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1) Communicate a clear vision "A lot depends on where your university is and what you want the vice-chancellor to do. Do you need more student recruitment? Do you need more research grant money? 2) Trust your staff "It is an essential quality of any leader that they should develop and empower their staff. This means trusting them to innovate and get on with things without always looking over their shoulder or filling a form to say they've done something. " 3) Be fair "Academics are slightly strange animals and difficult to lead (and we all know they are difficult to manage!) - very individualistic and therefore many may not be considered team players. 4) Appoint good people "I see ' leaderful ' practices in classrooms, research teams and student-led activity throughout the HE sector. 5) Value all staff "Universities need to value their staff - permanent and casual. Many casual staff are the academics and administrative managers of the future and need to be engaged by the leaders because both have a future together. " (Paula Nicolson)

Commencement season is upon us, when college presidents and business leaders offer words of wisdom to graduates entering the "real world." But at a time when the college presidency has become a high-risk occupation and CEO turnover is accelerating, with 131 leaving their jobs in January alone, maybe they could benefit from some words of wisdom. What makes someone successful in a leadership position? We offer the following list of helpful hints. Many we learned along the way, through our time in academia and serving on corporate boards. Some we discovered by failing to do them ourselves, and others we picked up from our mentors and colleagues. 1. Think first, talk later. Everything you say will be taken literally. An offhand comment or ill-considered joke, once it has made its way through the local gossip vine or the national blogs, is guaranteed to haunt you. Don't ever think you're "off the record." 2. Talk less, listen more. This is especially true for a new leader brought in from the outside. Folks will immediately ask for your "vision" for transforming the place. This is a test: No one can reasonably expect a detailed plan before you understand the place's idiosyncrasies. Do not offer a grand plan before one exists. 3. Show up. Every constituency wants you to be physically in the room on important occasions; they don't want your surrogate. What you actually do when you get there--offer a toast, introduce a speaker, tell a quick story to kick off an event--may be less important than your physical presence. 4. Engage veteran employees. Spend time with those who have devoted their lives to the place, leaving their mark on future generations. Take them to lunch and hear their stories. You want them on your side and you'll learn from them. 5. Don't ignore the staff. In companies, they are the face of the business. At colleges, members of the staff are educators as well, wh