Morrill, Richard. (2007). Strategic leadership: Integrating strategy and leadership in colleges and universities. Reviewed by Mark Ellison, Cabarrus College of Health Sciences

Morrill, Richard. (2007). Strategic leadership: Integrating strategy and leadership in colleges and universities. Westport, CT: Praeger Pp. 295         ISBN 978-0-275-99391-7 Reviewed by Mark Ellison Cabarrus College of Health Sciences October 2, 2008 Richard Morrill brings significant educational leadership and strategic planning experience to the table and has demonstrated the depth of that knowledge and experience in this text. His presidency at the University of Richmond served as the launching pad for that institutions enrollment growth, campus facilities enhancements and ascending academic reputation that is a result of careful planning and leadership, which has been recognized by many of his peers. His leadership at the University of Richmond, and the transformation the institution experienced with his guidance, gives his voice credence and commands the respect of those seeking to learn more about strategic leadership. The University of Richmond had, in the 1970’s an endowment of $6 million, faculty salaries at the fortieth percentile, and vacant residence hall rooms being used as faculty offices. Contrast this with the nearly $2 billion dollars in assets the institution now has, faculty salaries over the ninetieth percentile for small universities, and residence halls that are overflowing. The primary objective of this book is to demonstrate the process of strategy and why and how to use it in higher education. Morrill believes that because of the collegial nature of college decision making the process is particularly promising for these institutions. It is emphasized that leadership has to be multidimensional, not defined by a single method. Morrill explains that the concept of strategic planning is how strategy is now defined in higher education. He describes strategic planning as a category rather than a specific method. It was in the 1980’s that strategic planning emerged in higher education highlighted by George Kellers (1983) book Academic Strategy. Strategic planning became widespread in the 1980’s and 1990’s and implementation of these plans became the next wave of the process. Morrill cites the need for a more clearly defined, re-conceptualized and reformulated strategy process. This book, according to Morrill can serve to “move the conceptual register from management to leadership” (p. xiii). By doing so, the intellectual repositioning that is necessary will be accomplished. To do this, Morrill discusses the various forms of leadership in higher education: preparing for strategic leadership; strategic governance and creating a strategic planning committee; the use of narratives in strategic leadership; the necessity of doing so to build identity; the centrality of mission and vision to strategic leadership; positioning and the use of SWOT analysis; the development of strategic initiatives, imperatives, goals and actions; and integrating strategic leadership to maximize effectiveness. Strategic leadership is defined as “the use of the strategy process as a systematic method of decision making that integrates reciprocal leadership into its concepts and practices” (p. xi). Morrill makes it clear in the preface that the intended audience for this book is “faculty, administrators, and board members who study, lead or participate in the strategic decision making processes of colleges and universities” (p. xvii). He utilizes literature in the fields of leadership, higher education governance, institutional strategic planning reports, and examples of mission and vision statements from colleges across the country. The literature the author cites is diverse and for the most part directly related to higher education. Those who seek to apply business models to higher education may prefer the inclusion of more literature from that field, but this book is by an academic for academics. However, utilizing examples from business would provide a point of comparison to evaluate the examples Morrill proposes. To ensure familiarity with the various leadership categories, Morrill gives a basic over view of leadership theories focusing primarily on the relational, transformational, and transactional approaches. Appropriate attention is placed on the importance of systems theory in higher education, especially the concept of loosely coupled systems. Including systems theory helps the reader understand how Morrill views organizations in the context of higher education. Birnbaum’s (1988, 1992) texts are cited frequently and reveal a significant frame of reference Morrill uses in his work. A strength in this section of the book is Morrill’s point that using leadership frames (bureaucratic, political, collegial and symbolic) takes the focus away from cognitive capacities and the orientation of the individual. He suggests that leaders with only a couple of identified leadership abilities will have difficulty responding effectively to the many challenges that will be faced as a leader. It is refreshing to read this, because all too often, people are labeled with one leadership category. Morrill understands the necessity of utilizing situational leadership to maximize effectiveness. One of the most appealing aspects of the book, one that will certainly be appreciated by administrators and faculty alike, is that he provides a guideline for developing the strategic leadership plan. An overview of how to do an environmental scan and SWOT analysis is provided to