Zachary Thomas

11/5/14
CNS 320 Informational Interview #1

Dr. Nathan Hatch: Stumbling Upon Leadership

After taking a particularly engaging public policy and administration

class while in high school, higher education administration has remained on my
mind as a possible career path where I could positively impact the world around me.
Fittingly, for this informational interview I contacted the one person at Wake Forest
who epitomizes higher education management: Dr. Nathan Hatch, the university
president. Sitting down with Hatch for 15 minutes during his office hours, I was able
to discuss current trends in higher education, his career path, and leadership as it
pertained to both of us and the campus as a whole.
I found a number of interesting points and some similarities to my own
interests in relation to Hatchs foray into academia above other interests. I was
always fascinated by history and politics. The election of 1960 between Nixon and
Kennedy occurred when I was 14 years old. At one point I wanted to be a
Congressional page, although that ended up not working out when I went to
college, I studied history, thinking that I might want to teach this, says Hatch of his
origins in academia. He continues, Academics can be a bit risky in certain fields,
since there are less spots than people competing for them. So, its worked out really
well for me. My first job was at Notre Dame and I stayed there for over 30 years.
Hatch also mentioned a back-up plan, law school, had the role as a professor
not worked out. I feel that in 2014 academia and many traditional fields, including
law, are less of a safe bet than they used to be with the economy growing

increasingly globalized and automated through technology. Knowing this, I

personally invest in broad analytical skills that can be applied to a variety of
positions. Nonetheless, Hatchs trajectory to a career as a history professor has a
couple of main takeaways. First is follow your passions, but be flexible with how
pursuits pan out. When he was young, Hatch was fascinated by politics, but when
opportunities like the Congressional page program failed to materialize, he doubled
down on his interests in history. Had that not worked out, a career in law would have
been attainable with his reading and research skills. In the same way, should higher
education not be my path, I have consulting and data science skills ready to be
deployed at the appropriate moment.
Hatch then discussed his rise into administration, a transition he fell into
when a peer inquired to Hatch about taking up responsibilities apart from his
scholarship and teaching. I tended to be project-oriented, says Hatch of himself as
a professor, hosting conferences and obtaining grants. At one point after obtaining
tenure, a colleague who was becoming an Associate Dean approached Hatch about
joining him in administration, telling Hatch just to try it for a couple years to see if
he would like it. I liked building programs for faculty and students, so it worked for
me for about ten years I balanced being a professor and administrator then
after a while, I had to decide. And I loved institution building. It was the most
satisfying, reflects Hatch.
This segment of Hatchs career path highlights another important aspect of
ones career journey: trying out new things, and taking advantage of available
opportunities. Granted, Hatch would have been a very successful historian in his
own right had he never serendipitously transitioned into administration in the way
he did. However, he ended up finding the project-driven work of that field more

meaningful to him than writing and research, and now he is president of Wake
Forest.
I also asked Hatch about his leadership style and how he advances himself
within his role. You read a lot, and talk to interesting people, says Hatch of how he
grows and learns as president. Im always thinking, where is Wake Forest, where
are our opportunities, where are our weaknesses? You try to be a continuous
learner, says Hatch. He describes himself as an extrovert according to tests, but
that he tends to exhibit traits of an introvert as well. Leadership ability is not
correlated with how extroverted you are, he says, noting that there are all kinds of
effective leaders.
Hatch did not shy away when I asked him about responding to critics of the
school or the administration. Especially with students, if there is a misimpression,
you try to communicate what the reality is. If youre actually trying to stamp out
Greek life, say it, says Hatch in response to, for example, students who are critical
of the administration for its stance towards Greek life. It takes that kind of
communication. If there is a valid criticism, work to correct it, Hatch adds.
These points about leadership are important to digest for anyone who wants
to advance upward in their career. Clear communication is key to managing
constituent needs and ensuring the long-term sustainability of an organization. As
someone who might go into higher education administration, this political
consideration is important to keep in mind. You cannot please everyone, but vital is
trying your best to make sure everyones opinion feels valued and addressed.
Overall, Dr. Hatchs career path and leadership experiences offer a number of

meaningful lessons even ones that can be gleaned from a conversation as short as
15 minutes.