In today’s academic search environment, most institutions are reaching out to search firms for assistance in conducting their important senior leadership searches. In the majority of cases, you will find a senior consultant/partner as the lead search consultant on a team of two, even three consultants. More often than not, your first “interview” will be with the “junior” person on the consultant team. We say “junior” because that person is often the individual who has not made the site visit to the college or university/not-for-profit being served. Though not always the case, more often than not this is a reality of the search business.
If you haven’t had the opportunity to wander into a virtual zoom room with a search consultant, then you might not have thought about our secret tip—You are the interviewer rather than the search consultant. Remember our Guiding Principle #8—She or he who asks the best questions, wins. (from Opening Doors, The Higher-Ed leadership Playbook, Martin and Baltodano, 2021, page 4) Naturally, you don’t want to in any way to make the “junior” team member uncomfortable. Rather, your task is to win the consultant over so that she or he becomes your champion and ally in describing you to her bosses.
If you happen to be a sitting president or you are in a situation where the level of confidentiality has to be high and at the top of your list, this factor has to be made clear from the very beginning of building your Dramatic Arc strategy with your search consultant.
Indeed, it is very common in the search process for senior leaders to have quiet, confidential conversations with key trustees and/or the sitting president of the institution. Frankly, there is no one-size-fits-all in search strategy. It can vary widely from institution to institution and is not necessarily the prerogative of private versus public sectors. It is your responsibility manage the search consultants throughout the process—and do so with humility.
Your next interview in the arc is a conversation with the senior partner of the search firm, the one who can most likely answer your tougher questions. If the person in charge is not able to answer your tougher questions, you may have to think seriously about whether or not you want to be in the search. On the other hand, if this is the job that has been waiting for YOU and the institution, and you know it, you move forward and manage the consultant.
In certain moments in time, if need be, you work around the consultant, again with humility. It is imperative to understand that this phase of a search process is in many ways the most complex and elusive. Just remember you are in charge, but they will never know that.
This is a good time to have a search savvy coach!
©2024 Nancy Martin and Patricia Kepenash
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