Scope

Interim Chairpersons of departments that administratively report to the College of Human Medicine.

Essential Role, Authority, Reporting Relationship

The interim department chair is the chief academic and administrative officer of the department and is responsible for achieving balance among the multiple missions of the department as an educational, research, service and outreach unit. The responsibilities and authority of the interim chair derive from the dean (or deans in jointly administered departments) and the interim chair reports directly to the dean(s). The interim chair holds authority over and has responsibility for the following key areas. The interim chair may delegate some responsibilities to others in the department, but the interim chair remains accountable for the execution and attainment of these roles, responsibilities and authorities.

Responsibilities and Authorities

Leadership and Strategic Planning

The interim chair provides leadership for the academic, research and service missions of the department, modeling and expecting excellence in all areas. The interim chair demonstrates support, in words and actions, of a department-specific vision that reflects the mission, vison, goals and values of the college and the university.

1. The interim chair articulates a vision and leads strategic planning efforts of the department, involving faculty, staff, students and other constituencies as appropriate.
2. The interim chair ensures that the department’s strategic plan describes how the department and its programs will achieve excellence in all missions, thereby enhancing the department’s reputation regionally and nationally. The strategic plan, as a living document, is reviewed annually and updated as needed to ensure consideration of new opportunities or challenges.
3. The interim chair also supports the strategic goals of the college and the university and is responsible for accomplishment of department-level objectives of the college and university strategic plans, and for achieving selected performance targets or goals defined by the dean(s).
4. The interim chair articulates the vision and goals of the department to internal and external stakeholders, connecting department objectives to the broader college and university missions, and makes requests on behalf of the department in pursuit of its vision and goals.
5. The interim chair adheres to the university’s principles of academic shared governance in the department, e.g., with respect to policies and procedures related to promotion and tenure, annual reviews, curriculum development, program review.
6. The interim chair encourages faculty participation in college and university academic governance and recommends faculty for university committees and service roles.
7. As the essential link between administration and the department’s faculty, staff and students, the interim chair exercises leadership in communication between the dean and the department, serving as the liaison on matters such as college vision, planning, goals and financial updates. The interim chair interprets and presents information and positions that accurately reflect the intent of each constituency to the other for the purpose of advancing the institutional mission.
8. The interim chair also serves as an advocate for the department and its faculty, staff and students to the college, the EVPHS and the university.
9. The interim chair continues to develop as a scholar in his/her discipline while actively seeking opportunities to develop as a leader and an administrator. The interim chair engages in college and university service as appropriate.

Department Climate and Culture

As the department’s steward and role model, the interim chair sets expectations and leads by example to demonstrate a culture and climate that is welcoming, inclusive, collegial, professional and civil for faculty, staff and students.

1. The interim chair fosters and maintains a department culture that is welcoming, inclusive, collegial, professional and civil, addressing impediments or threats to that culture when warranted.
2. The interim chair works to maintain the morale of the department and to reduce and manage conflict.
3. The interim chair encourages faculty and staff engagement, collegiality and participation in the affairs of the department.
4. The interim chair creates and maintains effective communication methods to keep faculty and staff informed about actions and perspectives of the president, provost, EVPHS and dean(s), and their relevance or impact to the department, including new initiatives, new or changes to policies/procedures, curriculum, regulatory affairs and financial challenges.
5. The interim chair is receptive to questions, concerns, feedback, complaints, grievances and suggestions from faculty, staff and students, and takes appropriate actions in compliance with university, college and department polices and expectations.
6. The interim chair oversees development and implementation of programs and policies that serve to strengthen the diversity and inclusion goals of the department.

Faculty and Staff Recruitment, Development and Recognition

The interim chair is authorized and expected to serve as the department’s hiring and appointment authority and is responsible for mentoring or development strategies to help ensure the success of faculty and staff. A commitment to excellence and the principles of diversity, equity and inclusion guide recruitment, hiring and mentoring activities.

