"Realising academic goals together with others gives me energy"

"I believe that the field of public health has a large untapped potential, and I’m looking forward to helping realise this potential," says the new Head of the Department of Public Health Michael Baggesen Klitgaard. Photo: Simon Fischel, AU Health

7 November 2024 by Sabina Bjerre Hansen

Facts about the new head of the Department of Public Health

Name: Michael Baggesen Klitgaard.
Place of birth and year: Born in Aalborg in 1971.
Place of residence and marital status: Lives in Odense and is married to Trine Baggesen Klitgaard, who is an educational consultant. They have a daughter, Kirstine, and two sons, Christian and Mads. Kirstine is 23 years old and studying political science in Odense, Christian is 20 years old and studying politics and economics in Aarhus, and Mads is 12 years old and in the 6th grade.
Name: Michael Baggesen Klitgaard.
Place of birth and year: Born in Aalborg in 1971.
Place of residence and marital status: Lives in Odense and is married to Trine Baggesen Klitgaard, who is an educational consultant. They have a daughter, Kirstine, and two sons, Christian and Mads. Kirstine is 23 years old and studying political science in Odense, Christian is 20 years old and studying politics and economics in Aarhus, and Mads is 12 years old and in the 6th grade.
Field of research: Primary area of research is public policy, welfare state institutions as well as equality and inequality.
Teaching area: Has taught public policy, public administration and welfare state institution reforms. Was named Lecturer of the Year at the Department of Political Science and Public Management at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense in 2011.
Previous jobs: Was employed as a professor of political science at the University of Southern Denmark in Odense from 2012 to 2020 and as an assistant professor and associate professor at the same university from 2004 to 2012. Was head of the Department of Politics and Society at Aalborg University from 2020 to 2024, where he will continue as a professor until 30 November 2024. Has spent a year as a visiting professor at Harvard University.
Thoughts on commuting: Will commute between Odense and Aarhus, but dreams of returning to Aarhus, where he set up a home with Trine for the first time – in an apartment on Ny Munkegade. Can spend the night at his mother’s in Randers on days when the drive back to Odense seems too long.
Hobbies: Enjoys most of his free time with his family. Tries to see his two oldest children, who have left home, as much as they will allow him, and attends his youngest child’s handball matches. Also spends quite a lot of time cycling, running and on cultural experiences – especially music. A frequent opera-goer and a regular guest at the Tinderbox music festival in Odense.
Bonus information: Will cycle with Team Rynkeby from Odense to Paris in 2025.

Michael Baggesen Klitgaard is a professor of political science, and his research is on public policy. Among other things, he has management experience from a position as the head of the Department of Politics and Society at Aalborg University, and he is looking forward to starting at Aarhus.

Good relationships and insight are crucial

Michael Baggesen Klitgaard is well aware that the Department of Public Health is facing major changes, including implementing the sector resizing, reorganising the Master's degree programmes and welcoming the National Centre for Register-based Research. Nevertheless, at first he will prioritise getting to know the department.

"Getting to know the employees, daily life at the department, routines and procedures is very important to me. I’ll prioritise being visible, attentive and available and I’ll spend my first weeks forming relationships and gaining insight," he says and elaborates:

"I'm not coming with a comprehensive reform agenda to completely transform the department. There are lots of good activities and initiatives going on already. Besides, we’re facing the Master’s degree reform and other major changes, which are must-do tasks that will demand a lot of effort from the entire department. These are tasks that we must have the strength to solve together, and I know and respect that there are limits to what employees and management can deal with at one time," he says.

A humble approach to the task

With his background in political science, Michael Baggesen Klitgaard is well aware that he has a different starting point academically than many of his new staff and colleagues.

"Staff will notice my background in that I approach the task with humility and respect for the academic environments, and I know that I have a lot to learn. This also means that close dialogue and sparring with the academic environments is crucial for me and the other members of the department management team so that we can make good and informed decisions," says Michael Baggesen Klitgaard and continues:

"My experience as a head of department comes from a department that is academically even more diverse than the Department of Public Health, with a broader research and teaching profile. Looking back, I can see that perhaps I’m a better manager when my own professional insight into an area is slightly more limited. This is probably because it is more natural for me to listen than to talk when I’m in these management situations. Listening gives employees autonomy and space to apply their professional skills, and this is crucial if, together, we are to succeed at the very highest level."

Passionate about the interface between social science and health science

In this connection, Michael Baggesen Klitgaard acknowledges that, as a professor of political science, he will not, in practice, be heading the department's research into doping, environmental impact, nursing and rehabilitation. At least not at first glance.

"When I was writing my application, I spent quite a lot of time reading about the field of public health to assess whether there was an academic match. The deeper I got into it, and the more I found out about the field, the position and the department, the more convinced I became. I really want this job," says Michael Baggesen Klitgaard and continues:

"Not because I just want to be the head of department at any department. But because in the interface between health science and social science lie some critical and important issues that are absolutely crucial from a public health perspective. I also believe that public health has great potential in many of the agendas addressed in the government's proposal for a new healthcare reform, and I’m looking forward to helping realise this potential."

He also hopes that the employees will perceive him as an open and unpretentious manager with a positive attitude.

"When I was head of the Department of Politics and Society at Aalborg University, one of my managers once said to me: 'You know what you want, but you’re also easy to talk to.' I think that’s very true. I think I lead with authority, but I'm also pragmatic and a good listener," says Michael Baggesen Klitgaard.

Development tasks motivate and give energy

In his former position at Aalborg, Michael Baggesen Klitgaard discovered that realising academic goals and ambitions together with colleagues gives him energy – something that extends beyond his own career.

"I really enjoy collaborating with others in a large organisation, formulating and defining clear goals, and then working systematically to achieve them together. That motivates me,” he explains, and continues:

"When you work at a broader organisational level, you achieve the wins together, which makes them so much sweeter than achieving them alone. And it goes both ways. When something is difficult or doesn’t go as you had hoped, it’s easier to get back in the saddle if you work together," says Michael Baggesen Klitgaard.

Contact

Professor and future Head of Department Michael Baggesen Klitgaard
Aarhus University, Department of Public Health
Telephone: +45 40 22 76 49
Mail: au77067@uni.au.dk