Expectations of candidates not pinpointed the first time around.
The search for the vice president of college services continues as two of the candidates vying for the position were passed over and the third withdrew from consideration.
President Robert Vela said the candidates were missing an integral qualification for the position in the performance excellence area.
It’s not uncommon for candidates to not meet expectations. People don’t get jobs all the time for lack of experience, but the president said the problem was a failure to communicate fully, which led to a selection of candidates who were wrong for the position.
Usha Venkat, director of information technology, who chaired the search committee, said the focus on performance excellence wasn’t emphasized during the search.
This led to time and money wasted, for both the administration and candidates, as well as highlighting a problem within administration.
One of the candidates, Dr. Conrad Krueger, dean of arts and sciences, withdrew from the search after learning performance excellence was a larger focus with the position.
He told The Ranger he was more interested in the facilities and budgeting aspect of the position.
These were the primary responsibilities for the late Dave Mrizek, who held the position of vice president of college services.
Because of this stall in the search, the responsibilities for the vice president of college services continue to fall on the shoulders of various administrators.
The initial search for this position was announced back in April, with Vela telling The Ranger he would advertise for the position for 30 days.
The search lasted throughout the summer; – at least two months. Does this mean we’ll have to wait another two months for the next candidates?
Although the college recently hired a dean of performance excellence, Vela said the vice president of college services needs to be able to set the vision for that department.
With problems in previous searches, the most recent being vice president for student success, which took almost two years, getting everything right the first time should be a priority.
Communication is key when it comes to running literally anything smoothly.
If the administration wants students and faculty to be successful, they need to lead by example and get things done correctly the first time instead of saying “oops.”
