James L. Fisher

Higher education and total quality management

Those who advocate the use of total quality management (TQM) in higher education issue strong promises that it will unite campuses, increase employee satisfaction and improve nearly any process that it touches. Unfortunately, the empirical evidence in favor of TQM in universities is mostly anecdotal and surprisingly sparse. The evidence that does exist relates primarily to administrative tasks such as bill collection, check writing, financial aid and registration. But, the truly significant problems facing higher education today relate to the nature of the curriculum, uses of faculty time, how to restrain cost increases, distance learning and the use of technology, cooperative relationships with business, and governance and leadership arrangements. TQM has precious little to say about these things and even erects subtle roadblocks to change in these areas because of its strong emphasis upon meetings, consensus and process over product. Further, it turns out to be a costly approach to decision-making becau...

Presidential leadership : making a difference

Chapter 1 The Model and the Evidence Chapter 2 In the Spirit of Saint Simone Chapter 3 Research on Leadership and Power: Principles and Evidence Chapter 4 Systematic Evidence on the Effective College President Chapter 5 Presidential Characteristics: Further Reflections Chapter 6 Charisma, Public Presence, and the Transformational President Chapter 7 Gender, Race, and the College Presidency Chapter 8 Presidential Constituencies and Tasks Chapter 9 The President, the Administration, and the Spouse Chapter 10 The President and TQM Chapter 11 The President and Institutional Governance Chapter 12 The President and the Faculty Chapter 13 The President and the Students Chapter 14 The President and Off-Campus Constituencies Chapter 15 The President and Politicians, Public Figures, and Bureaucrats Chapter 16 The President and the Media Chapter 17 The President and the Alumni Chapter 18 The President, Philanthropy, and Fund Raising Chapter 19 Governing Boards and the President Chapter 20 The President and the Trustees Chapter 21 Responsibilities of the Governing Board Chapter 22 Evaluating the Institution Chapter 23 Searching for the President Chapter 24 Presidential Compensation and Related Matters Chapter 25 Evaluating the President