National Survey of APLU Vice Presidents and Vice

Chancellors for ResearchKelvin K. Droegemeier, Lori A. Snyder, and Alicia J. Knoedler

University of Oklahoma

Caroline WhitacreThe Ohio State University

Howard Gobstein, Christine Keller, Teri Lyn Hinds, Kacy Redd, and Nathalie Argueta

APLU

APLU Annual MeetingNovember 10-12, 2013

Washington, DC

Motivation

The Vice President/Vice Chancellor for Research (VPR/VCR)... Is a key (though perhaps not well understood)

position in public and private research universities

Is structured and deployed in a wide variety of ways with a wide variety of responsibilities

Is facing many new challenges in the face of problematic budgets, compliance requirements, and dramatic changes in the higher education landscape

Motivation

No comprehensive survey has been conducted of VPRs/VCRs to understand Administrative structures utilized and their

strengths and weaknesses Characteristics and experiences of individuals

holding the position Current roles and responsibilities of the position New and emerging challenges, and skills needed

to meet them Strategies for effectively preparing the next

generation, including possible roles for CRPGE and other APLU organizations

Goal and Audience

Via scholarly analyses of data from a national, web-based survey of APLU VCRs/VPRs, our goal is to provide information that builds greater understanding of these important positions and assists senior university administrators in assuring excellence in the structure, function and leadership of the university research enterprise now and in the future

Topical Focal Points

Organizational structure of office/position and how it has changed or may need to change

Characteristics and experiences of people holding the position

Challenges for the future and strategies for addressing them

Preparation of next generation leaders and possible roles for APLU

Process and Timeline

Concept discussed at February, 2013 CRPGE meeting and approved by Executive Committee

Short draft survey given to CRPGE Executive Committee in late spring, 2013 Results discussed at Summer, 2013 meeting Special breakfast session to dig deeper and develop new

questions/areas of emphasis Full survey finalized and (OU) IRB approval received

on 20 September 2013 Survey conducted from 23 September – October 5

2013 Response rate = 56 out of ~ 155 invitations

(36%)

Structure of the Survey: 64 Questions About...

Your Institution (6) You (5) Your Professional Experience (8) The Structure of your Current

Position (19) Training (5) Current State of the VPR/VCR

Position (18) Succession Planning (3)

Status and Products

Initial results are presented herein and some are excluded because of time (budgets, size of organization)

Cluster and other analyses have be performed and are being evaluated

Survey may be re-issued to improve response rate

At least one formal archive publication is planned

Products and key findings will be made available on the APLU web site

Note: VPR/VCR is referred to hereafter as VPR

Statistical Significance

We continue to evaluate the statistical significance of differences presented herein and thus no such significance should be assumed at this time

Characteristics of Sample

VPR Demographics

86% from Research Universities 54% Very high research activity 32% High research activity

96% from public universities

42% from land grant universities

Institution Demographics

Faculty FTE at Institution Yearly Research Expenditures for

Institution (in $millions)

Mean: 1381Std. Dev: 912N: 53

Mean: $196MStd. Dev: $193MN: 56

VPR Gender and Ethnicity

Asian

White

Hispanic

Prefer not to Disclose

Female

Male

Prefer not to Disclose

VPR Gender Differences

A comparison of male and female VPRs detected two small but interesting differences

Institution size Female VPRs reported 1,622 FTE Male VPRs reported 1,308 FTE

Annual institution research expenditures Female VPRs reported $252,614,116 Male VPRs reported $176,414,605

314 FTE difference

$76,199,511 difference

Year VPR received PhDDiscipline of Degree

25% Biomedical and Biomedical Sciences

23% Physical Sciences

23% Engineering

10% Social Sciences

7% Agriculture and related sciences

10 yrs ago

20 yrs ago

30 yrs ago

40 yrs ago

Mean: 1983Std. Dev.: 7N: 56

Questions to Consider

What is contributing to the lack of diversity in terms of ethnicity, gender, and discipline of terminal degree (behavioral & economic sciences, humanities), and how can it be addressed?

Might people enter VPR positions earlier in their career?

