| This autoethnographic study explores the problem the researcher faced as a newly appointed leader of an academic services unit. This autoethnography will explore my experience as a newly appointed administrative leader, reflecting on and analyzing my year of experience serving as a director for an academic services unit during a time of limited inbound knowledge and limited leadership succession planning.;The purpose of this study was to explore my journey through a professional transition, uncover behaviors and practices that assisted me through that period, draw conclusions about how my experiences are related to existing literature on leadership succession, determine how my experiences can add to the discussion of leadership succession, and suggest ways in which individuals and higher education institutions can improve the transitional process for newly appointed educational leaders. This study is significant, as it recounts my story of navigating my way through the culture, politics, and unwritten practices and policies of my new position at a higher education institution..;I utilized my literature review to explore what literature currently exists to support educational leaders during a transition process and to further understand my journey through written narrative in a way that contributes to the existing literature. I examined my experience through this period of transition by comparing my behaviors, thoughts, and actions to the literature, drew conclusions about how my experience was related to existing literature on leadership succession, and determined how my experience can add to the literature of leadership succession.;This study finds that it is important to make a commitment to the practice of sustainable leadership as something that matters to the organization. It is important to engage in the practice of sustainable leadership, as it acknowledges that this practice promotes equality and excellence and therefore is socially just. Finally, it is important to engage in open discussion of how sustainable leadership practices should persist through a leadership succession transition, as doing so will provide an opportunity for the organization to identify how the transition in leadership will occur and provide provisions and detailed strategies for developing future leaders.. |
