Many colleges and universities have made poor choices for top leadership positions. Most of the time, the initial selection and vetting of candidates is done by an outside search firm. The problem as Peter Romary argues in today’s Martin Center piece.

Romary, general counsel of and a partner in a risk-management and screening firm, knows the flaws in the process. Amazingly, the search team members often neglect to verify information they receive from applicants.

Unfortunately, many people are often hired to run a university with only the most perfunctory of “background” checks and pro-forma interviews. Candidates are questioned by a committee of non-professional interviewers who may have a list of pre-approved questions, or may be fed bad information from university counsel. My company has seen people who lied during their interview about easily verifiable things, but often, committees miss them entirely because they were afraid to conduct independent research.

Another problem is that search-committee members often have their own biases for or against candidates — biases that keep them from viewing candidates with objectivity.

Romary concludes:

With people ‘shading the truth’ on their CVs, we need more people able to properly interview, critically analyze, and investigate job candidates. For a job as difficult and trying as leading a UNC school or the system itself, choosing a person of high integrity and talent is crucial. Investigating candidates “with dignity and grace,” as UNC Board of Governors chair Harry Smith said, could ensure that we have honest and honorable leaders for the great system of higher education that exists in North Carolina.

Let’s hope that the UNC Board is listening.

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