Time Management for Department Chairs

"Department chairs who have asked themselves the question 'Who knows where the time goes' should ask Christian Hansen for the answer. His book, Time Management for Department Chairs, will help chairs maximize the investment of their most important resources—their time, focus, and energy."—Don Chu, author, The Department Chair Primer

"Department chairs take note: Hansen's Time Management for Department Chairs can change your life in just three hours. Written by a seasoned academic chair, the author offers practical ideas and strategic advice about how to increase your day-to-day effectiveness (and sanity) by using proven approaches to managing expectations, organizing tasks, running meetings, monitoring communication, controlling calendars, avoiding interruptions, containing crises, and everything else in between. If you want to learn how to strike a better work-life balance, this book should be at the top of your reading list!"—Christine Licata, senior associate provost, Rochester Institute of Technology

"It's about time—the resource department chairs have the least of and what faculty want the most! Christian Hansen's book is filled with insights, techniques, and artful strategies to help chairs maximize their time while working effectively with faculty and balancing their personal and professional lives. This book is a life saver!"—Walter Gmelch, dean, University of San Francisco

The Author ix

Acknowledgments xi

1 It’s About Time: The Highly Effective Department Chair 1

The Need for Balance 3

You Are Already Doing a Great Job 3

Personal Time Versus Department Time 5

Differences in the Department Chair Role 6

Organization of This Book 7

Part One: Working with Limited Resources 9

2 Getting to the Point: Managing Your Priorities 11

Managing Your Master To-Do List 12

First Things First 13

Scheduling Your Priorities 17

What If There Is an Emergency? 18

Maintaining the P/PC Balance 19

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 20

3 The Art of Enough: Managing Your Resources 22

Scarcity Versus Abundance Mentality 24

How Much Is Your Time Worth? 28

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 28

4 Knowing Where You Stand: Analyzing Your Use of Time 30

Where Have All the Hours Gone? 31

Budgeting Your Time 41

Preparing for the Week Ahead 47

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 48

5 Keeping It All Straight: Getting and Staying Organized 50

Signs of Disorganization 50

Organizing Your Office 52

Organizing Your Department Filing System 55

Organizing Your Computer 58

Organizing Your E-Mail 62

Organizing Your Calendar 64

Overcoming Procrastination 65

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 66

Part Two: Working with People 69

6 You Can’t Do It All: Delegating 71

Delegating and Referring Decisions 72

Delegating Tasks to Faculty 74

Delegation from Faculty to Chair 75

Delegating Tasks to Staff 78

Delegating Acting Chair Responsibilities 80

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 83

7 Taking Charge: Making Meetings Work 84

The Cost of Meetings 85

When to Call a Meeting 86

Agendas 86

Running a Meeting 89

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 91

8 The Artful Leader: Working with Faculty and Students 95

Hiring Faculty 96

Contents vii

Empowering Faculty 98

Dealing with Faculty Conflicts 100

Working with Students 103

Counseling Current and Prospective Majors and Minors 104

Helping Students with Enrollment Issues 104

Advising Students with Instructor or Course Issues 106

Dealing with Students Charged with Misconduct or Violations of Academic Integrity 107

Taking Care of Your Own Students 108

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 109

9 Managing Up and Out: Administration and External Relations 111

Working with the Dean 111

Working with Other Administrators 114

Working with Accreditation Agencies 115

Working with Local Schools and Businesses 117

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 118

10 A Fine Balance: Managing Work-Life Balance 120

Taking Time Management Home with You 123

Winning the Time Lottery 125

Managing Your Stress 126

Claiming Your Reward for a Job Well Done 127

Questions to Consider and Practical Tips 128

References 131

Index 135

Christian Hansen, Ph.D., is associate dean of computing and engineering sciences and former department chair at Eastern Washington University. During the last eight years, he has focused much of his research on time management.

"Department chairs who have asked themselves the question 'Who knows where the time goes' should ask Christian Hansen for the answer. His book, Time Management for Department Chairs, will help chairs maximize the investment of their most important resources—their time, focus, and energy."—Don Chu, author, The Department Chair Primer

"Department chairs take note: Hansen's Time Management for Department Chairs can change your life in just three hours. Written by a seasoned academic chair, the author offers practical ideas and strategic advice about how to increase your day-to-day effectiveness (and sanity) by using proven approaches to managing expectations, organizing tasks, running meetings, monitoring communication, controlling calendars, avoiding interruptions, containing crises, and everything else in between. If you want to learn how to strike a better work-life balance, this book should be at the top of your reading list!"—Christine Licata, senior associate provost, Rochester Institute of Technology

"It's about time—the resource department chairs have the least of and what faculty want the most! Christian Hansen's book is filled with insights, techniques, and artful strategies to help chairs maximize their time while working effectively with faculty and balancing their personal and professional lives. This book is a life saver!"—Walter Gmelch, dean, University of San Francisco