Researchers' Recommendations for Districts 

• Establish job standards and required competencies for principals as a powerful first step. Districts can consider the Professional Standards for Educational Leaders created by the National Policy Board for Educational Administration.
• Revise the principal hiring process. The district could make better decisions if applicants were required to demonstrate their skills. Consider drawing on consultants to help design performance tasks. 
• Create district-run principal preparation programs tailored to district priorities. Such programs also give hiring managers a chance to observe aspiring principals. 
• Develop a computerized “leader tracking system” that can organize information about individual leaders and factors including their career paths and accomplishments. It can help with hiring and succession planning. Eventually the results can be used to improve all parts of the pipeline.
• Introduce changes to pipeline components on a pilot basis. This allows leaders to learn from experience and revise the components. It can also ease concerns about potential negative impacts.

Researcher's Recommendations for Policymakers 

• Ensure that districts have access to the Professional Standards for Educational Leaders. They should also have examples of job descriptions, evaluation rubrics, and other usable materials based on these standards. 
• Consider balancing requirements for how principal pipelines are designed and implemented with local flexibility. Districts in the Principal Pipeline Initiative benefitted from both. 
• Provide seed money for start-up costs. This could include expert help with hiring procedures or data systems. It might also include initial training for principal supervisors and others taking on new roles. Visits to other districts to learn from their work are also valuable.
• Recognize that implementing the components of a major system initiative is a multi-year endeavor. It takes even longer to see the effects of those changes. Patience is required.