UW News

April 7, 2005

Emmert launches leadership initiative

News and Information

President Mark Emmert has announced a major new initiative that will examine leadership and values throughout the University.

He hopes to create an environment that “recognizes, enhances and sustains leadership” at all levels of the community.

The initiative will focus on how the mission of the University can be supported better through high-quality leadership at all levels. “By focusing on leadership,” Emmert says, “we are explicitly acknowledging that people are the University’s most valuable asset.”

“In my first eight months here,” Emmert says, “I’ve been tremendously impressed by the talent and dedication of people working at this University. Their achievements are remarkable.

“But I’ve also found that the UW, like most academic institutions, has not given the same kind of serious attention to issues of leadership and values that it gives to issues of research and teaching. And that has consequences. Many of the problems and frustrations we experience here, both as individuals and as a University, are things that we can change. Certainly we can improve on how we motivate great work, how we communicate, how we recognize achievement and how we address resource needs.”

Many people assume positions of leadership without any formal training or even any mentoring, he says. “When we think about research and teaching today, we realize that these activities are highly collaborative. But collaboration is not a spontaneous activity, and it does not occur effectively without good leadership. As research universities grow and change, there is an increasing need for excellent leadership at all levels.”

When people are well led, he says, both morale and effectiveness rise. “We know what good leadership does. It provides people with the tools and resources and information they need to do their job. It communicates. It explains the reasons behind decisions and policy, and it engages people in the process of work-related decisions that affect them. It encourages both teamwork and individual development. It helps employees understand their role in the University’s mission. It acknowledges their good work. It puts a premium on integrity, and it fosters trust — both inside and outside.”

Emmert also outlined the values that people have told him are important to the character of the UW. These include rigor, integrity, innovation, collegiality, inclusiveness and connectedness. “We should acknowledge that these values are important to the institution’s continued excellence, and we need to find ways of promoting these values consistently,” he says.

Emmert, through the Provost’s Office, has appointed a Leadership and Values Initiative Team that will be facilitated by Patti Carson, vice president for human resources. Members of the team are: Jerry Baldasty, chair and professor of communications; Stephanie Camp, associate professor of history; Jim Antony, associate professor of education; Shaoyi Jiang, associate professor of chemical engineering; Merri Huffine, administrator in family & child nursing; Jill McKinstry, head of Odegaard Undergraduate Library; Linda Barrett, director of budget operations, Planning & Budgeting; Carmen Sidbury, diversity director, College of Engineering; Christina Surawicz, professor of gastroenterology, Harborview Medical Center; Larry Robinson, professor and chair of rehabilitation medicine, UW Medicine; Gene Woodard, director of custodial services; Jeff Compher, executive associate athletics director; Jason Smith, director of student services, Evans School of Public Affairs; Naomi Sanchez, assistant dean of career services, Law School; Sara Contreras, manager of program operations, Education Program, UW Tacoma; Arthur Nowell, dean of the College of Ocean and Fishery Sciences; Susan Jeffords, vice provost for academic planning; Rusty Barcelo, vice president and vice provost for minority affairs; Ana Mari Cauce, professor and chair, Psychology Department; and Lea Vaughn, secretary, Faculty Senate. Project specialists are Beth Warrick, director of Training and Development; and David Hekman, a doctoral candidate in business administration.

One of the team’s first tasks will be conducting Universitywide surveys to determine faculty and staff impressions of the values, culture, work environment and diversity within the broad UW work environment. The surveys will be available to all faculty and staff and the process will include in-depth interviews with members of various groups, including the Faculty Senate, the deans and heads of major administrative units, the Regents, union representatives, members of the Professional Staff Organization, and representatives of ASUW and GPSS. The team will also hold discussion groups throughout the University to supplement the surveys. These discussion groups will be widely communicated so interested faculty and staff can attend. From this research, the team will begin to generate strategic ideas for change.

“The advisory team will be gathering the best ideas it can find,” says Carson, “whether from our own faculty and staff, from other higher education institutions or from the private sector. The kinds of issues that the University of Washington faces are not unusual. We can learn from other successful organizations. But we recognize that the UW is a unique entity and everything has to be tailored to our academic mission and values. Ultimately, this initiative is about improving the faculty and staff work experience by creating a positive culture of leadership and involvement for those who choose to do their work here.”

The UW, Emmert believes, has created an enviable culture of entrepreneurship through a highly decentralized management structure. “This culture encourages the individual initiative of faculty and staff,” he says. “It also encourages work across disciplinary boundaries to help address real-world problems with the appropriate team of experts.

“But this highly decentralized structure can also undermine our sense of community and common purpose,” he says. “We need to develop the kind of leadership, at all levels, that conveys common values and a common sense of mission.”

All this, Carson notes, affects the UW’s ability to attract and retain the very best people. “For most people,” she says, “where they work and who they work with are of vital importance in decisions about taking or leaving a job. We have an opportunity every day to make the work experience at the University a key factor in retaining our people and recruiting the kind of talent that is integral to our future.

“This is truly a competitive advantage whether we are recruiting faculty, staff or students. The people we have here already are the strongest voice to encourage others to come to the University of Washington. The very fact that so many have invested years here speaks to the commitment and pride in being a part of the UW. For many, there is a family tradition of education and employment here.”

“Many good things will flow from a consistent approach to issues of leadership,” Emmert says. “People who rise to positions of leadership, whether as department chairs or staff supervisors or heads of administrative units, will be better prepared and better equipped to lead. That will make it easier for all of us to make timely, thoughtful decisions that support the University’s mission. We can develop a better-informed and more disciplined approach to allocating funds. And we can make more efficient and effective use of all our resources — human, physical and financial.”

“I believe that the University of Washington can become a place that is just as exemplary for the quality of its leadership and working environment as for the quality of its teaching and research,” Emmert says. That is the goal of this initiative. To succeed, it will need broad involvement and support. Those associated with this project will work hard to canvass the University community for ideas and input. It is ultimately up to every one of us to decide how to contribute positively to these possibilities. We will continue to provide updates and share progress over the next six months as the process unfolds.”