Pre­si­dent Coa­ching

From the moment they assume office, uni­ver­si­ty pre­si­dents and rectors are ex­pec­ted to be pro­duc­tive, ar­ti­cu­la­te, and re­spon­si­ve leaders. The array of new tasks can be daun­ting. At every corner, un­fa­mi­li­ar sub­jec­ts call for ex­per­ti­se and re­spon­si­ble de­cisi­on-making. 

With count­less ex­ter­nal and in­sti­tu­tio­nal chal­len­ges waiting to be solved, first-time pre­si­dents and rectors have little time to prepare for their new roles. While coa­ching pro­grams are in­te­gral to pre­pa­ra­ti­on for lea­dership in private-sector or­ga­ni­za­ti­ons, the German higher edu­ca­ti­on land­s­cape lacks similar in­itia­ti­ves. There is cur­r­ent­ly no coa­ching program to prepare newly elected pre­si­dents and rectors for their role as uni­ver­si­ty leaders.

Wübben Stif­tung Wis­sen­schaft’s Pre­si­dent Coa­ching closes this gap by helping first-time pre­si­dents and rectors to suc­cess­ful­ly take office and avoid frus­tra­ting or ha­zar­dous ne­ga­ti­ve ex­pe­ri­en­ces.

The seminar covers a host of re­le­vant topics, such as lea­dership skills, board and com­mit­tee work, com­mu­ni­ca­ti­on in lea­dership, ma­na­ging con­flic­ts, and stra­te­gic plan­ning, that are pre­sen­ted by ex­pe­ri­en­ced uni­ver­si­ty heads. The ses­si­ons also provide ample op­por­tu­ni­ty for dis­cus­sion and net­wor­king. The advice and feed­back shared with other newly elected peers can be inva­lu­able in en­su­ring a smooth start in this new role, and help to build lasting, pro­duc­tive net­works.

Our two-day coa­ching program is for newly elected pre­si­dents and rectors of German uni­ver­si­ties within the first 15 months of office. Par­ti­ci­pants will be invited by Wübben Stif­tung Wis­sen­schaft. 

Par­ti­ci­pa­ti­on is free. Par­ti­ci­pants cover their own travel and ac­com­mo­da­ti­on costs.