The Kardia Group

The Relevance of Peer Evaluation Post-Tenure
While the success of any individual faculty member is intended to be first and foremost a reflection of their individual intellect, perseverance, inspiration, etc., in many ways, faculty careers at tenure-granting institutions are made or broken in the single decision of tenure – a decision that involves significantly more than an evaluation of one person’s efforts and that exists in a highly complex political and organizational landscape.

Becoming a formal participant in this process is one of the most profound, and yet unexamined, dimensions of attaining tenure. Enacting this responsibility appropriately requires a wide set of skills ranging from understanding the policies and procedures of the institution, to engaging in informed discussion and disagreement with colleagues, to discerning explicit and implicit standards and criteria, to realizing the impact of this status on those who are made vulnerable by your participation in this process.

While these comments focus on evaluating peers for tenure, they apply to the multitude of ways that academics evaluate and serve as gate keepers for each other in complex terrain of academia.

Strategies for an Effective and Appropriate Transition into Formal and Informal Peer Evaluation Roles Post-Tenure
1. Realize the importance, relevance, and pervasive presence of your role as a gate keeper and its impact on your relationship with others.

2. Be proactive in talking to junior faculty about their careers so that these conversations define your impact rather than inadvertent comments.

3. Work with other post-tenure colleagues to proactively identify and rectify situations where departmental disagreements and conflicts, policy problems, or disciplinary ambiguities might inappropriately spill over into review of specific tenure cases.

4. Talk with colleagues in advance of a specific tenure review to gain an updated perspective on what routinely makes tenure decisions complex or difficult in your discipline or department, and to assess the skills in your department for meeting these challenges.