Structure of Position

VPR Reporting Structure

President/Chancellor

VP for Academic Affairs/ProvostPresident/Chancellor & VP for Academic Affairs/ProvostVice Chancellor for Research

Other

VPR Organization Demographics

Number in VPR organization

Number reporting directly to VPR

Mean: 184.6Median: 60Std. Dev.: 272.9N: 55

Mean: 10.0Median: 8Std. Dev.: 7.5N: 55

Most Common VPR Responsibilities

External Funding

Research Center/Campus

Institutional Animal Care and Use Commit-tee (IACUC)

Sponsored programs, pre-award services

Human research protections - Institutional Review Board (IRB)

Research development

85% 90% 95% 100%

Other VPR Responsibilities

32% have purview over Health Campus/Organization

30% have purview over Veterinary Medicine Campus/Organization

58% have responsibility for a 501(c)3 non-profit research organization

Questions to Consider

Considerable time and attention are devoted by VPRs to compliance issues. Are we therefore wasting VPR talent that could be devoted to building strategic research activities, establishing collaborations among faculty and institutions, focusing on regional initiatives, etc?

Budget, Spending and Facilities

VPR Budget

62% have budget linked to indirect cost recovery Percentage IDC Contributing to

Budget

Indirect Cost Recovery Differences

Notable differences existed in VPRs that did and did not have budgets linked to institutional indirect cost recovery (IDC)

Institution size VPRs with IDC link reported 1,405 FTE VPRs without IDC link reported 1,338 FTE

Annual institution research expenditures VPRs with IDC link reported $166,385,277 VPRs without IDC link reported $252,312,769

67 FTE difference

$85,927,492 difference

VPR Budget (in millions of dollars)

In Millions of Dollars

VPR Budget Normalized by Research Expenditures

What is your role in deciding whether cost sharing should be provided to a given grant proposal submission?

What is your role in providing money for grant proposal cost sharing relative to other offices once the decision to provide it has been made?

VPR Role in Retention Packages 59% have role in funding retention

packages, relative to other offices

Percentage funded by VPR

VPR Role in Startup Packages 79% have a role in funding startup

packages Percentage of start-up funded by VPR

I have control over the allotment of space and facilities for research.

Questions to Consider

Is linking the VPR budget to research expenditures and/or IDC recovery an effective practice (this question is being debated nationally with regard to IDC)?

Could the VPR position be more effective if provided with greater funding and/or discretion over spending?

Strategic Planning

I am very involved in budget planning at the university level.

I am very involved in strategic planning at the university level.

Research Strategic Planning

75% of universities have institution-wide strategic plan for research and/or graduate education VPR led creation of plan in 72% of

schools

21% of universities have institution-wide strategic plan for undergraduate research VPR led creation of plan in 18% of

schools

Graduate Education and Research Strategic Plan Differences

Differences reported by VPRs that did and did not have institution-wide strategic plans for grad education and/or research

Institution size VPRs with a plan reported 1,413 FTE VPRs without a plan reported 1,213 FTE

Annual institution research expenditures VPRs with a plan reported $200,651,168 VPRs without a plan reported $178,107,142

200 FTE difference

$22,544,026difference

Topics in Strategic Plan for Research

Other

Linking research with philanthropy

Diversity among faculty and/or students

Non-profit foundations

Diversity of fields of research

Undergraduate Participation in Research

Applied Research Development

Research Interactions with Private Sector

External Funding

Multidisciplinary Research

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70%

Undergraduate Research Plan Differences

Different patterns were reported by VPRs that did and did not have institution-wide strategic plans for undergraduate research

Institution size VPRs with a plan reported 1,275 employees VPRs without a plan reported 1,412 employees

Annual institution research expenditures VPRs with a plan reported $218,978,551 VPRs without a plan reported $189,146,711

137 FTE difference

$29,831,840 difference

Questions to Consider

What role does/should the VPR office play in undergraduate research?

What ROI is perceived to arise from establishing an institution-wide strategic plan for undergraduate research?

Do VPRs tend to be managers or leaders in the institutional research agenda?

Would additional control over funding provide greater value to the VPR position and help attract people into it?

