Making the Case for Leadership: Profiles of Chief Advancement Officers in Higher Education

Jon Derek Croteau · Zachary A. Smith

Nov 2011 · Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

About this ebook

The advancement industry has experienced tremendous growth in breadth and depth over the last few decades. Driving this growth is the chief advancement officer; however, as a relatively new position on most college and university campuses, little is formally known about the role and the people who fill it. In Making the Case for Leadership, Jon Derek Croteau and Zachary A. Smith provide insightful and intimate details of ten of the most high performing and successful CAOs in the industry: their career paths, leadership philosophies, and other important leadership variables. Additionally, the book presents the authors' Advancement Leadership Competency Model, based on the results of the interviews and rigorous data analysis. Croteau and Smith delve further into the advancement office and its history, impact, and potential than any book—or research—ever has. They conclude this momentous undertaking with the lessons learned and implications for the future related to the next generation of advancement leaders and future leadership development and training programs.

About the author

Jon Derek Croteau is a senior consultant with Witt/Kieffer, the single largest executive search and leadership solutions firm specializing in health care, education, and not-for-profit organizations committed to improving the quality of life. He is also adjunct professor at The University of Rochester in the Warner Graduate School of Education. He is the author of The People First Approach, a guide to recruiting, developing and retaining the right people, and has published numerous articles on strategic talent management in higher education.
Zachary A. Smith is assistant vice chancellor of development at the University of California, Riverside. He also consults with higher education institutions on talent management and organizational research projects. Previously, he was the senior director of strategic talent management & initiatives for university advancement at the University of California, Irvine. His work has been highlighted in the Chronicle of Higher Education and the Chronicle of Philanthropy.