How a Stable boy can get ahead in higher Ed

1. How a Stable boy can get ahead in higher Ed Wear Brown Shoes

2. The function of the administration is solely to see that the funds are adequate for its purposes and not overspent, that the air is right, that the grounds are tidy – and then to stay out of its way . . . A good university doesn’t need to be headed as much as to be given its head, and it is the administrator’s task – not at all an easy one – to see that this happens. The temptations to intervene from the top, to reach in and try and change the way the place works, to arrive at one’s desk each morning with one’s mind filled with exhilarating ideas for revitalizing the whole institution, are temptations of the devil and need resisting with all the strength of the administrator’s character. -- Lewis Thomas, 1983 (as cited in Birnbaum’s How Colleges Work, 1988)

3. Why so serious? • Let’s talk about that quote. • Why are you here? • Are you trying to advance yourself? • Do you supervise people who are trying to advance themselves? • Did you walk into the wrong session? • What is this presentation about? • Not a faculty-bashing session, despite how it sounds. • *Disclaimer!*

4. When I say “pragmatic”… • “Confronting the Brutal Facts” • Jim Collins – Good to Great • Examine the environment • Discuss limitations • Faux pas of business acumen – threatening to faculty. For example: • “Big picture” • Flexible • Financial literacy • Good communication with stakeholders

5. Staff in Higher Education • Earliest Examples of Higher Ed • Greek Lyceum • Examples of organizational permanence • Universities of Paris (faculty model) and Bologna (student model) • Harvard, 1890, appoints the very firstDean of Men, LaBaron Russell Briggs From NEED . . . Raphael’s The School of Athens, 1511

6. . . . TO ENTITLEMENT • Entitled to have someone change their grades (you) • Entitled to dictate their schedule and have someone else figure out how to make it work (you) • Entitled to their room • Entitled to have someone else deal with the students, the parents, the paperwork (you) We are their button pushers, widget makers, floor sweepers. We are the necessary evil. All of the things too base for those focusedon intellectual pursuits.

7. So what about the students? • They compete for us. • They pay through the nose and go into debt for us. • Higher Education in the U.S. is a $400 Billion industry • Noel-Levitz Student Satisfaction Inventory found that students list these as their top four challenges nation wide: • #4 – Faculty are fair and unbiased in their treatment of individual students. • #3 – Tuition paid is a worthwhile investment. • #2 – The quality of instruction I receive in most of my classes is excellent. • #1 – I am able to register for classes I need.

8. Is higher Ed really faculty-centric? The faculty are creating the positions for themselves.

9. A Final Org Chart

10. So, is Higher education focused on Faculty? • Do you have graduate teaching assistants doing your job? • When was your last paid sabbatical? • I assert entire jobs exist to make life easier for faculty: • Dual Hire • University of Minnesota has policies that permit the hiring of a spouse/partner without a search. • Advisors! So what can we do?

11. Educate! • In the halls of academia, it’s all about who has the bigger degree. • Most institutions have opportunities for continuing ed, such as policies for tuition waivers. • 3 reasons why a bachelors is not enough: • Sometimes and advanced degree is required for a position – if not explicitly then implicitly. • You can move up faster – often an advanced degree is accepted in lieu of experience. • You’re now part of the club.

12. To hire or not to hire? • If we agree that advanced degrees are important in higher ed, then what about hiring people with no degree? • Over-qualified and high turnover vs. underqualified and long employment terms • The glass ceiling – are we being fair? • Remember – the employees that move on from your office are ambassadors for your office to the rest of the institution.

13. Make yourself invaluable • Every interaction is an opportunity to distinguish yourself. • Be the go-to person. • If you’re the only one who knows how to work the copier, you’ve got it made!

14. Network • Cliché, but “It’s all about who you know.” • When one of the few positions DO open, we’re all like piranhas fighting over it – so hope you managed to impress the right person along the way!

15. Attend conferences • My business card and resume is available at the door. References upon request.

16. Mentor relationships • Identify a position you aspire to. • Network with the person who has that position • They know the industry – the politics and campus dynamics that can take you years to learn and understand. • Ask them questions – they will love to talk about their job and themselves!

17. … or Go to student affairs! Pizza Party!

18. References • Birnbaum, Robert. How Colleges Word: the Cybernetics of Academic Organization and Leadership. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass, 1988. • Weingartner, Rudolph. Fitting Form to Function. Rowman and Littlefield Publishers, 2011 • Collins, J. C. (2001). Good to great: Why some companies make the leap – and others don’t. New York, NY: HarperBusiness • http://www.forbes.com/sites/baldwin/2013/01/15/the-scary-economics-of-higher-education/ • http://www1.umn.edu/ohr/rap/spousepartner/ • Noel-Levitz (2013). 2013 national student satisfaction and priorities report. Coralville, Iowa: Author. Retrieved from www.noellevitz.com/Benchmark.

19. What would you do? You are considering implementing a policy requiring increased use of technology in the classroom. Faculty opinion on the policy is split evenly as shown on the right. What would you do?

20. Thank you! Joe Carlson Senior Technical Officer and Applications Engineer Auburn University Office of the Registrar 334.844.5362 joe@auburn.edu