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Missing pieces: Regents must define consultant's role

The University Board of Regents is finished hunting for a hunter.

The regents have concluded interviews for candidates to counsel the board during the presidential search. Their collective eye has fallen upon Malcolm MacKay, managing director of the corporate recruiting firm Russell Reynolds Associates, Inc. On Friday, the regents chose MacKay from a list of five search firms. While MacKay possesses a varied and extensive list of credentials, he lacks experience in the public sphere and emphasizes secrecy during the search process. With MacKay heading the search, it is unclear how it will proceed. MacKay himself admitted last week: "I am still not sure how I fit in." The regents must provide him with direction.

Though primarily a corporate recruiter, MacKay has consulted in searches for the presidents of American University and Barnard College. He has helped find directors of such institutions as the National Gallery of Art and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame museum, as well as for organizations like the NAACP and the National Audubon Society. MacKay has emphasized his commitment to diversity and his wish that the presidential search unearth qualified candidates the regents might otherwise overlook. These statements may have been key in the regents' decision -- at forums, the public demanded a strong consideration of multiculturalism in the search.

Though MacKay's resume is varied and prestigious, it does not include experience at public universities. This may be a significant point of concern -- a successful search at a private institution does not necessarily translate to a successful search at a public one. Furthermore, the regents must note that MacKay is accustomed to recruiting candidates to fill corporate positions. Members of the University community have expressed a strong desire concern that the next president have an academic rather than corporate background. MacKay must understand that qualifications for the University presidency are very different than those for CEO candidates.

MacKay's admitted ignorance of University policy on search procedures -- specifically, issues of confidentiality -- may harm him the most. In the interview, MacKay emphasized confidentiality as the "most important issue" during the search. He is neither familiar with the state's Open Meetings Act nor with the furor that erupted during the last presidential search in 1988. MacKay also confessed his lack of familiarity with the University itself.

An understanding of the University, its relationships and its procedures are crucial for a fruitful presidential search. Unlike at least one competing search firm, MacKay is not involved in any other projects at the University. He said he usually conducts only one university search per year -- while this points to a lack of experience, it also means that MacKay can devote most of his time and resources to the presidential search here. The regents rejected other firms because they spread their resources over several university searches at a time. MacKay's concentration on the University search should ensure a timely decision on the next president.

Regardless of MacKay's devotion to the project, the search will not proceed efficiently if the regents fail to specify the qualifications for which MacKay should look. The regents hinted that MacKay should include lower-ranking officials from all schools instead of focusing exclusively on university presidents. However, they have yet to reach a conclusion.