The committee appointed to search for a new university provost has contracted an executive search firm, Greenwood/Asher & Associates, to assist in their mission.
Greenwood/Asher & Associates representatives will serve as “guides to find the right person for the position, to achieve high performance leadership and to ensure organizational success,” according to the firm’s website.
The firm is able to aid the committee in its search by drawing from a national pool of candidates, creating a “deeper and more diverse pool… than could be accomplished with the contacts and communication means available to the committee and university,” said Travis Doom, co-chair of the provost search committee and president of the faculty senate.
Executive search firms may also provide more thorough vetting by performing investigations based on ‘on-list’ references – contacts who have been authorized by an applicant, and ‘off-list’ references – people not included by the applicant, according to Doom.
Several executive search companies were interviewed by university representatives, and Greenwood/Asher was identified as having “the best chance of bringing a diverse pool of strong candidates for Wright State University,” Doom said.
Other factors that were considered in choosing a firm to contract included a firm’s ability to conduct its search in the timeframe outlined by the university and its knowledge of the local area and concerns of the university.
Representatives of the firm including Firm President Jan Greenwood have visited Wright State to speak at public forums regarding the search and to familiarize themselves with the university’s needs.
Firm representatives have been in direct contact with the search committee and university leaders to find out what the university is looking for in a provost and to become familiar with points of pride for the university, in order to attract candidates to Wright State University.
The cost of contracting an executive search firm is typically equal to a third of the annual salary of the position being searched, according to Doom. The Communications Department was unable to provide the contract that Wright State has with the firm or a defined cost at this time.
The role of a university provost can vary on an individual basis. The Provost of Wright State University also serves as an Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs; his or her responsibilities as Executive VP cover anything related to academics. Duties as Provost are to supervise deans and “to make certain our programs are of high academic caliber and meet all accreditation and legal guidelines,” said Doom.
The University has included a leadership profile on its provost search webpage, which covers in-depth the responsibilities of the position and the university’s vision for a provost.
The search committee aims to complete its search for a provost by Jul. 1, 2018.
