College President Jim Yong Kim definitely has his faults. His administration has much to improve when it comes to transparency, many pressing problems facing the College are still not properly addressed and some of the policy changes passed under his watch are downright preposterous. But being a college president is not easy, and at the end of the day, Kim is very much suited to lead Dartmouth.
Lately however, some people are seeing things a little differently. Last month's profile on Kim's leadership coach Marshall Goldsmith ("Goldsmith to elevate Kim's leadership skills," May 6), has led some to doubt his qualifications and question why he was hired in the first place. Doesn't Dartmouth deserve a president who comes ready to lead, and not some novice who still needs training? All the other current Ivy League presidents served as deans, provosts or presidents of other institutions before assuming their current positions, while Kim's previous leadership experience is limited to healthcare and social medicine. Detractors are quick to point out that just because someone has established clinics in Haiti and championed for social justice doesn't mean he is ready to lead a college and address problems ranging from budget shortfalls to alcohol abuse.
Yet as a relative outsider, Kim has a key advantage over his counterparts who have spent most of their lives in academic administration. Coming from outside the field of higher education, he is not blinded by established norms and has a much broader background from which to draw novel ideas. Kim's medical experiences have led him to develop an advising system based on the Mayo Clinic, and he has been the driving force behind The Dartmouth Center for Health Care Delivery Science, an exciting program with the potential to attract talent and prestige to the College. A president can develop administrative skills through time on the job and perhaps some training, but possessing the breadth and background to address issues from a fresh perspective is a gift he must possess when he arrives.
The president of Dartmouth is expected to be a visionary, someone who is tasked with looking at the big picture and creating innovative goals for the College to tackle. He does not need to be intimately familiar with the intricate details of college administration, as deans can handle the day-to-day functioning of the school and provide advice on issues where his experience is lacking. Thus, the most troubling aspect of Kim's presidency is not his personal lack of experience, but the recent departures of many seasoned administrators who can provide invaluable guidance.
Even the most experienced university leaders have room for improvement and need advisors to fill in whatever shortfalls they might have. An outsider who has not spent years in academic leadership is likely to be even more willing to recognize his problems and appreciate the advice of others. The very fact that Kim is willing to seek help from a leadership coach demonstrates an eagerness to learn and improve. The administration may be image-conscious, but this seems to be an honest and admirable attempt by Kim to publicly admit that there is room for improvement.
Kim has shown that he genuinely wants to become a better president and address the concerns others might have about him. Being one of these critics myself, I can attest to the times when Kim has responded to the criticism I've written on this page and invited me discuss the matter with him. I do not know about other college presidents, but I doubt that it is common practice for them to face criticism so openly. Kim may no longer garner the widespread admiration he once did, but most will probably agree that Dartmouth is lucky to have him.