help in determining strategic positioning. Part of this plan, included in chapter six, is a questionnaire that can be shared with institutional stakeholders to begin a dialogue about identity. This creative questionnaire, developed by O’Toole (1981) makes use of metaphors to describe the chronological age of the college and its health using terms such as an infant, toddler, old, senile, and robust, sound and infirm. Participants (faculty and staff) are asked to identify key events in the history of the organization, what are the best and worst things to have happened, to list phrases that best describe the college, to list five short descriptive phrases or adjectives that best describe the college and asks them to identify what the institution should be in ten years. Using this helps get people involved and thinking creatively. According to Morrill (2007) the more involved people are in the process, the more they can help shape the vision, and the more likely they are to be engaged. This is a new and enlightening way to scan for institutional information from faculty and staff. Morrill continues to weave his ideas with comparisons to other work through out the book. He identifies the University of Minnesota and the University of Richmond as two schools that under went change, and described what occurred there. The University of Richmond analysis is much more in-depth due to his experiences at the institution. It would have been helpful to have more information on the University of Minnesota, however, his thoughts on the University of Richmond were insightful. As a former college president Morrill demonstrates his understanding of the importance of the leadership abilities of the man or woman in the position. “Presidents should be teachers who are always looking below the surface of events to find the currents that are shaping the future of the university and the larger society. In finding the right symbols and metaphors they are able to tell their organizations story to create a bridge from where we are to where we might be” (p. 126). Birnbaum (1992) is quoted as stating that presidents that are identified as exemplary by faculty, staff and trustees are “ presidents who are distinguished by their strong interpretive skills, their ability to embody the institution’s values and to affirm its strengths” (p. 126). It is common to see higher education institutions, corporations, and governments that have leaders that do not understand the organizations they lead, or how to move an organization from where it is to where it needs to be. The list of companies who have endured scandals, colleges that have lost their vision, and governments that are corrupt underlines the need for value-based leaders who know how to strategically plan. Significant attention is directed to the need for a mission and vision, which is described as being at the heart of strategic leadership. A helpful description of what a vision should encompass is described as “creating a desire to have a reputation exceeding others” (p. 147). Another important point Morrill makes is that the focus should be on how an organization be the best, not what does the organization do the best. Examples of vision statements for a number of public and private four-year institutions are provided to give the reader an idea of statements that are positive examples. It is notable to mention that no land grant institutions, flagships or community colleges are used in this section, or in fact, rarely in the book at all. The reader is a provided a laundry list of what a vision statement should be, such as clear, concise, plausible, authentic and measurable among other things. Morrill describes a number of questions that an institution should ask of itself as it develops a mission statement. He used several resources from which to gather his questions, which include: Where did we come from? What really matters to us? By whom are we governed? Why do we exist? What do we do? How do we do it? Whom do we serve? One of the more helpful aspects of the text is a cross matrix that is used to list opportunities and threats. The cross matrix lists the strategic indicator and then the political, educational, economic, social and technological trends that could impact each trend. This can easily be utilized in areas such as enrollment planning, development and fundraising, and new program planning. A powerful concept in this book that Morrill uses to differentiate strategic planning in higher education from that of the business sector is the concept of powerful learning. Morrill states “ to contribute to academic leadership, strategy has to be integral; it must connect with the deepest purposes of the organizations as it has been shaped in response to the context in which it lives. For the college or university to understand its differentiating characteristics, it has to know what it believes in, what it intends its education to be, and how it can create for its time and place the practices and conditions on which powerful student learning depends” (p. 200). The precepts of powerful learning can be identified by an institution and used to determine how to strategically set it apart. Those precepts include: transformative, intentional, engaged, global, broad, coherent, useful, inclusive, integrative, enriched, technological, experiential, responsible, substantive, rigorous, assessed and encompassing. A central purpose of the book, which Morrill states explicitly in chapter nine, is that many institutions have strategic plans that are light on measurable goals. The strategic plan needs to be a living