andrew w. wright assistant vice president for enrollment services & director of admissions

MOACAC 2011

Moving Up & Moving Away|

Moving Up & Moving Away:Successfully making the transition after getting the

promotion and moving to a new school

Andrew W. Wright

Assistant Vice President for Enrollment Services & Director of Admissions

MOACAC 2011


Your presenter

MOACAC 2011


Your presenter

Eastern Michigan University•Recruiter – August 2000•Assistant Director – April 2001•Associate Director – May 2002

Missouri State University

May 2009

MOACAC 2011


So what’s the big deal?

• Uprooting your home life• Learning a new city• Adjusting to a new boss• Learning about a whole new staff• Developing a new support system on campus• Understanding a new environment• Figuring out where you need to improve

MOACAC 2011


Home Life

• Don’t jump right from one job to the next

• Take care of necessities

• Don’t forget about family

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Time to focus on you

• Assess your vulnerabilities• Watch out for your strengths• Let go of the past and embrace your new role• Relearn how to learn

“The quality of a leader is reflected in the standards they set for themselves.

- Ray Kroc

MOACAC 2011


Time to focus on you

Questions you should ask

•What has made you successful so far in your career?•What skills do you need to develop to be successful in your new role?•What do you need to do to make the mental leap into the new position?

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The first 30 days

• Learning should be the primary focus• The revolving Presidents at EMU• Investment

• The trouble with culture• Identify people who can give you insight

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Your Boss

• Expectations• Thoughts on current state of the office• Quirks and idiosyncrasies

Your new boss sets your benchmarks, interprets your actions for other key players, and controls access to resources you need.

MOACAC 2011


Your Boss

Don’ts•Don’t trash the past•Don’t stay away•Don’t surprise your boss•Don’t approach your boss only with problems•Don’t run down your checklist•Don’t try to change your boss

“He that cannot obey cannot command.”

-Benjamin Franklin

MOACAC 2011


Your BossDo’s•Do take 100% responsibility for making the relationship work

•Do clarify mutual expectations early and often

•Do negotiate timelines for diagnosis and action planning

•Do aim for early wins in areas important to the boss

•Do pursue good marks from those whose opinions your boss respects

MOACAC 2011


Your Boss

Five Conversations•The Situational Diagnosis•Expectations•Style•Resources•Personal development

“The manager asks how and when; the leader asks what and why.”

-Warren Bennis

MOACAC 2011


Your Staff

One-on-Ones•Help them understand why you want to chat•Try to make it a conversation•Get their thoughts on the office and how things are going•Pay attention to what they say and how they say it•This is your chance to learn about your staff and identify their expectations

“People ask the difference between a leader and a boss… The leader works in the open, and the boss in covert. The leader leads, and the boss drives.”

-Theodore Roosevelt

MOACAC 2011


Your Staff

One-on-Ones•Ask them questions

• How can we improve how our team works?• What are our biggest challenges and opportunities?• If you were in my position, what would you most want to pay

attention to?

The most important decisions you make in the first 90 days will probably be about the people on your team.

MOACAC 2011


Your Staff

• Identify those being under-utilized or not being use in the right way

• Favorites and underappreciated staff• Managing across generations and work styles• Learn the culture of the office

The process of molding a team is like repairing an airplane in midflight. You won’t reach your destination if you ignore the necessary repairs.

MOACAC 2011


Your Staff

Earn trust and get people on “your team”

•Do you have the insight and steadiness to make tough decisions?

•Do you have values they relate to, admire and want to emulate?

•Do you have the right kind of energy?

•Do you demand high levels of performance from yourself and others?

“The task of the leader is to get people from where they are to where they have not been.”

- Henry Kissinger

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The Campus Community

• Develop and advice and counsel network• Admission’s success generally requires help from

others• The Finance Office• Know the informal networks• Watch out for those who may want to hold you back

“The key to successful leadership today is influence, not authority.”- Kenneth Blanchard

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Your environment

• SCOT Analysis• External environment

• Competition• Economy• HS & CC situations

• University environment

Cultural habits and norms have an especially frustrating way of reinforcing the status quo – no matter how much the status quo needs changing.

MOACAC 2011


Your environment

The situation you are going in to will determine your approach/strategies•Turnaround•Realignment•Sustaining success

People seldom call their power company to say, “Thanks for keeping the lights on today.” But, if the power goes off, the screaming is immediate and loud.

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Goals

• University goals

• Your goals• Remember, don’t commit to unachievable goals

“A leader takes people where they want to go. A great leader takes people where they don’t necessarily want to go, but ought to be.”

- Rosalynn Carter

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Victories

• Identify opportunities

• Try to get some early wins

• Excite and energize people

• Build your personal credibility

“I used to think that running an organization was equivalent to conducting a symphony orchestra. But I don’t think that’s quite it, it’s more like jazz. There is more improvisation.”

- Warren Bennis

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Victories

• Implement change in waves

• Focus on a collective learning process and not autocratic change

• Process does matter

“Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power.”

- Abraham Lincoln

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Common traps

• Riding off in all directions / Failing to focus• Not taking business situation into account• Not adjusting for the culture• Failing to get wins that matter to your boss

The biggest danger you face is belief in one-size-fits-all rules for success.

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Common traps

• Letting your means undermine your ends• Work avoidance• Isolation

“A sense of humor is part of the art of leadership, of getting along with people, of getting things done.”

- Dwight D. Eisenhower

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Never let success go to

your head,And

Never let failure get to your

heart.

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Resources• “The First 90 Days” – Michael Watkins• “Monday Morning Leadership” – David Cottrell• “Fish” – Stephen Lundin, Harry Paul & John Christensen• “The College Admissions Officer’s Guide” – edited by Barbara

Lauren• “What Got You Here Won’t Get You There” – Marshall Goldsmith• “The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving

One That Isn’t” – Bob Sutton

andrew w. wright assistant vice president for enrollment services & director of admissions

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