Smart leadership starts here.

Jeffrey Harris

Founder & Managing Partner

Jeffrey Harris is the founder and Managing Partner of Harris Search Associates, an IIC Partners member firm, where he leads the firm's Higher Education, Academic Medicine, and Healthcare Administration practices.

Founded in 1997 and modeled after the first premier management-consulting firms, Harris Search Associates is a leading global executive search and board advisory consulting firm focused solely on the recruitment of senior leadership talent to support the growth of the foremost universities, academic medical centers, medical schools, research institutions, and healthcare enterprises driving global innovation and discovery. Based in Columbus, Ohio and with regional offices in San Francisco and Dallas, the firm has successfully completed over 900 assignments. 

Jeffrey leads a diverse, seasoned team of over 20 seasoned consultants and staff who combine the recruiting and leadership assessment expertise from the largest, most well-recognized retained search organizations with highly respected, former university Presidents, Provosts, Deans, Vice Presidents, and senior administrators from across the country. 

Recent clients include Michigan State University, Purdue University, Indiana University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Lincoln Laboratory, Medical College of Wisconsin, University at Buffalo, Indiana University, Oakland University, University of South Florida, University of Nebraska, University of Minnesota, Vanderbilt University, Kansas State University, Howard University, University of North Dakota, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Dayton Children’s Hospital, Nationwide Children's Hospital, and Oregon Health & Science University.

Prior to establishing the firm in 1997, Jeffrey worked five years for a leading retained executive search firm where he concentrated on senior assignments on behalf of leading engineering, research, and health sciences clients.

Jeffrey is the global leader of the IIC Partners Higher Education/Academic Medicine Practice, and from 2010-2013, was appointed to the Board of IIC Partners as Vice-Chair for the Americas. He is an active member of CUPA-HR, the American Council on Education, Society for Human Resource Management, American College of Healthcare Executives, American Public Health Association, Educause, American Association of University Administrators, American Educational Research Association, and American Medical Informatics Association.

Jeffrey earned a Bachelors Degree from Ithaca College and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Dayton. He is currently pursuing a Doctorate of Business Administration at Marymount University and recently completed the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the Workplace Certification through the University of South Florida Muma College of Business.

Jeffrey Harris
Harris Search Associates - an IIC Partners member firm, is a leading global higher education executive search and board advisory consulting firm with 44 offices in 33 countries worldwide. Our higher education executive search practice is focused on identifying and attracting leaders to support the growth of clients in the areas of research, science, engineering, academic medicine, and healthcare enterprises. Clients include the foremost universities, research parks, institutes, academic medical centers, and healthcare organizations driving global innovation and discovery.