It seems only yesterday that I became the president of AUBER, but already I am writing my final column for the newsletter. They say that time flies when you are doing something you enjoy, and I will confirm that is true. For this final column, I thought I would address a question that I was asked several times as the secretary/ treasurer and then more recently as president. The question posed was, "What personal characteristics should one look for in a center director?" This question is frequently asked by colleges of business contemplating opening a center. I pondered over this question and thought I would spend a few minutes addressing some of the personal characteristics that I believe are necessary for success. While I do not believe this list is in any way comprehensive, I believe I could suggest a few traits that are very important.

To begin, I believe that successful directors have many of the same characteristics as successful entrepreneurs, and I will use this belief as the basis for making several observations. For success, you first need a motivated individual-a person who is interested in adding value to the outreach efforts of a college through developing research and grant opportunities, then converting these opportunities into valuable products or services. Successful directors must have a pioneering spirit and be willing to spend considerable time reaching out to entities that are outside of the typical academic community. These entities include foundations, state and federal agencies, the media, and the general public.

Second, you need an individual who is willing and able to act independently. Directors typically have a need for independence; they feel more comfortable doing their own thing rather than working for someone else. Directors must also be unusually self-confident. Psychologists call this having a high internal locus of control. Directors must believe that they can control the fate of their center through their own talents, persistence, and hard work. They relish taking responsibility for their own actions and taking a vigorous approach toward accomplishing objectives they have set for their center. Because of this internal locus of control, directors are able to recover from frustrations and failures and push on toward success. In contrast, a person with an external locus of control tends to believe that he has little influence over events, and, hence, tends to be passive and fatalistic. This type of individual would be unsuited to creating and maintaining an enterprise.

Third, the director's job necessitates that you have an individual who is innovative, creative, and hardworking. Successful directors must be capable of independently creating new ideas, but also must be able to think "outside of the box" in terms of using existing resources. Required innovation could even include novel approaches to organizational structure. Too often success in projects involves imaginative integration of available assets, use of part-time personnel, and sharing of costs and benefits. Directors are typically work-oriented and energetic. Successful directors realize that long hours of effort conducted over long periods of time are closely linked to successful completion of projects.

Fourth, directors must obtain basic enjoyment from what they will do in order to stay highly motivated through the periods of frustration, disappointment, and challenge that will occur. Through the long hours involved in goal attainment, directors must also be able to remain practical and realistic in their perception of what is possible given the resources they have to accomplish their goals. Crucial to this realism must be an accurate perception of the hurdles and pitfalls that will be faced along the route toward accomplishing project objectives.

Last, despite what some persons might believe, my experience tells me that directors are not particularly attracted toward risk. For the most part, they do not view their efforts as risky since they have usually conducted careful overviews of a project before beginning work. While most directors enjoy a challenge, they tend to rely on their own determination and hard work to accomplish goals rather than good providence, or waiting on the decisions of others to control their destiny.

In speaking of entrepreneurs and their roles, I would like to share information about the creative product of one of our past presidents. I have just returned from Vilnius, Lithuania, where I attended a board meeting of the Alliance of Universities for Democracy (AUDEM). AUDEM could be considered a first cousin to AUBER. Created in 1990, AUDEM is the product of an entrepreneur named David Hake, who was president of AUBER in 1981. AUDEM is a consortium of institutions of higher learning formed to enhance the role of education in promoting democratic institutions; economic development, including technology transfer; decentralized decision making; human health; sustainable habitation of the earth; and common moral and social values. AUDEM was established to assist universities from former communist countries in moving to new socially responsible and proactive roles in democratic societies. AUDEM includes institutions in Central and Eastern Europe and is expanding eastward into the Baltic States, Ukraine, and Russia. Since 1991, I have enjoyed participating in AUDEM activities and making new friends in Europe. If you are interested in participating in AUDEM activities, presenting a paper, or making contacts with professors from more than 100 European universities, give me a call. The next annual meeting of AUDEM is October 26-29, 2003, and will be in Vilnius.

Speaking of meetings, please remember to support our own annual meeting, which will occur Sunday, October 12, through Tuesday, October 14, 2003. Vice President Janet Speyrer and the University of New Orleans are working diligently to assure that this event scheduled at the historic Hotel Monteleone, located in the French Quarter, will be the best ever. Conference program chairs President-Elect Marshall Vest, University of Arizona, and Director Stephen Smith, University of Memphis, are putting final touches on an excellent program. There is no excuse for not being part of a panel or making a presentation. Please support the conference chairs in their efforts at planning this exciting program. If you wish to participate, contact Marshall at <mvest@ellerarizona.edu>, or Stephen at <scsmith@memphis.edu>. Both program chairs have indicated that nonparticipation is grounds for serving as "gator bait" during the swamp tour. Moreover, you shouldn't miss the opportunity to experience the sights and sounds of New Orleans and socialize with your friends on Bourbon Street. Thanks for allowing me to serve as your president for the past year.

Jerry L. Wall
University of Louisiana at Monroe

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