The Entrepreneurial College President

Today's most successful college presidents are primarily defined by entrpreneurial attitudes and behavior. This landmark empirical study is substantially an update of the groundbreaking book by Fisher, Tack, and Wheeler entitled The Effective College President published in 1988. The sample used for this latest study is the largest ever of college presidents (more than 700), including presidents located in all regions of the United States, and including more women and minorities than found in prior studies. Fisher and Koch clearly demonstrate that common ground exists between the classic and tested characteristics of the leader and those of the entrepreneur.

The most successful presidents of today are primarily defined by entrepreneurial attitudes and behavior. This landmark empirical study is substantially an update of the groundbreaking 1988 ACE Series book by Fisher, Tack, and Wheeler, The Effective College President. Taken from the largest sample ever of college presidents (more than 700), including presidents from all nine of the Carnegie classifications located in all regions of the United States, James Fisher and James Koch clearly demonstrate that common ground exists between the classic and tested characteristics of the leader and those of the entrepreneur. This book centers on key questions: Do college presidents often behave in an entrepreneurial fashion and does this behavior pay off for them and their institutions; and why are some presidents more likely to exhibit entrepreneurial attitueds than others?

In addition to examining presidential attitudes and values, Fisher and Koch focus on actual presidential behavior. They have expanded their work to include much larger samples of women and minority presidents, whose number have increased tremendously in the past 15 years. They also include numerous control variables that reflect the character of the president's institution and focus on the entrepreneurial attitudes and behavior of presidents, along with how these factors determine success. They examine the extent to which academic training and reliance upon technology affect presidential success and introduce a multivariate model that permits them to examine how a variety of factors related to presidential success influence one another and presidential behavior. The most effective presidents identified in this study are analyzed in significant detail and their answers are reduced to close statistical analyses wherever possible. These presidents are intelligent risk takers who frequently question the status quo. They prize innovative thinking and appreciate contrary positions. They establish healthy relationships with businesses and governments without compromising fundamental academic integrity. These presidents are mission driven, captivating fund raisers who carry their messages from major givers to local service clubs. Clearly these results support the conclusion that the most successful college presidents today are entrepreneurial in attitudes and behavior.