11/30/2015 by Carney Sandoe Staff |
The Schoolroom
Catholic School President/Principal Model, Pt 2
In this miniseries, Bob Regan discusses the President/Principal Model: the leadership structure of choice for many Catholic schools. In his four-part series, Bob will offer his views on the benefits and challenges of implementing the model as well as his insights on how to make the model work for your school.
Part II: Get the Hiring Right
Jim Collins got it right when he wrote that all great institutions get the right people on the bus and put them in the right seats. This is particularly pertinent for Catholic schools operating in the President/Principal model. The most egregious mistake schools can make is to assume that the presidency is essentially the Principal function taken to a higher level — a kind of “Principal plus.” Although this is often the comfortable default choice of search committees, it signals a failed search right from the start. The difference between the two functions is not a difference in degree but a difference in kind. The presidency of a Catholic school requires an entrepreneurial leader with passion for mission who can envision new possibilities, create an appropriate sense of urgency in the community, and make great things happen. The unique duality of the leadership structure in the President/Principal Model also necessitates that the President be intrinsically and genuinely “collaborative.” S/he needs to share the podium, spread the recognition, and defer collegially to his/her partnering Principal in matters outside his/her jurisdiction. As I have suggested in another post, effective Catholic school chief executives are also humble servant leaders who see opportunities in current threats and ride inflection points to bold new heights. I often describe them as “generative,” because they have a unique ability to see excitement and potential where others see only sameness and quiescence — like the sculptor who sees wondrous possibilities in a simple block of granite.
Defining the right profile is only the beginning of the hiring process. Once you’ve achieved consensus around this entrepreneurial and collaborative profile, you need to identify and recruit the President. Where will you find such an exceptional leader? Where will you search? This is where the going gets tough. And here is the inconvenient truth: According to recent accounts, only 22% of Americans self-identify as practicing Catholic, and this number may be declining. If hiring a practicing Catholic is a requirement for your school, you begin your search by eliminating 78% of the potential population in the country. In addition, as suggested earlier, there is currently no established, reliable career pathway that leads to the presidency of a Catholic school. The success models are still unfolding in this new and rapidly evolving leadership environment, and more data is needed before we can identify reliable patterns and successful profiles. We know for certain that the presidency pathway doesn’t necessarily flow through the Principal function or through Advancement, Admissions, or Financial Affairs. Those are not necessarily fruitful places to look. It doesn’t necessarily flow through public schools or charter schools or arch/dioceses either. You may find the right mission-driven leader for your school in a Catholic foundation, association, or charity. You may even find him/her in a higher education setting or, in rare instances, in the corporate world. You may find him/her in any or all of the above. Or not at all.
As a result, your search plan is critically important and must be creative, multi-faceted, andasymmetrical. And you must execute with discipline and persistence in order to maximize your chances of success. I wish it were simpler, but this is the harsh reality of Catholic school leadership searches today. Getting it right is never easy, and not taking the time to do so can often lead to mistakes.
Once you’ve gotten the hiring right, how do you ensure you get the messaging right? Check back next Monday for the next installment.
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Bob Regan is a former Senior Consultant with the CS&A Search Group’s Catholic Schools Practice.
Learn more about our Catholic Schools Practice and view current searches we're running on our website.
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