Preparation for and Views Toward Holding the VPR Position

Recall: VPR Demographics

86% from Research Universities 54% Very high research activity 32% High research activity

96% from public universities

42% at land grant university

VPR Gender and Ethnicity

Asian

White

Hispanic

Prefer not to Disclose

Female

Male

Prefer not to Disclose

Year VPR received PhD

Discipline of Degree

25% Biomedical and Biomedical Sciences

23% Physical Sciences

23% Engineering

10% Social Sciences

7% Agriculture and related sciences

10 yrs ago

20 yrs ago

30 yrs ago

40 yrs ago

Mean: 1983Std. Dev.: 7N: 56

On how many professional Boards, Commissions, Committees, and Councils external to your institution do you currently serve?

I received formal or informal TRAINING that allowed me to be a competitive candidate for my current position(s).

I received formal or informal PERSONAL MENTORING that allowed me to be a competitive candidate for my current position(s).

What else was instrumental in helping you to get your position?

Funding/Sponsored Research

Dean/Assoc Dean

Career success as faculty member/researcher

Service in governmental/federal organization

Chair/Director/Assistant Director

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

The opportunities for professional development I receive at my institution are helping me to excel in my current position.

Most Important Knowledge

How to develop and/or sustain programs

National Research Priorities

Personnel management

Developing and/or supporting strategic research areas and/or teams

University Culture

0% 10%20%30%40%50%60%70%80%

Most Important Skills

Critical thinking

Strategic planning

Ability to gain credibility in eyes of faculty

Ability to influence stakeholders (e.g., President, fellow Deans, Trustees, etc.)

Leadership

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Greatest Current Challenges of Position

Insufficient external funding

Too many activities for one person

Faculty who are insufficiently bold and unwilling to take risks

Burdensome Federal compliance regulations

Insufficient internal funding

Declining Federal budgets

0% 20% 40% 60%

Greatest Current Rewards of Position

Helping create jobs

Helping students achieve their goals

Building infrastructure for future research

Seeing advances made in the scholarly enterprise

Helping faculty achieve their goals

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Why VPRs would accept position if offered it today (N=39) (open-ended)

Rewarding

Ability to Influence Progress and Growth

Challenge

Enjoy the job/Great job

Having Influence (General)

0% 5% 10%15%20%25%30%35%

Why VPRs would not accept position if offered it today (N=11)

Funding (University or Federal)

Affect on family

Issues with Leadership

Lack of Influence

Too many responsibilities/Exhausting

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40%

Questions to Consider

What aspects of the VPR role contribute to the desirability or lack of desirability of the position?

Would people from a non-traditional academic track be successful as a VPR in terms of capabilities and acceptance by peers?

In light of historical VPR career paths and skills, does it makes sense to have VPRs also oversee economic development activities?

How can the VPR position be made more attractive, and how can the next generation of leaders be proactively developed?

Challenges for Future and Strategies for Addressing Them

How long do you plan to remain in your current position?

What career path do you plan to pursue after you leave your current position?

Same Position Elsewhere

Research Faculty

VP for Remainder of Career

Provost

President

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35%

How many VPRs at your institution later became President/Provost?

None One Two Three Four Five0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

My responsibilities have changed during my time in the VPR/VCR position

New challenges/roles taken on recently

Research development

Federal Relations

Foundation relations

Commercialization of University research

Export controls

Private Industry Relations

Economic development

0% 10% 20% 30% 40%

Top Emerging Trends/Challenges for VPRs (open-ended)

Getting Faculty to Apply for Funding/Faculty Overwhelmed with Responsibilities

Industry Funding/Industry Relations

Compliance burden

Commercialization/Economic Development

Less funding/Funding Uncertainty

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Knowledge/Skills Needed for Position in Next 3-5 Years (open-ended)

Strategic Planning/Strategic Planning Im-plementation

Leadership/Management Skill

Ability to build linkages with private sector/industry;Working with private sector/industry

in research

Collaboration Skills/Teamwork/Ability to Build Teams

External Relations

0% 10% 20% 30% 40%

Ways to Make VPR Position More Effective (open-ended)

Involvement in Strategy

Authority for Personnel Decisions (Hiring/Evaluation/Tenure Review)

More Institutional Focus on Research

Report to President

More Staffing

More Funding

More Authority/Autonomy/Voice

0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25%

Questions to Consider Should we be concerned that VPR skills

viewed as most important for the future are somewhat different than skills obtained as a traditional faculty researcher?