1. The interim chair is responsible for the recruitment, selection, management, evaluation and retention of a diverse team of faculty and administrative staff, specifically highlighting and addressing the respective diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) goals and policies of the university and college(s).
2. The interim chair, in consultation with appropriate department committees (e.g., RPT, FAC), recommends faculty for initial appointment, reappointment, promotion and tenure.
3. The interim chair is responsible for facilitating career development of junior faculty and for assuring that appropriate resources, effort allocation and mentoring are provided to ensure academic success and advancement.
4. The interim chair (or designee) meets at least annually with each faculty member to review the prior year’s performance toward goals, to review effort allocation for accuracy and appropriateness, to discuss plans and goals for the upcoming year and to provide guidance and mentoring in alignment with college and university mentoring guidelines. The annual meeting occurs before the university’s annual raise process during which the interim chair makes recommendations to the dean regarding faculty compensation.
5. The interim chair assigns administrative, teaching, research and clinical roles and responsibilities to the department faculty and is responsible for critically assessing the academic performance and productivity of the faculty in each of these areas.
6. The interim chair is responsible for monitoring salaries and recommending merit, equity and retention raises to the dean consistent with department, college, Office of Health Sciences and university policies and procedures.
7. The interim chair addresses personnel issues that may arise in the department and recommends and/or approves appropriate remedial or disciplinary action in alignment with department, college and university policies. This may include bringing appropriate or necessary issues to the attention of the dean or other higher-level administrators.
8. The interim chair ensures that meetings of the department faculty and executive committee (or similar body) occur in alignment with the department’s bylaws.
9. The interim chair, with advice and assistance from department committees, recognizes the accomplishments of faculty and staff and nominates qualified faculty and staff for department, college or university awards and honorifics, as well as for national and international awards.

Clinical Programs (applicable only to interim chairs of clinical departments)

The interim department chair is the clinical role model for the department and promotes a culture of excellence in care to ensure quality outcomes and patient safety.

1. The interim chair sets, monitors and maintains evidence-based standards for clinical care with a commitment to developing a high quality, nationally ranked clinical enterprise.
2. The interim chair works closely and collaboratively with the CEO, CMO, and CNO of MSU Health Care Inc (HCI) and the college’s associate dean for clinical affairs (or other designated clinical leader) to coordinate the clinical activities of the department.
3. The interim chair works collaboratively with the CEO of HCI and their respective dean(s) to develop annual financial and programmatic goals for the clinical programs of the department affiliated with HCI.
4. The interim chair in collaboration with the HCI CEO and CMO determines and is responsible for ensuring appropriate cFTE in the department’s HCI-affiliated clinics.
5. The interim chair proposes multi-year strategic recruitment plans in order to maintain appropriate cFTE in the clinic, and in coordination with the dean’s office and the CEO of HCI, develops financial models to support clinician faculty recruitment plans.
6. The interim chair sets appropriate expectations for clinical productivity within an academic environment and monitors productivity in alignment with college and HCI expectations.
7. The interim chair supports and develops a clinician compensation plan that is in alignment with the compensation model approved by the health sciences leadership team.
8. The interim chair maintains continuing review and peer review of the professional performance of all practitioners with clinical privileges in the department.
9. The interim chair ensures the successful implementation of all HCI and/or college initiatives aimed at enhancing the experience of care for patients and their families.
10. The interim chair, in alignment with HCI, seeks and investigates new opportunities and initiatives to grow and improve the clinical enterprise and supports HCI in business development, including interdisciplinary clinical programs in the outpatient departments and hospitals.
11. The interim chair provides leadership for clinical risk management activities in the department.
12. The interim chair is responsible for oversight of GME programs led by the department including general administration, management and evaluation of the GME experience, consistent with college and clinical partner expectations and oversight
13. The interim chair is responsible for oversight of continuing education programs that the department develops or sponsors, ensuring accreditation compliance.

Academic Programs

As the chief academic officer for the department, the interim chair oversees the academic programs of the department.

1. The interim chair is expected to articulate a vision for the educational programs of the department in alignment with the mission of the college(s) and is responsible for promoting and implementing the strategic directions established by the dean/associate/assistant dean for academic affairs and the college’s curriculum committees.
2. The interim chair, along with the faculty of the department and/or relevant faculty in the academic affairs unit of the college(s), ensures that curricula in the teaching programs of the department are relevant and informed by the principles of the discipline.
3. The interim chair is accountable for student success and progress in the discipline, ensuring achievement by students of the curriculum objectives, and assists students with problem or complaint resolution related to curricula, courses or other academic issues.
4. The interim chair encourages and supports faculty development in education and pedagogy to strengthen the effectiveness and efficacy of the educational programs of the department.
5. The interim chair encourages and supports faculty efforts to produce scholarship related to educational programs of the college and supports the professional development of faculty focused on the department’s educational mission.
6. The interim chair supports the participation of learners in the education, research, service, leadership and clinical (if applicable) activities of the department.
7. The interim chair of a clinical department commits to actively engaging with department faculty and programs across the state, regardless of the clinical partner, in support of the educational programs of the college.
8. The interim chair provisions adequate resources, including effort, to support the educational programs of the department and meet accreditation requirements.

