Christopher D. Lee is no stranger to the college life. With master’s and doctoral degrees and 25 years in university leadership, Lee was a strong choice to be the College of William & Mary's new chief human resources officer. We caught up with Lee to chat about his purpose at William & Mary, his history in HR and bringing an academic background to bear on the certification process.
My goal is to address the challenges that faculty and staff deal with daily. Universities offer all sorts of student support, but those systems aren’t always in place for faculty and staff. So while students have advisers and counselors to turn to, I want university employees to feel empowered to approach HR.
I also see the rich opportunities for organizational mobility and want to help faculty and staff capitalize on that. I want to create a world-class HR function to support this world-class institution. It’s my philosophy that employees should feel as special, empowered and supported as the students do.
I’ve always been oriented toward public service, but it’s such a vast category that I had to specialize. The human dimension was most attractive to me, so I took a few HR courses and that proved to be my niche.
Initially, I applied my dedication to HR as a Marine officer, doing officer recruiting and working with civilian personnel. Because I’m passionate about the profession and higher education, the next logical step was a doctorate in HR. I intentionally moved my career in the academic direction and achieved a position at a small junior college in Georgia. William & Mary is my fifth institution of higher education.
Formal education and certifications are two sides of the same coin. A master's degree is what professors think you need to know, but certification is what professionals think you need to know. There's a nice marriage between the two, and I felt compelled to get both because it's always been my goal to be a consummate HR professional.
I earned both the PHR and SPHR certifications. Having those certifications speaks to the fundamentals; they provide a basic bedrock of knowledge for the HR profession as a whole. I feel confident speaking from that foundation and feel equipped to go forth and do good. And, as a former test writer for HRCI, our question-writing process was to ask questions that reflect both core knowledge and professional practice, so I feel confident in the strength and utility of the material.
Additionally, when hiring candidates in HR, I like to look at who has certifications. For me, the actual knowledge candidates gain from the process is a happy byproduct. What I love about candidates who have certifications is their commitment to the field. No one spends weeks of their time on coursework and studying for exams unless they intend to be the best they can be at their profession. It shows passion, commitment and dedication to the field — and that, to me, speaks volumes.