April 3, 2003
Former presidents: Search success isn’t guaranteed
While there is no guarantee of success in the presidential search process, those involved should focus on what they regard as the essential qualities for the new president, a panel of former university presidents told members of the Board of Regents, the Search Advisory Committee, and the public in a forum March 20.
“When you make a major appointment, such as a president, you have to hold your breath for five or six months,” said Peter Magrath, who has been president of the State University of New York-Binghamton, University of Minnesota, and the University of Missouri System. “If you are asphyxiated, you probably made a mistake. There are no guarantees. But look closely at the individual’s track record. That doesn’t mean you should limit your choices to sitting presidents. Look carefully at that person’s desire to do the job.”
Stanley Ikenberry, who was president of the University of Illinois for 16 years, echoed Magrath’s comments. “Look for a person with passion. Understand what qualities are crucial for that person to have, to take the university forward over the next five years. The most vulnerable point of a presidency is the tendency for ‘academic drift.’ The great skill that is required is creating a vision. That vision comes from experience, but also from listening to the community members. The president’s job is to articulate a vision and build consensus around it.”
The panel, which was chaired by former Oregon State University president John Byrne, agreed on most of the traits that were desirable in a candidate, and they also offered advice on where to look.
“Cast a broad net,” said Ikenberry. “Include business, the military, government and public service. Look at home, and at every other major university in the country. Seek evidence of that individual’s crucial leadership qualities, and make sure that the person’s talents fit well with the university’s agenda. Many of the issues a president will confront are moral issues and value questions. The president should be comfortable talking in value terms and building consensus around values.”
Regent William Gates, Sr. asked the panelists how the committee can adequately evaluate candidates based upon the information gathered in an interview.
“When you finish the interviews, you’ll see some qualities you like in one or more of the candidates, but you’ll have doubts about others,” Ikenberry said. “Remember that much of this job is learned. Look for someone who has the potential to grow into the job. Typically a president is better at the job after several years. You should be willing to take a younger person. I was 44 when I became president of Illinois. A president will probably take a decade to make a mark on the institution.
“And don’t expect to hire a seasoned president,” he added. “The job is like a marriage: Few people want to walk away from the job they already have. They have a deep commitment and usually are unwilling to shift.”
Both former presidents advised committee members to make that “last call” to check the candidate’s references, even if all the other calls had not turned up new or different information.
Magrath advised the committee to look for someone who wants but does not need the job, who does not feel that his or her personal well being is tied to being president. “You want a secure person, and someone who truly believes in the positions that they take. The individual must be smart enough to allow for change, and have a vision for how the institution can be improved. The president must understand the economic and social environment, and be eager to face challenges and opportunities with political astuteness. The president must be a higher education politician, in the best sense of the word, understanding the internal and external political environment, and must be active in the state, regional and national political arenas.”
The next president also must be entrepreneurial, dealing with a state and national climate for higher education funding that Magrath described as “dreadful.” “It will be a huge challenge to maintain access while tuition increases. The president will need to guide the institution to becoming more entrepreneurial in attracting the necessary resources.”
Ikenberry pointed out that one factor making a university presidency so difficult is the number and variety of stakeholders. “The president must reach broad audiences, serving as an institutional advocate to stakeholders, and explaining to them why they should care about the future of the university. One subject that university presidents don’t mention as frequently as they should is productivity, he said. They don’t talk as much as they need to about how to use dollars effectively.”
Regent Sally Jewell asked about the relative merits of candidates from within an institution versus those from outside it. Magrath responded, “There are no rules. Some have moved up from within, but scores have come from outside and done well. What you need is a person who is smart enough to figure out the institutional culture.”
“Sometimes,” added Ikenberry, “it’s advantageous not to know everything about an institution. It brings a ‘naïve freshness’ to the job, which is a value added.”
The original intent of this forum was to have a panel of current presidents, “but this proved to be impossible, according to Byrne.
“These people are incredibly busy,” he said. “It’s not just a job, but a way of life.”