document that is referenced frequently. Measurable goals should be included such as enrollment planning targets, fundraising goals, and faculty development initiatives with quantitative measures that can be used to determine success. He points out that goals are a way to test the validity of a strategy. The ability to implement strategic goals depends heavily on the ability to assess them. “ Leadership with out execution creates an empty vision, management with out leadership is nearsighted” (p. 217). This is where many organizations miss the boat. Lofty mission statements are crafted with many ideals placed on paper, and then are placed on a shelf not to be seen again until it is time for the next strategic plan to be formulated. A key ingredient to helping the implementation of any plan is having the right people in place. Morrill recognizes the importance of this to make a plan have life, otherwise it will not be effective. Another strength of this book is the emphasis Morrill places on institutions identifying core competencies instead of focusing on specific programs or assets. Instead shifting the focus to “broad capacities or abilities that generate a range of strengths and achievements” (p. 164). He identifies these as including such things as creating consistent innovations in teaching; attracting and retaining outstanding scholars; building strong programs in diversity; or focusing on international education. The same type of list can also be formulated for administrative processes. Morrill understands that the strategic plan will fail if not communicated properly. Realizing this he wisely includes a communication plan listing steps to follow. With the advent of web 2.0 initiatives such as blogs, and chats, the list can now be expanded. These mediums would provide valuable real time feedback regarding a strategic plan and its continued analysis and implementation. The University of North Carolina system is utilizing the internet and web 2.0 technologies to facilitate communication related to the UNC Tomorrow plan. This plan includes institutional level strategic planning built around a system wide vision of meeting the needs of the people of North Carolina. One of the most important statements Morrill makes in this book is found in the last pages: “existing or contemplated strategic initiatives provide the content necessary for charting development of a quality enhancement plan (QEP)” (p. 227). Ideally more emphasis would have been placed on this concept, and it should have been addressed earlier in the book. Any institution accredited by a regional accrediting agency and has, or will be soon going through re-accreditation, understands the need for a QEP, and has probably struggled with how to implement one that impacts the strategic plan. More emphasis could have been placed on the importance of aligning a quality enhancement plane (QEP) with a strategic plan. This book is a good reference point for an institution to begin the strategic planning process and for direction in trying to develop a QEP that incorporates many aspects of the campus community. It references quality sources that can be used to build on the concepts presented in the book, and also serves to validate the work of the author. Unfortunately community colleges are all but ignored in this work. These institutions, which may be changing more than any other in American higher education, could have benefited substantially with more attention to the positive efforts of community colleges. However, community college administrators will find this book to provide many good strategies that can be implemented on their campuses. Morrill identifies institutions that have implemented a strategic plan effectively, and also those who understand how to craft a vision and mission. One is left to wonder how institutions have excelled at developing strategic leadership plans since the book was published. An interesting way to keep this text current and to provide even more help to intuitions involved in strategic planning would be to develop a website that built on the this work. It could be used to continue analysis of institutions that have done particularly well, and serve as a way to continue the dialogue he started with this book. In this book Morrill provides an authoritative voice and a solid starting point for any institution looking for direction on developing a strategic leadership plan. One can hope that many success stories can be told as a result of institutions utilizing this book. References Birnbaum, R. (1988). How colleges work San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Birnbaum, R. (1992). How academic leadership works. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. O’Toole, J. (1995). Leading change: Overcoming the ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. O’Toole, J. (1981). Making America work: Productivity and responsibility. New York: Continuum. About the Reviewer Mark Ellison is Director of Admissions at Cabarrus College of Health Sciences in Concord, North Carolina. He is a doctoral student in adult and community college education at North Carolina State University. He holds a B.S.B.A. in Marketing from Western Carolina University and a M. Ed. in Higher Education Administration from the University of South Carolina. Mark’s interests include researching the impact of spending time in restorative environments like wilderness solitude on critical reflection, ethical decision making and satisfaction with work and life; and research related to leadership and strategic planning. markellison@alumni.ncsu.edu