A Strong Appointment Is Only the Beginning

Supporting New Academic Deans to Succeed

Universities invest a great deal of time and care in selecting a new Dean. Search committees are formed, candidates are assessed, references are checked, and considerable attention is given to finding the right person for the role.

Lately, I’ve been thinking more about what happens after the appointment is made.

The Dean’s role has always been demanding, and in many institutions it now carries an even wider range of expectations. Deans are being asked to lead through financial pressure, changing enrolment patterns, workforce challenges, shifting student needs, organizational change, and increasing public scrutiny. At the same time, they must build trust within their faculty, contribute to institution-wide priorities, work effectively with senior leadership, and manage complex relationships with department heads, faculty members, donors, students, unions, and external partners.

It’s a significant transition, even for someone with an impressive record of academic and administrative leadership.

The learning curve may be especially steep for an external hire. Alongside the responsibilities of the role, they are learning a new institutional culture, new governance structures, new relationships, and the informal ways that influence and decision-making work. Much of this context is difficult to capture in an orientation package.

Internal appointments can involve a substantial shift too. A leader who was highly successful as a department head, researcher, clinician, or academic administrator may now be expected to think and act as an institutional executive. They may need to step back from their own discipline, lead through others, work across faculties, make difficult trade-offs, and contribute to decisions that extend far beyond their own area.

Even a very strong appointment can come with a steep and demanding transition.

In my coaching work with Deans, I have noticed how different each person’s situation can be. One may be working to establish credibility with a long-standing faculty group. Another may be trying to build a stronger leadership team. Another may be navigating the tension between advocating for their faculty and supporting broader institutional priorities. Still another may be leading significant change while trying to maintain trust.

There’s no standard formula for these challenges. A confidential place to think, test assumptions, prepare for difficult conversations, and make sense of competing demands can be enormously helpful.

This raises a broader question for institutions: are we giving new Deans enough support to succeed?

Many universities provide operational onboarding, introductions, and information about institutional processes. These are all valuable. The leadership transition itself may also need more attention.

New Deans may benefit from:

• clear conversations about mandate, priorities, and measures of success;

• early attention to the relationship between the Dean and Provost;

• support in mapping key stakeholders and building critical relationships;

• space to think through team, culture, and change challenges;

• opportunities to learn from experienced peers; and

• individualized coaching during the first year.

Providing this kind of support recognizes the complexity of the role and gives new Deans more opportunity to gain traction, build relationships, and lead with confidence.

The appointment is an important milestone. The transition that follows deserves just as much thought.

As universities continue to consider leadership succession, retention, and institutional resilience, it may be worth asking:

• What tends to be hardest for new Deans here?

• Where do they encounter the steepest learning curve?

• What support is currently available?

• And does that support reflect the complexity of the role they are stepping into?

If you’re a Provost, Vice-Provost, Dean, or university HR leader, this may be a useful time to consider what your institution is asking new Deans to carry, and whether the support around them matches the complexity of the role.

You may already have strong practices in place. You may also be noticing gaps in onboarding, transition support, or the early relationships that help a new Dean gain traction.

If this is a question you’re thinking about, I would be glad to compare notes and hear what you are seeing in your institution.