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February 26, 2014

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Entrepreneurial approach to personneldevelopment and leadership transition

By Richard Eaton | February 26, 2014, Wednesday | Print Edition

New schools start with great enthusiasm. An atmosphere that anything is possible prevails. Teachers and school leaders strive to forge an educational product that is both unique, and progressive, albeit one that will stand the test of time. The latter is often the most difficult part.

According to educational theorist, Dean Fink, many schools experience what he calls the “attrition of change.” This is a phenomenon whereby a new, innovative school gradually regresses into a traditional, run of the mill, flat-out ordinary school. According to Fink, this happens for several reasons. For one, what innovative educators believe makes a good educational institute often differs from what parents and other stakeholders think constitutes good schooling. This can be saliently felt in China, for example, where there is likely to be a cultural gap between parent expectations and forward thinking Western pedagogues, making it difficult for new schools yet to demonstrate a track record of success to maintain their trajectory. This is especially true for schools that believe in listening to and responding to stakeholder expectations, which is part and parcel of private education. Another element that can lead to the “attrition of change” is poorly planned leadership transitions and a failure to develop human capital. The loss of a key administrator, particularly a founding head, is never easy, but in the transient world that is international education, it is also inevitable. This is why Xiehe Education Group, the parent organization of Shanghai United International School takes an advanced approach to succession planning and personnel development.

With seven international schools located in Puxi, Pudong, and as of this year Wuxi, Xiehe’s philosophy is to “appoint from within first,” says Maxine Lu, one of Xiehe’s veteran principals. This ensures principals and heads ascending to positions of responsibility are familiar with Xiehe’s unique approach to “East meets West” learning.

With nearly 40 local schools also under the Xiehe umbrella, many of which run international programs and employ foreign teachers, the organization has become embryotic when it comes to producing excellent middle leaders capable of becoming principals in its lighthouse international schools.

This potential has been enhanced by the creation of the organization’s “Star Project,” an internal training course designed by Principal Lu and her colleagues.

“Star Project” trainees are middle leaders both Western and Chinese who have been identified as having the potential to one day aspire to greater heights. They participate in a yearlong series of workshops facilitated by Xiehe senior managers, professors, and local experts, culminating with both a written and project based examination moderated by unit lecturers. Tuition is free for those who qualify. Past participants who have gone on to principalships include Maria Wu, principal of the Shang Yin campus of SUIS, and James Waldron, vice principal of SUIS Wuxi. Said one participant after a lecture on service learning, “The atmosphere was burning in the classroom.”

Finally, when a principal is known to be leaving Xiehe, and an internal replacement is not available, the board often appoints their successor a term in advance, committing to an extra administrator’s salary for six months in order to enable the leaving and incoming head to work together for an extended period of time before the new administrator takes over. Such a model has been used successfully on both the Wan Yuan and Gubei campuses of SUIS.

Kevin Chederquist, the new vice principal of the Wan Yuan campus, says that “I have enjoyed the benefits of a strategically planned transition that has helped me better understand my new context.”

Xiehe’s investment, in personnel development and leadership transitions will continue to play a role in helping Xiehe’s new schools avoid the “attrition of change,” and develop in a sustainable way, shining as beacons of “East meets West” in China and beyond.

(Richard Eaton is co-principal of SUIS Wan Yuan US High School campus.)


 

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