But first I want to tell a story about a mistake I made fairly early in my marriage. A friend of mine asked me to help him load furniture from an estate sale into a trailer. So, I jumped in to help and while there was offered what I thought was a great deal on some old furniture. It just so happened my wife and I needed quite a lot of furniture. It is hard to pass up a good deal, right? I then committed to buy a lot of furniture, which included dressers, a kitchen table, a large armoire, and headboards for beds... all for a bargain price of $1,000.
Have I mentioned yet that my wife was not with me? After returning home, excited to tell my wife about the great deal I had made, I gained a new understanding of the word jurisdiction, or at least how the meaning of that word applied to my marriage. I learned that I had stepped outside of my jurisdiction and into the jurisdiction held by my wife, who was not nearly as impressed with the trailer full of old furniture I had dragged home as I was.
I might be able to argue I had the authority to make the decisions I made. But, authority alone does not provide jurisdiction. In order for good decisions to be made, jurisdiction needs to be exercised with both authority and expertise, of which I had none. As a business officer, you often have authority. It is incumbent upon you to determine whether or not you have the expertise. If you do not, then find it. That can involve investigation on your part, the help of consultants or business partners, and you can call on your colleagues at other community colleges.
Your CCBO organization can help you with most of these expertise needs. I encourage you to give us a try. You can start by attending our Annual Conference in San Antonio this year September 20-23 with the theme, Big Ideas Big Solutions. Also, as a resource, our website gives you access to the CCBO board of directors and committees. Drop any of us a line or give us a call. We will do what we can to help you combine the authority you already have with the expertise you need so you can confidently exercise jurisdiction when making decisions.
Brad McCormick, MBA
CCBO President
Vice President for Business Services & College Facilities
John A. Logan College
It is time for me to throw another rock at you. In the January issue of the Bottom Line I shared an experience I had early in my career as a community college business administrator. I shared one of five words which would serve as touchstones for me throughout my career, and what that one word meant to me. In this issue, I want to share another of those words, or rocks, from my collection. 