Information technology (IT) leadership in higher education. This is a daunting and, too often, unsung role.  It is not a place for the faint of heart.  There is no room for the graceless or tactless.  I have been fortunate to have had a 40-year career in this complex field and arena.  My greatest joy has been the opportunity to serve a noble mission alongside of gifted and talented colleagues.

One of my favorite books of my salad days in university was G.I. Gurdjieff’s Meetings with Remarkable Men.  I have on occasion considered writing a professional memoir with a slightly less overtly sexist title!  Among the remarkable men I have met is Tommy Hor.  My year of work shoulder-to-shoulder with Tommy at the National University of Singapore and the friendship that ensued are among the highlights of my career.

I was delighted when Tommy mentioned to me his thought of authoring a blog.  I am touched, flattered and a bit overwhelmed that he asked me to “pen” (pixel?) some words as a foreword to this blog.  So, on we go.

My take-away from 40 years of service is that Tommy and other remarkable leaders in higher education IT mastered 5 skills and personal attributes:

    • Self-control or self-mastery
    • A commitment to and comfort with change
    • People and communication skills
    • Knowledge and love of their institution and higher education generally
    • Knowledge and love of information technology

Yes, I have intentionally, counter-intuitively and perhaps incorrectly listed knowledge and skill with IT last as a key competency.  My forewarning here is that understanding IT is a necessary, but insufficient requirement of any remarkable higher education IT leader.  Tommy possesses all of these skills and attributes in great measure.  His blog, therefore, is a must read for anyone who is or aspires to become one of these rare individuals.

A fore word about self-mastery.  I wish I had Tommy’s self-mastery.  I learned from him, but my nature precludes my attainment of his mastery.  What is this mastery?  It is wisdom.  It is patience.  It is the capacity to listen deeply to others.  It is respect for one’s leaders, one’s colleagues, one’s staff and the people that the IT organization serves.  Higher education institutions are “political” organizations where leaders often set priorities opportunistically rather than from an operational plan of action.  Remarkable higher education leaders often set priorities quietly and wait for “windows to open” before resourcing them and putting them into action.  Self-mastery, I think, is the ability to learn from others, develop vision and priorities, understand the politics of the institution and unfold priority actions when the time is right.  I often felt that Tommy had 3-D vision and that his moves and timing unfolded around me in ways I did not fully understand (because of my limitations).  An invisible hand moved my stone or chess piece.

I won’t dwell here on knowledge of people, your institution and IT.  I am hoping that this is axiomatic to all of you.  Though obvious, beware: these domains are big and complex.  I will end with a modest fore word about the higher education IT leader’s relationship to innovation and change.  While the first rule of IT success is that one must “keep the trains running on time”, it is essential that current and future leaders equip and comport themselves as change agents.  Anyone who aspires to become a remarkable leader must influence the mixture of incremental and disruptive change.

IT makes it possible for trains to run on schedule.  IT makes high speed rail possible.  High-speed trains disrupt schedules and the lives of the people IT serves.  IT enables airplanes, jet planes, drones and other innovations that might disrupt trains altogether.  Disruption compounded! The IT organization in general, and their leader, in particular are very likely – and very quietly – the engines of their institution’s change.  They “put wheels” on the president’s or provost’s or dean’s vision and (confidentially) often shape that vision through their profound knowledge of where technology can take us.  Of course, we know that higher education is an enterprise that prides itself on its survival of war, regime change, pandemic and other threats.  Through one end of the microscope, our institutions look much like they did a millennium ago.  Our colleagues venerate tradition, and our governance prioritizes stability.  At the same time, the world around us changes at a breathtaking pace.  Technologies like AR/VR and AI will change our landscapes profoundly.  Our institutions must adapt, or our students – or their employers – will discard us as relics of a by-gone era.  We must understand and respect our institutions’ histories and cultures while embracing change and acculturating others to them.  This is exceptionally hard.

I can’t wait to read Tommy’s blog.  Maybe, in retirement, I’ll finally uncover some of the secrets of his remarkable capacity to lead.  Tommy practices what author Jim Collins’ (Good to Great) Level 5 leaders display: a powerful mixture of personal humility and indomitable will.   Level 5 leaders are ambitious, but their ambitions are for their organization and its purpose, not themselves.  They are often self-effacing, quiet, reserved and even shy.  They lead through inspired standards rather than inspiring personality.

I look forward to engaging with you, Tommy, and this blog.

Richard N. Katz
President, Richard N Katz and Associates