I was fortunate to have an excellent chief of staff, without whom I would have been a less-effective President. There are a few models for chief-of-staff positions, some considerations for how you wish to structure the position, and perhaps a few ways I think you can help your chief become more effective.
At smaller institutions, the chief of staff is often a very experienced executive assistant, while my sense is that at larger institutions one is likely to see a higher-level professional as well as at least one executive assistant in a president’s office. The University of Idaho is mid-size, and my model was the chief was a very experienced assistant who, herself, had assistance in the office. Her main job was to insure that I used my time effectively-that those who needed to see me were able to do so, that I was contacting people I needed to contact like the Board or donors, to help coordinate the work of Vice Presidents and others, and to manage staff in the office who took care of other details (such as specific scheduling, correspondence, events). At larger institutions, I think you would see greater participation in actual policy development, and perhaps representation of the president.
The direct office staff at Idaho, in addition to the chief, included a financial person (who served the office and some smaller offices, such as Diversity, that reported directly to the President), and a staff assistant (reception, phone, scheduling details, correspondence). Originally, the office also had an events coordinator, but during a budget cut, we distributed this role primarily to other offices, particularly Advancement and Marketing and Communication, though the President’s Office retained some of the less-formal and occasional events, like meetings with student organizations. I also had a Communications Director assigned primarily to me, as well as several Special Assistants-one for Legislative Relations and one for Special Projects/Principal Gifts.
In addition to the formal roles of the Chief of Staff in my office, my Chief also was a sounding board, and a source of information for me about the University as she had served there for many years and I was new to the institution. She was my eyes and ears at meetings-I know that I tend to talk too much, listen too little, and focus on one person at a time. She was very good at recapping for me what might be unexpressed, but important opinions. She also interacted informally with the VP’s, who felt that they could bring issues to her confidentially and assess whether or not they should be brought to me. I am not sure how she did it, but she maintained their confidence, yet also informed me of things I needed to know.
Chief is such an important, but personal, position that it’s hard to advise you on selection or how to work with your chief. I suspect you will develop a close professional relationship, if you choose well. One resource of which I was originally unaware, but feel is very helpful is NAPAHE, the National Association of Presidential Assistants in Higher Education. Encourage attendance, as well as use of their listserv and publications. The NAPAHE meetings usually precede the ACE meetings, and you can attend sessions with your Chief (and the Chief can stay after at ACE), which I think enhances the value of these meetings for both.