Is Your Book an Asset or a Liability?
A little yarn about how discerning folks will view your titles down the road.
In May 2016, I flew to Phoenix. I wasn't leaving my extended family à la Michael Bluth. Rather, I was interviewing for a job as a college professor. The next day, I'd be talking to the staff at ASU's W. P. Carey School of Business, Department of Information Systems.
Las Vegas had run its course. I wanted the gig, and I wasn't leaving anything to chance. That meant bringing a proper suit, a pressed shirt, and my best dress shoes. Next, I spent a good amount of time creating and rehearsing my presentation. Finally, I did something that, to my knowledge, no other candidate in the IS Department had done before: I sent physical copies of each of my previous seven titles.
Expectations
Based on my prior interviews in higher education, I expected a discerning crowd. I had known for years that academia is a notoriously critical place. As I saw during previous interviews at other schools over the prior four months, accomplished professors would freely—often, rudely—challenge my claims and credentials.1