Is the VPR position seen as a stepping stone or as a last job prior to retirement? Does this impact those who might wish to enter the position, especially earlier in their career?

Do more current VPRs intend to pursue the role of President and/or Provost than in the past? Is this realistic given the statistics about positions obtained in the past?

What steps can be taken to plan effectively for the upcoming large turnover in VPR positions?

Preparing Next Generation of VPRs

APLU Orientation for new VPRs

39% attended formal APLU orientation 14% found it very unhelpful 73% found it helpful 14% found it very helpful

What was helpful about APLU orientation, or would have made it more helpful? (open-ended)

HR/Budget training

Compliance Issues

Clarification/Training on responsibilities

Networking/Learning from other VPRs

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

How much mentoring of potential future VPRs have you or your institution been providing during the past 3 years?

In the past, how has your university typically filled the VPR position?

My institution has a succession plan or clear path to developing the background needed for someone to attain my current position.

Top Ways to Prepare Future VPRs (open-ended)

Experience in office of VPR

Trainings from APLU/CRPGE

Administration Experience (other than Research Administration)

Leadership/Management/Communication Training

Experience in Research Administration

0% 5% 10% 15% 20%

Questions to Consider

How can we best prepare for the upcoming significant turnover in the VPR ranks?

How can institutions most effectively plan for succession in the VPR position?

Will the ideal VPR candidate have the same qualifications in 2-3 years as they do today?

If tenure in the VPR role becomes shorter, how might successors best be prepared?

How might CRPGE training be improved?

Questions to Consider

Do roles exist in CRPGE for Associate VPRs and others who might aspire to become VPRs? Can this be part of the professional development experience?

How can the survey results be most effectively distributed, and considered for use by senior academic leaders?

Preliminary Findings

VPR gender and ethnic diversity are notably low Surprisingly few institutions have plans for

undergraduate research given its increasing importance in academic scholarship and education

Institutions with strategic plans for research tend to fare better

VPR duties, workload and future challenges suggest difficulty attracting the next generation of leaders

VPR succession planning appears to not be a priority within institutions

Preliminary Findings

Considerable turnover (~50%) may occur in VPR positions during the next 1-3 years. Coupled with the clear lack of succession planning and mentoring of the next generation -- not to mention all of the changes underway in higher education -- we could be facing a very serious situation with regard to research administration leadership. It is unclear who owns this challenge.

Preliminary Findings

Current VPRs appear to view their successors as having career paths similar to their own. We may be missing an opportunity to draw in other types of leaders, e.g., from the research development professional ranks.

More senior academic leadership positions desired by current VPRs (provost, president) are mostly incongruent with what former VPRs actually obtained

Next Steps

Decide whether to re-issue the survey

Continue the analysis Statistical significance Cluster and other methods

Engage Presidents and Provosts Prepare draft manuscript

Reflections

The survey should be conducted again in 5 years, possibly with additional questions/issues

We should consider partnering with AAU in the future

The survey may be a role model for assessing other key positions (e.g., provosts, graduate deans)

Other APLU councils and committees might benefit from these types of surveys

Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge APLU President Peter McPherson, for his

support and encouragement Those who completed the survey Joyce Williams, CRPGE Brett Litwiller and William Taylor,

University of Oklahoma Department of Psychology

Discussion Period

Questions For Discussion

1. What is contributing to the lack of diversity and how can it be addressed?

2. Could VPRs focus more on research development and other key strategic activities if compliance and/or other responsibilities are removed/restructured?

3. Is the VPR position sufficiently well understood and attractive to draw in the leadership needed for the future?

4. Can it be more effective as a step toward higher positions?

5. How can we best develop the next generation? Are non-traditional pathways to the position viable, and how can APLU help?