“One of a president’s key responsibilities is to assist our best colleagues in moving forward—particularly in becoming presidents,” said a Presidents Institute panelist in a session titled “Development of Senior Staff.” President Joan Lescinski, CSJ, of St. Ambrose University (IA), urged her colleagues “always to be generous with your mentoring, which includes being consistently accessible, and remember what it was like when you were in their role. Never stand in the way of a person’s progress.”

Three other college presidents joined her in offering advice on cultivating and training the next generation of presidents and academic leaders. Lescinski, Pamela Fox of Mary Baldwin College (VA), Larry Earvin of Huston-Tillotson University (TX), and Michael Vinciguerra of University of St. Francis (IL) discussed “the four Rs” in developing senior staff: recruiting, reforming, retraining, and removing.

The key to recruiting effective members of the senior staff, panelists said, is “networking among potential senior staff and among colleagues such as fellow presidents who can help locate ideal candidates, and identifying current employees with senior staff potential.” If a senior staff member is departing, the panelists urged presidents to consider asking him or her to help identify a replacement and to be willing to consider nontraditional sources outside academia.

When bringing on a new staff member, presidents need to “reform” the team to incorporate the new person and prepare the community for the change. If the new person is being incorporated into an already “perfect” team, presidents should articulate why this person belongs on the team, including expectations and the value-added.

Retraining senior staff team members so that they continue to move up the ranks is another important presidential responsibility. The panelists urged presidents to use periodic meetings to discuss with senior staff where they want to be in five to ten years. “Consider creating a list of leadership goals, including personal goals shared only between the president and vice president.”

Finally, presidents should not be afraid to recognize that there are times when some problematic staff members have to be removed. “In such cases, deal with the situation constructively and be prepared to make difficult decisions sooner than expected,” the presenters stressed.

They also recommended that presidents involve board members in the recruitment process and develop assessment tools that include principles from the institution’s strategic plan to evaluate senior staff.