Congratulations on Your Promotion, But . . .

Internal promotions have definite advantages, but there is one huge downside: Promoted faculty members often remain unreplaced for an extensive period of time. When the star economist is promoted to dean, she may continue to teach a few courses, but the courses that she used to teach are still on the schedule and they may not add up to a full-time faculty position. It’s a tough situation for everyone involved, especially if the “hole” in the teaching load continues for very long. It’s even worse when the promoted person’s home department doesn’t know about the promotion until it’s announced late in the year.

How can departments protect their faculty rosters while cultivating success for their administratively talented members?