John Morgan, chair of the Emory University Board of Trustees, sent this message to the Emory community on Dec. 21 to announce the engagement of executive search firm Spencer Stuart to assist and guide the process of selecting the university’s next president.
Dear Emory Community,
I am writing to provide an update on Emory University’s presidential selection process, which I am pleased to report is making significant progress.
The Presidential Selection Committee has met twice since being approved by the Board of Trustees in November, embarking on a thorough, thoughtful, and inclusive process. These are the first of many deliberations by the committee as it reaches out to the Emory community and ultimately selects a presidential nominee to present to the full Board of Trustees.
An important milestone of the committee’s work thus far is the engagement of an executive search firm to assist and guide the selection process. Following consideration of several highly respected search firms, the committee has selected Spencer Stuart, an international company with considerable experience in university presidential searches and with 56 offices in 30 countries, as its executive search partner. Spencer Stuart is no stranger to Emory, having consulted with the university on numerous executive searches over the past several years.
The next critical step in our process is to continue the engagement with the Emory community that is essential to a successful presidential selection process. We have had productive and informative meetings during the past month with the University Senate (which included faculty, staff, and students) and the Emory Alumni Board. The committee is now positioned to purposefully pursue input from additional members of our community during the weeks ahead.
To that end, the Presidential Selection Committee has created subcommittees that will meet with faculty, staff, students, alumni, physicians, and other stakeholders during the month of January 2016. The goal is to engage a broad range of Emory constituencies whose perspectives are invaluable to the selection process. Input gathered from these forums will help inform and shape the prospectus, which in part is a job description, but will also include the strategic opportunities, the aspirations and deeply held and shared values of Emory, as well as the leadership qualities that will be pivotal in the identification and recruitment of potential candidates.
Additionally, our presidential selection web site serves as the continuous hub of news and information related to the presidential selection process. We encourage you to take advantage of the web site to submit direct input regarding the credentials, experience, qualities, and values the selection committee should consider for the next president.
We will keep you informed as the selection process unveils. Should you have questions at any time, please do not hesitate to contact us at PresidentSearch@emory.edu.
Thank you for your support. We encourage your input as we continue with this transforming initiative.
Sincerely,
John F. Morgan
Chair
Board of Trustees
Emory University