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Abstract
Within the next decade, college and university presidents will transition into their roles during times of fiscal strain and uncertainty for higher education in the U.S. This qualitative study seeks to understand effective leadership and management strategies from the perspectives of experienced college and university presidents. The findings will inform all university presidents, but particularly those serving presidency roles for the first time, regarding best practices in higher education leadership and management. The purpose of this study is to answer the following questions:
1. What do college and university presidents, who served during a time of fiscal strain, perceive as effective leadership and management strategies?
2. What are the differences between the leadership realities university presidents face compared to those promulgated by the leadership industry?
3. What are the potential pitfalls that presidents may encounter in their roles when navigating fiscal strain?
After conducting 14 semi-structured interviews with presidents, themes emerged in the areas of fiscal strain, perceptions and appearances, and difficulties of the presidency. Fiscal strain findings: Presidents are accustomed to fiscal strain; Presidents are being asked to do more with less financial resources; Presidents are frustrated with the lack of budget alignment between state allocations and institutional budgets; Presidents utilize their strategic plans for budget priorities; Cutting budgets is easier when a strategic plan is in place. Findings for perceptions and appearances include: Presidents act with authenticity to build trust; Inspirational speeches help presidents garner support; Presidents shape perceptions by actions. Findings for difficulty of the presidency include: The role is perceived as being more difficult than in the past; Presidents face difficulties with decisions made by their predecessors; Presidents are often disillusioned by the discrepancy between how search committees present situations and the reality of what they experience at the beginning of their presidencies; Presidents have difficulty with the ambiguous nature of their roles; Presidents deal with a multitude of stressors often unknown to stakeholders; Having a good administrative team is crucial to success and an ineffective team could cause failure. These themes, along with a proposed model on effective decision-making, are valuable insights for presidents.
1. What do college and university presidents, who served during a time of fiscal strain, perceive as effective leadership and management strategies?
2. What are the differences between the leadership realities university presidents face compared to those promulgated by the leadership industry?
3. What are the potential pitfalls that presidents may encounter in their roles when navigating fiscal strain?
After conducting 14 semi-structured interviews with presidents, themes emerged in the areas of fiscal strain, perceptions and appearances, and difficulties of the presidency. Fiscal strain findings: Presidents are accustomed to fiscal strain; Presidents are being asked to do more with less financial resources; Presidents are frustrated with the lack of budget alignment between state allocations and institutional budgets; Presidents utilize their strategic plans for budget priorities; Cutting budgets is easier when a strategic plan is in place. Findings for perceptions and appearances include: Presidents act with authenticity to build trust; Inspirational speeches help presidents garner support; Presidents shape perceptions by actions. Findings for difficulty of the presidency include: The role is perceived as being more difficult than in the past; Presidents face difficulties with decisions made by their predecessors; Presidents are often disillusioned by the discrepancy between how search committees present situations and the reality of what they experience at the beginning of their presidencies; Presidents have difficulty with the ambiguous nature of their roles; Presidents deal with a multitude of stressors often unknown to stakeholders; Having a good administrative team is crucial to success and an ineffective team could cause failure. These themes, along with a proposed model on effective decision-making, are valuable insights for presidents.