Noah Pickus, an associate provost at Duke University (and fellow social scientist), shared an opportunity on LinkedIn for a new executive director for strategic initiatives and global higher education. I connected with Noah to learn more about the role.
Q: What is the university’s mandate behind this role? How does it help align with and advance the university’s strategic priorities?
A: This role supports a series of evolving internal initiatives and external partnerships. Internally, the provost has launched universitywide programs addressing topics such as the conflict in the Middle East, teaching excellence and innovation, and academic freedom and belonging. These initiatives are typically time-limited and require stewardship and collaboration throughout their life cycle as they become integrated into the institution.
Externally, Duke is enhancing its approach to strategic international engagement. This includes our joint-venture campus in China, which fosters academic innovation and serves as a platform for educational collaborations in Asia. Another emerging project is a global “open-source” consortium that connects established and emerging universities to increase worldwide access to high-quality education at reduced costs and to drive future learning innovations.
This role will support and steward these and other emerging strategies.
Q: Where does the role sit within the university structure? How will the person in this role engage with other units and leaders across campus?
A: This position reports to the associate provost, who has responsibilities across academic strategy, global initiatives and educational innovation without owning any single area. The new executive director will collaborate closely with director-level direct reports to the associate provost, the provost’s office senior staff and faculty and administrators across the university. Additionally, the role involves working with Duke Kunshan University and partner universities globally. The position requires flexibility and resilience to adapt to the evolving needs of high-impact entrepreneurial projects, support short-term consulting projects and facilitate communication and collaboration among internal and external stakeholders.
Q: What would success look like in one year? Three years? Beyond?
A: Success in this role varies by project. In some cases, it will involve ideating, incubating and prototyping new ventures. In others, it will mean supporting and stewarding collaborative projects through a highly matrixed and global research university and eventually seeing them sunset or transition to other units. Success will also come from responding to emerging issues and needs that are hard to predict but inevitably arise.
In the first year, success will be measured by the establishment of systems and structures that enhance the effectiveness of the associate provost’s office. In three years, success will be evident in the number and quality of collaborative projects and new ventures. Beyond that, success will be recognized by the acknowledgment that roles combining internal consulting, project partnership and constituency building significantly contribute to innovation in academic strategies.
Q: What kinds of future roles would someone who took this position be prepared for?
A: This position prepares individuals for several future roles. First, it equips them for leadership positions in academic innovation units that have emerged on many campuses. Second, it prepares them for senior staff roles supporting deans, provosts or presidents. Third, it provides a foundation for launching or joining educational start-up ventures, whether domestic or global.
