Academic leaders are often trained to focus on vision, communication, decision-making, and change management. Those skills matter. Still, every leadership decision eventually depends on the people asked to carry it forward. In higher education, those people may be faculty, staff, students, committee members, department chairs, or program directors.
How Leaders Shape, Signal, and Build Cultures: A Discussion Guide for Academic Leaders and Their Teams
Among the many desired traits most prized in academic leadership, the ability to shape (or reshape) institutional culture is sometimes overlooked in favor of fiscal acumen, the ability to drive
Lisa Jasinski
May 4, 2026