Research Programs

The interim chair is responsible to create a coherent strategy for a sustainable research program within the department.

1. The interim chair promotes robust research and scholarly activity amongst the department’s faculty and its students, residents and fellows, including fostering the career development of physician scientists, with a goal of raising the department’s national profile.
2. While all scholarly activity and research activities are important, those that are recognized for external funding, especially by NIH or other federal agencies, are important indicators of the quality of institutional research. The interim chair is expected to encourage a level of research productivity among the faculty that maximizes external funding for salary support and contributes to external recognition, including AAU ranking.
3. The interim chair works with the colleges’ associate deans for research to ensure that the goals of the department’s research programs are aligned, as much as practical, with those of the college, specifically promoting interdisciplinary research and the integration of basic and clinical research.
4. The interim chair is responsible for approval of grant submissions by department faculty. The interim chair ensures compliance with applicable regulations for sponsored projects within the department and maintains local oversight for the permissibility and reasonableness of project expenditures.
5. The interim chair provides counsel to the dean regarding research strengths of department faculty and recommendations on strategic program direction and investment.
6. The interim chair encourages collaboration and partnership activities across all of the college’s campuses/locations in order to facilitate scholarship and research program development.

Administration

The interim chair is authorized and expected to engage in a wide range of administrative activities necessary to ensure effective operations of the department and ensure faculty/staff compliance with university and regulatory policies and procedures.

1. The interim chair encourages and ensures effective collaboration with other departments and promotes interdisciplinary activities.
2. The interim chair of a joint college department actively engages and consults with both college deans to whom they report, understanding that their annual review and five-year review is the shared responsibility of both deans.
3. The interim chair recognizes the unique challenges to success faced by faculty jointly appointed in more than one department and actively works with the other interim chair(s) to ensure faculty success, including collaboration on the annual review, effort allocation, the faculty development plan and determination of merit raises.
4. The interim chair is responsible for the financial affairs of the department including planning, managing and effectively monitoring all fiscal resources and activities of the department in alignment with policies and guidelines established by the college and the university.
5. The interim chair ensures the timely preparation and submission of accurate data, reports and other materials requested by the dean(s), Executive Vice President for Health Sciences, the Provost, the Office of Management and Budget or other university officials as appropriate or requested, including clinical, operational and financial outcomes data.
6. The interim chair collaborates with faculty and staff to identify funding needs and priorities, is responsible for and authorizes expenditures from department funds, with the approval of the dean, and consistent with all institutional policies, procedures and guidelines.
7. The interim chair is responsible for the planning, development and management of all space allocated to the department. Requests for new space or changes in space utilization should be directed to the dean’s office.
8. The interim chair acts as a responsible steward of university space by assuring that all space allocated to the department is utilized for its intended purpose and in an efficient and productive manner.
9. The interim chair ensures department and departmental personnel compliance with college, university, state and federal policies, procedures and guidelines (e.g., RVSM, environmental health and safety, human subjects research, conflict of interest, travel, etc.) In so doing, the interim chair responds to and cooperates with compliance offices and other officials including representatives of the Office of Regulatory Affairs, the Office of Audit, Risk and Compliance, the Office of Institutional Equity, etc.
10. The interim chair approves faculty and staff leave requests, university-sponsored travel requests, and additional pay requests.
11. The interim chair reviews/approves requests for Outside Work for Pay and Overload Pay, ensuring compliance with university conflict of interest policies and assessing conflict of commitment.
12. The interim chair leads the department’s development strategy and works with the dean and college/university advancement staff to develop a plan for engaging with external constituencies to secure resources that support the mission of the department and the college.
13. The interim chair approves additional outreach and engagement efforts of the department that serve to advance the outreach and engagement goals of the college and university.