Chapter 14: Section Chief and Department Head: Learning to Lead

Dr. Escalante begins this segment with a description of how she replaced section chief Ed Rubenstein in 1997 because of complaints about his leadership. She explains that morale was very low in the section during this difficult time for her and for the section. A central problem: when she replaced Dr. Rubenstein, she was also promoted above him. Dr. Escalante next talks about the challenges she faced during this period when she had to cope with a great deal of conflict within the section. After a year, she explains, she went to her supervisor, and Dr. Rubenstein was moved to another section. Dr. Escalante talks about her leadership style: she stresses consensus, but she is also a decision-maker. She has learned a great deal about organizing administrative structure effectively and also cultivates leadership talent within the department.https://openworks.mdanderson.org/mchv_interviewchapters/1769/thumbnail.jp