Here are the questions, Dr. Azziz addressed during this podcast episode.

1. The case you used for this competency ( Sensing and driving the pace of change) was the merger of Kendall College and Louis National University. Share with our listeners the need for speed in merger in higher education.

2. Talk about incrementalism and how it is not necessarily a good approach for colleges considering mergers.

3. The need for speed. P. 107 Box 6.2 Let’s talk about a few of your recommendations.

a. Delaying implementation furthers anxiety and discomfort on campus and throughout the community

b. a lack of speed simply favors forces of opposition the environment will change while institutional leaders make incremental decisions

c. speed minimizes the risk of burnout and change

4. p. 109 How is setting the drum beat that you reference set up. You note that leaders undertaking big scary change must recognize that in the usual course of business a college or university uses incremental approaches to change things. And you write that kind of approach won't necessarily work for mergers

Competency 4: Prioritizing and driving communication

5. Talk about the best communication approach with which to engage the variety of stakeholders involved in any merger

6. You note that the first phase of a merger will involve one-on-one conversations. This phase will be carried out in relative confidentiality and only a limited number of individuals privy to the discussions. Talk first about the confidentiality piece. Then talk about transitioning to selling the vision that you note involves “creating urgency without creating chaos”.

7. You have a section on page 128 entitled the ‘opprobrium of being acquired’ and you note that when a college or university is “being acquired” (you put that in quotes) its impact may be ego shattering for the institution and for the individuals who comprise that college. Step listeners of the podcast through a communication process to help buffer that being acquired mindset.

8. Finally, let's talk about the media. We know in general that the media focuses on controversial, negative, and emotional stories. Step us through some guidance you would provide to college leaders, College Board members on how to prepare their interactions with the media - knowing that most stories will be on the negative side in regards to proposed mergers

Karla Leeper is the Vice Chancellor for Strategic Communication and Marketing and Chief of Staff to the Chancellor at The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

She has provided communications guidance and other consulting support on college mergers throughout the United States

Here are the questions Karla addressed during the podcast.

1. What are the primary drivers or 'tipping points' that lead a college's leadership to seriously consider a merger as a viable option for the future?
2. When you help an institution build its "case for a merger," what are the most critical components to include to get key stakeholders, like the board and senior faculty, to buy in from the start?
3. The period when a merger is just a 'consideration' is incredibly sensitive. How do you advise leaders to balance the need for confidentiality with the desire for transparency? Could you walk us through a best-practice communication timeline? Who are the very first groups you should talk to, and how does that circle of communication widen over time?
4. What is the most common 'crisis point' or communication breakdown you see during a merger announcement, and what steps should leaders take now to prepare for it?
5. Faculty, student, or community protests are a real possibility. When internal opposition becomes very public and vocal, what is the first step a communications team should take?
6. What is the single biggest mistake an institution can make from a communications standpoint when navigating a merger?
7. Looking at the landscape of higher education, do you see mergers becoming more common? What is your single most important piece of advice for a president who is just now starting to think this might be a necessary path?
8. What are the top 2-3 concerns you consistently hear from alumni during a merger, and what are the most effective, proactive ways to address them?
9. Final wrap: What is the one, top piece of guidance you would give to a college president when considering a merger? BOT chairperson?

Here are the questions Dr. Ricardo Azziz addressed during this podcast episode.

1. You list 7 critical competencies for BSC. Where did they come from?

2. We talked about how you used case studies throughout the book in our first podcast. Let’s talk about the one you use here: Connecticut State Colleges and Universities. I remember reading a lot about this and it was a contentious process. Step us through the highlights and lowlights. Lessons learned: “Extraordinary courage is required to face continued challenges”. Put that into context for us and share how you saw that at CSCU.

3. Following up on that, let's talk a little about uncertainty and risk aversion in higher education What about major change in higher education? Step us through the major differences of M&A in higher education and other industries.

4. P. 81: “The degree of risk aversion in higher education is so high that it borders on the impossible.” If we accept that statement, I contend that some serious financial set of catastrophes are needed to move higher education toward consolidation in the form of M&A. Am I right or wrong?

5. Competency 2: All-inclusive Operation Envisioning Hope International Univ and Nebraska Christian College are the case study you used. This was not a proximate merger, but one of close mission alignment. I want to step you through each of the 4 lessons learned on p. 90 [Gary Stocker: leads through each. ]

6. Talk about operational envisioning as it related to higher education mergers.