{"id":45981,"date":"2026-02-17T14:23:11","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T20:23:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/und-today\/?p=45981"},"modified":"2026-02-17T15:14:44","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T21:14:44","slug":"tales-of-an-accidental-leader","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.und.edu\/und-today\/2026\/02\/tales-of-an-accidental-leader\/","title":{"rendered":"Tales of an accidental leader"},"content":{"rendered":"

Patrick O\u2019Neill, interim dean of the Nistler College, recounts \u2018accidents\u2019 throughout UND career that informed his views on leadership<\/strong><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"Headshot<\/p>\n

When Patrick O\u2019Neill<\/a><\/strong> joined UND\u2019s faculty in 1987 as an assistant professor of Economics, one of the last things he expected was to be the department chair only months into the job.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI thought,\u00a0\u2018I don\u2019t\u00a0even have tenure,\u2019\u201d O\u2019Neill remarked.<\/span><\/p>\n

But when the interim chair at the time begged O\u2019Neill to submit his name for the job, O\u2019Neill felt compelled.<\/span><\/p>\n

In an interview with all members of the department present,\u00a0O\u2019Neill was\u00a0asked,\u00a0\u201cWhy do you want to be chair?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Almost 40 years later, now serving as interim dean for the Nistler College of Business & Public Administration, O\u2019Neill said he remembers only what he was told once he had the job.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWhat the other person\u00a0interviewed\u00a0said was, \u2018I want the extra money,\u2019\u201d O\u2019Neill said.<\/span><\/p>\n

This\u00a0inspired\u00a0O\u2019Neill\u2019s first lesson shared during his Feb. 11 talk as part of UND\u2019s 18:83 Speaker Series<\/strong><\/a>:\u00a0interviews matter.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI had no idea that I would be interviewed,\u201d O\u2019Neill quipped. \u201cI\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0prepare, but I should have.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Throughout the academic year,\u00a0UND\u2019s 18:83 Speaker Series invites people from UND and the local community to share their perspectives\u00a0on leadership in a\u00a0short\u00a0timeframe \u2014 18 minutes and 33 seconds \u2014 that corresponds with the University\u2019s founding year.<\/span><\/p>\n

Titling his talk \u201cTales of an accidental leader,\u201d O\u2019Neill said\u00a0it\u2019s\u00a0often the case that leadership opportunities\u00a0present themselves without being\u00a0sought\u00a0\u2014 another lesson\u00a0he\u2019s\u00a0learned through\u00a0a long career\u00a0at UND.\u00a0His time on stage recounted several \u201caccidental\u201d moments of his tenure.<\/span><\/p>\n

Answer the call<\/h2>\n

Once he was named department chair, O\u2019Neill held the position for 10 years. By then, he was a full professor.<\/span><\/p>\n

But not long after he stepped down as chair, he was called to the dean\u2019s office and asked to assist the sole associate dean at the time, when needed.<\/span><\/p>\n

He wanted the weekend to think about it, as he was enjoying not having administrative responsibilities. But it took only one conversation with his wife to help him make up his mind.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cI called that night to say I\u2019m going to do it,\u201d O\u2019Neill said. \u201cThe lesson from that: answer the call. When asked to serve, please do so.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

His experience\u00a0with\u00a0the dean\u2019s office led to his next \u201cincident\u201d (note: not an accident this time, as it was of his own volition) of applying to become one of two associate deans.<\/span><\/p>\n

During that interview, when asked on a scale of one to 10 how \u201chungry\u201d he was for the job, O\u2019Neill said\u00a0he was\u00a0at\u00a0a six.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u00a0wasn\u2019t\u00a0the answer the dean was looking for.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cHe said, \u2018That\u2019s kind of disappointing,\u201d O\u2019Neill recalled. \u201c\u2018I thought you might say, like,\u00a0eight or nine.\u2019\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

What O\u2019Neill realized was that it was the same answer he had given before, when\u00a0previously\u00a0interviewed.\u00a0He\u00a0didn\u2019t\u00a0need the associate dean position to feel like\u00a0he\u2019d\u00a0had a satisfying career.<\/span><\/p>\n

What could he say this time to get picked?<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn terms of how hungry I am, it\u2019s a six out of 10,\u201d O\u2019Neill quoted. \u201cBut if you pick me for this job, I will give you an 11 out of 10 in\u00a0effort.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The lesson? Interviews still matter \u2014 a lesson he had to learn twice.<\/span><\/p>\n

Virtues of good leaders<\/h2>\n

Through other\u00a0\u201cincidents and accidents\u201d\u00a0such as becoming the full-time associate dean, leading UND\u2019s reaccreditation effort and most recently becoming the interim dean of the Nistler College, O\u2019Neill was able to reflect on\u00a0them to characterize what he thinks\u00a0makes\u00a0a \u201cgood leader.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

From those prior experiences, he\u00a0learned other lessons\u00a0in addition to\u00a0\u201cinterviews matter\u201d and \u201canswer the call\u201d:<\/span><\/p>\n