Timeout for Leadership-your one-minute leadership idea

Op-ed #5

What is a five-tool principal?

Fact:

Use some analytics when making that principal hire.

Discussion:

If you are a regular reader of this blog you already know of my fascination with the movie Moneyball. That movie has sent me on what seems to be an endless pursuit of a way to use analytics when hiring a new principal or teacher.  For those that are not in the world of education, I think that you can make a stretch to suit your own needs.

Moneyball is all about the use of analytics when making decisions about baseball players and the actual playing of the game.  First of all, what are analytics?  Wikipedia and others will refer to analytics as the computational use of data and statistics.  You then must use the information gained from these analyses to help you make meaningful decisions.  This will also help you see and use patterns that your analyses have uncovered.

So, when there is a leadership candidate sitting before you in an interview, can you somehow place a numerical value on each quality that you are looking for, and then run some sort of analysis on the qualities of successful principals and then see how your candidate stacks up.  Is there a predictive value?  I would like to think that there is.  I know that today in many teacher and principal evaluation systems there is a numerical computation.  But quite frankly, I think that these new systems are nothing more than a scam and have proven to be no better than any previously used system.  But that is a discussion for a different day.

Moneyball all starts with knowing what skills that you are looking for.  The executives, scouts and player personnel executives are constantly seeking that five-tool player.  For them these tools were:  speed, hitting for power, hitting for average, fielding and arm strength.  Five-tool players are few and far between.

So, what tools must my five-tool principal possess? 

• Relationship builder-the ability to build and sustain relationships with a wide array of people including students, parents, teachers, fellow administrators, community leaders and the community at large.
• Communicator- the ability to communicate in both the written and spoken word and the ability to know how to be candid and honest.
• Personal accessibility and visibility- people need the principal to be seen and to be easily accessible to meet.
• Follow through- following through on initiatives and promises made.  Namely, say what you mean and mean what you say.  Hold yourself accountable.
• Visionary thinker- we have seen the past and our principal must be able to see the future and how it relates to the educational community.

Of course, these tools are in addition to what I assume are givens, namely work ethic, honesty and integrity.

I challenge you to come up with your five tools.  I am sure that if we placed a group of leaders in a room, we could have a great debate as to what is important. Then the next step is to somehow assign a numerical coefficient to each element and press the button.  I am sure the results will be enlightening.