8 Step System For Building High Performing Stem Departments

STEM Department Chair's Playbook: The Proven 8-Step System for Building High-Performing STEM Departments introduces the 8-Step Systems Model™, a structured way to think about your department as an interconnected system rather than a collection of unrelated tasks. Drawing from experience in department leadership, research administration, and program building, we show how strategic investments in one area can either reinforce or undermine performance elsewhere.

The book walks you step by step through clarifying mission, designing programs and curricula, developing faculty, strengthening research, advancing student success, managing resources, cultivating partnerships, and institutionalizing continuous improvement. Visual diagrams and planning worksheets help you map current practices, identify weak links, and prioritize changes that yield the greatest impact.

This guide is particularly useful for chairs and deans seeking sustainable gains rather than short-lived initiatives. It provides a coherent framework you can use to organize retreats, communicate with senior leadership, and track progress over multiple years.