Discovering the Experiences of Supervisors in a Leadership Training Program

There are over 2.5 million people employed full-time by higher education institutions across the United States, with over 1 million full-time employees at individual Research 1 (R1) higher education institutions. R1 higher education institutions employ thousands of individuals and spend at least $5 million on research expenditures. R1 higher education institutions could not function or succeed academically without the support of their employees, but unfortunately, employee job satisfaction is often ignored to focus on other immediate items like research. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to examine a leadership training program already in place at Southeastern University (SU) during the COVID-19 timeframe (January 2020 - current), while discovering the experiences and satisfaction of participants. This leadership training program has had hundreds complete the program, but there is little to nothing known about the participant's experience and satisfaction with the program. A total of fourteen program completers in a leadership position participated in a semi-structured interview lasting from 40-90 minutes. Specific characteristics were needed for the research questions to be answered successfully so participants were chosen using maximum variation purposive sampling. Constant comparative analysis was used inductively to create codes from the data. Elemental coding was used for the first-cycle method, specifically InVivo. InVivo coding allowed the ability to attune to participant perspectives and actions. The data revealed that overall participants felt like they received the resources and tools needed to lead at SU and were satisfied with the program and their learning experience. However, participants also expressed room for improvement within the program and outside of the program. Outside of the program they saw a lack of leadership skills in leaders across campus and a lack of support for the program.