A Consulting Engagement With an Educational Senior Administrative Team
March 25, 2014
John C. Littleford has led the education and business consulting firm Littleford & Associates for the past two decades. Serving the needs of diverse clients, from private companies to educational institutions, he provides guidance in areas such as administrative and faculty compensation structures, and strategic planning. In one recent appointment, John C. Littleford was retained by an international client that he had worked with extensively over the years, and for whose board he had provided “best governance practices” training.
In this particular assignment, he worked with 10 senior administrative team members representing several countries, including the UK, the United States, and Australia. The workshop began with an in-depth discussion of global trends in board composition and head tenure, as well as matters of board/chair and head/board relationships. Mr. Littleford also discussed the board’s key responsibilities in managing constituents, and the ways in which “unhealthy behaviors” can arise from board members’ additional roles as alumni and parents. Through gaining intimate understanding of the roles and considerations of heads and board members, these senior team leaders gained new insight into how to structure their board and head engagements in ways that benefitted the school as a whole.