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[oatmeal]

Hello Forumites: I was thinking about this question today: "What do you wish you knew before you began your position as Chair of the Department." So, this is a question I would like to ask you. I am interested in what colleagues will come up with. One thing I wish I knew: Where all the skeletons are buried in the program. But I suspect that is impossible to ever find out... Then again, maybe it is better not to know...

[afm_man]

I wish I would have known that the chair is the firehydrant and the rest of the faculty are the dogs.

[derosa]

After chairing for 7 years, I'll say that I think it is useful to be a little naive when one begins as chair.  Not only can one use the "I'm the new guy/gal" thing for a while, but it gives you some freedom to get things done (i.e., I didn't realize I needed 6 approvals before I spent that money, sorry).  Secondly, as chair, you quickly learn more things than you ever cared to know about the faculty that you were once part of (assuming an internal move into the chair).  This can be advantageous or disadvantageous, depending.  I guess the only thing I wish I would have thought about more clearly was an exit strategy.  At this point there is no one waiting (or ready) to step into my position and it is getting close to being time to move on.

[amlithist]

Derosa has it right.  The pearls of wisdom given to me by my dean cover much of the same ground:

1.  You're going to see people at their absolute best...AND their absolute worst.  Be able to keep a poker face in either extreme.

2.  It's often easier to beg forgiveness than to ask permission.

3.  Repeat these phrases until they roll off your tongue without thinking:  "I'm so sorry--I'm new at this."  "I'm so sorry--I'm still learning."  "I'm so sorry--maybe someday this will all be automatic for me, but right now I still have to ask questions."

4.  If the bastards aren't mad at you, either you're not doing your job or they're not paying attention.  (applies to both faculty and higher admin.)

5.  WATCH YOUR BACK.

A couple I'd add:

--Your faculty are NOT your friends.  They're your colleagues; that's all.*

--Trust [virtually] no one.*

--If you're being brought in as a change agent, be prepared to be hated, because nobody likes change.

These last three have been hard for me, because I tend to take people at face value and think the best of people; however, once you're their chair, all bets are off.  Of course, I've had a rough first year, capped by a very nasty incident a week ago last Monday (I posted on the Venting Thread about it).  Hopefully you and others don't have reason to become as guarded as I have.

Good luck!
----
*There are some exceptions:  I have two faculty with whom I was very close before taking the chair, and we still are; out of some 50 faculty members under me, I trust only these two, and of some 1500 administrators across our district, I can honestly say that I trust so few that I can count them on both hands.

[oatmeal]

Thank you for the comments thus far. I look forward to reading some more. I have just finished my first year as chair. I have learnt a lot this year and hopefully the second year will be easier (so to speak). One of my colleagues is thinking of applying for a chair position at another university (see another thread I began on mid-career), so these sorts of questions are on my mind at present. Thanks.

[rugger101]

One thing that I wish I had done at the beginning and will do if I decide to do another term is negotiate an exit package.  Some of my colleagues will receive summer support for a year upon exiting their chair positions.  This will given them time to rebuild their research programs.

[terpsichore]

I have two pieces of advice for new chairs:

First: establish some goals for what you want to accomplish as chair. Otherwise, the day-to-day operations will take all your time and effort and leave you drained and discouraged. If your institution, like most, is suffering from money problems, the goals may be modest or at least inexpensive, but you should not let that stop you from setting them. Here are some possible goals for a department chair: revise or update a part of the curriculum that could use some attention; strengthen connections with alumni; raise the visibility of the department on campus; raise funding for a scholarship. Sit down with a favorite beverage and imagine what you want to have accomplished when you are done being chair. Be realistic but not fearful.

Second: When faculty, staff, and students complain (and they will) remember: it's not about you. You have taken on the role of the "other" and some people can't help but push back even when it's not necessary. Don't take it personally. Find your preferred healthy method of stress release and use it.

[resis]

The former director was consistently very positive in the way she talked about my colleagues. It helped keep morale high. But as the next director, I entered the job with near-complete ignorance of a couple of colleagues who are chronic manipulators. (I didn't interact with the troublemakers much in the past.) As a result, it took me about a year to see through patterns of shenanigans that I would like to have dealt with earlier. In fact, more senior people in my area initially thought I was being far too soft on the troublemakers, not realizing that I was just beginning to notice patterns that they had been aware of for years.