The search for a new President

The appointment of Sibrand Poppema, the current President of the Board, ends on October 1st. The University is therefore looking for his successor. But how do they find a new board member? We explain the process in full.

A quick overview

In a hurry or just need a clear overview to put everything into perspective? Have a look at our infographic! Click on the image for a large version of download the PDF below.

Applications

The members of the Board of Directors are appointed by the Supervisory Board.  This board is instituted by the Education Minister to supervise the Board of Directors and give advice where needed. The Supervisory Board doesn’t conduct the interviews themselves, but forms an application committee: advisory appointment committee (better known by its Dutch name: benoemingsadviescommissie).

Advisory appointment commissie

In this application committee, at least one student member and one staff member of the University Council take place. The Supervisory Board can add additional members to the committee. There is no maximum number of members and there are no conditions for membership. People from inside as well as outside the university can take place in the committee.

Profile

To find a new board member, you first need to know what to look for. Only then you can start posting vacancies and taking interviews. That is why the Supervisory Board writes a profile containing the requirements for the new board member and what the university will offer him of her.

The profile is sent to the University Council for advice, after which the Supervisory Board finalizes it. Then, the profile is made public and the application process starts.

Interviews

The application commissie receives all applications and invites the applicants for one or multiple interview. Moreover, they can also conduct an assessment. After all interviews, the committee gives a recommendation: the candidate they think is most suited for the job.

Appointment

After the application process and the recommendation of the application committee, the Supervisory Board discusses the findings of the committee. They nominate a candidate for appointment. According to Dutch Higher Education law, the spots on the Board of Directors need to be evenly distributed between man and woman. The Supervisory Board will have to take that into account during their decision making.

Before the candidate can be appointed, the University Council is confidentially informed. The council gives advice on the proposed appointment. According to the law, the should happen “at a time that there can still be a substantial influence on the decision making process”. The Board can ignore the council’s advice, but in practice they will want to appoint a candidate that enjoys the support of the academic community.

The Supervisory Board discusses the advice from the council and takes a final decision. The new board members is subsequently announced and starts his or her job after a short training period.