Dive Summary:
- At the annual National Association of College and University Business Officers meeting, Ellen Heffernan, a partner at executive search consulting firm Spelman and Johnson Group, gave a presentation on “Exploring the Role of a President.”
- Many at the meeting were in support of the idea that the office of CFO might be a better training ground for university presidency, especially with the increasingly intertwined nature of academic and business decisions.
- Such a shift is controversial, as it would focus more on treating higher education like a business as opposed to a not-for-profit venture or state agency, but the provost’s office is still the chief pathway to presidency according to a 2011 survey by the American Council of Education.
From the article:
NATIONAL HARBOR, MD. -- Next time search consultants come to campus looking for the next great college president, they might skip over the provost’s office and head down the hall.
With academic officers, the traditional proving ground for the higher education presidency, losing interest in the job of institution head, discussions here at the annual meeting of the National Association of College and University Business Officers are turning to whether chief business and finance officers might be interested in the job, and whether they are perhaps better-suited for it. ...