size have evolved into hybrid events for both in-person and remote participants. Like many organizations, our university is experimenting with how best to make these meetings meaningful for everyone. Remote participants should not feel like passive observers. Fortunately, online platforms have evolved to provide better engagement options. Likewise, staff members have become proficient in planning and managing hybrid events, and participants are more familiar than ever with technology and online etiquette.
Still, holding quality hybrid events requires a significant investment in technology. And while access is enhanced by offering remote options, we need to consider the practicality of this new format through an equity lens in locations with a significant digital divide in terms of device or adequate bandwidth access.
Higher education as an industry should be proud of our ability to adapt and provide instruction and services remotely — and that students were served — during the difficult early days of the pandemic. Yet we also know that enrollment, persistence, and student success suffered at many institutions.
As hybrid presidents, we struggle to balance the sometimes-competing needs of students, professors, and staff members. At my university, most students now have a mixed in-person/remote course schedule. But when they are on the campus, they want and deserve the feeling of community and belonging that a busy, populated campus provides. At the same time, our busy staff members, many of whom have small children and long commutes, crave some level of flexibility in their work lives. I took action by codifying more flexible work arrangements. Not all staff positions can be adapted to remote work, but currently 70 percent of our staff employees have telecommute agreements allowing them to work remotely for one to two days a week.
I strongly support this program but also worry about what is lost — the collaboration, creativity, and camaraderie that occur serendipitously when people come into contact with one another in common spaces. One solution I’ve adopted: Encourage managers to think about creating new structures and practices to counteract the potential losses. Do we schedule informal brainstorming meetings more frequently and regularly? Do we require all staff members in a department or office to work in person at least one common day a week? I plan to invest in more in-person staff events for the sole purpose of bringing people together.
As we move beyond our pandemic footing and redesign the ways we meet and work in a hybrid world, campus leaders must honestly acknowledge the pros and cons of this new reality. At the end of the day, it’s about the mission — creating opportunity for students to thrive. They will live and work in the hybrid world of the future. We should embrace the idea that this future is now.
