In this special episode of COACHECast, Jeannie Kim, Assistant Director of Research at COACHE, steps in as guest host to interview Dr. Todd Benson, Executive Director and Principal Investigator at COACHE. The conversation centers on faculty retention and exit, exploring COACHE’s decade-long research in this area and delving into the insights such studies offer higher education institutions.

"There are more career opportunities for these faculty members beyond the traditional tenure track positions. If they're willing to be more flexible, then I think the institutions have to think about how they're going to be more flexible as well."

Dr. Benson explains the importance of systematically analyzing faculty departures and retentions since the processes are often ad hoc, influenced by biases, and lack transparency or clear criteria. He introduces the "three Cs" framework—Cost, Causes, and Conduct—to understand and assess faculty exits. The discussion highlights key findings: a significant portion of faculty consider leaving for years before making a move, the impact of professional development, and the reputational effects of how institutions treat departing faculty.

Benson describes the COACHE Retention and Exit Study methodology, including its focus on those who received outside offers and the value of rich open-text responses. He emphasizes the importance of proactive engagement—regular, candid conversations can effectively prevent unwanted departures. Together, Kim and Benson discuss actionable insights for institutional leaders, such as enhancing process clarity, addressing hidden drivers beyond salary, and recent improvements to COACHE’s reporting tools for partner campuses.

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COACHE Faculty Retention and Exit Infographic
Faculty Retention and Exit Compendium Report (pending)

COACHECast speaks with Geoff Watson, CEO of NCFDD, about the power of mentoring, how leaders in higher education can prioritize it to support their faculty, and how to bridge the gap to make it effective. An organization that empowers faculty for lasting success through programs and coaching, NCFDD partnered with COACHE on the recent white paper “Redefining Mentoring in Higher Education”.

“What we're hearing from faculty in all types of institutions at all different points of their career is exactly what the data shows, which is mentoring is incredibly important, but the effectiveness of mentoring is not quite there.”

Watson and host Dr. Todd Benson, Executive Director and Principal Investigator at COACHE, discuss how mentoring can not only improve faculty satisfaction and performance but also impact a range of key dimensions for individuals and institutions. They explore findings from the white paper, including meeting the increasingly diverse needs of faculty through bidirectional mentoring in place of the traditional one-directional “guru” model, how to optimize mentoring, and the importance of measuring its impact on faculty. Watson also shares the three things that NCFDD would advise institutions to do as they are either rethinking their current approach to mentoring or starting a new approach.

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About Geoff Watson and NCFDD Team
About the NCFDD
Download white paper: Redefining Mentoring in Higher Education

COACHECast speaks with Dr. Holly Hutchins, Vice Provost for Faculty Success, University of North Texas. Vice Provost Hutchins’ academic background is in human resource development where her focus has been on training transfer and faculty talent development. She is a proud UNT alumna and completed her Ph.D. in 2004. Before returning to UNT as Vice Provost, she was professor and department chair at the University of Houston.

“You just make sure you're doing more than you're saying. So let your actions show. And a lot of times you may advocate in places that they will never know that you were that one in the room.”

Dr. Hutchins outlines her experience with the distributed leadership model to ensure all stakeholders are in the decision-making process. Dr. Hutchins also shares how she effectively advocates for faculty interest and support in an era of increasing public skepticism toward higher education, and more.

Hosted by Dr. Todd Benson, Executive Director and Principal Investigator at COACHE.

About Dr. Holly Hutchins

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About the University of North Texas
UNT Office of Faculty Success
The First 90 Days by Michael D. Watkins
APLU Committe on Faculty Affairs
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