Book description
Department chairs name “difficult people” or “problem faculty” as the
most pressing issue they face. Coming into the position from a faculty
role, as most do, department chairs have little or no training in
dealing with their colleagues when they exhibit aggressive behavior,
bullying, lack of collegiality, or other varieties of challenging
behavior. Yet the chair's ability to handle people and situations
appropriately is key not just to his or her success in the role but also
to the department's and its members' ability to function productively.
Here, Kent Crookston provides a practical, focused, on-the-ground
approach to help chairs learn to deal with challenging colleagues. Based
on the literature in the field as well as on his own research and
experience, he outlines six steps for successfully dealing with any kind
of a challenging colleague.
R. Kent Crookston is the director of the Academic
Administrative Support Program at the Brigham Young University Faculty
Center. In addition to researching academic administration, he
currently researches and teaches effective decision-making.
