In the newly created position of chief of staff at College of DuPage, Brig Timpson sees his job as brokering conversations and relationships.

“If I were to rename my title, I would call it ‘chief connection officer,’” he said. “When an important issue or project reaches my desk, I determine who needs to be at the table. Many times, I don’t have the authority to make decisions in these areas, but I know the people who do, and they need to be at the table when that conversation is happening.”

Timpson understands the role based upon nearly 20 years of experience as chief of staff at such institutions as Oak Point University, Roosevelt University and the California State University Maritime Academy. However, his original career path went in an entirely different direction: He was a professional musician.

As one of 13 children in a family of sports fanatics, Timpson was drawn to the piano, which became his first love. After finishing his sophomore year of high school early, he studied piano at the Cleveland Institute of Music. He later attended Dixie College (now Utah Tech University), where he joined the men’s glee club and found his true passion in singing. He earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in music from the University of Utah and completed all coursework for a Doctor of Musical Arts degree from the University of Colorado Boulder.

Timpson traveled the Intermountain West as a tenor singing with symphonies and opera companies. However, after missing the holidays with his daughter, who was living with her mother following his divorce, he realized that living on the road was too much. He found a job as deputy chief of staff at Roosevelt University, where he knew the president, who was once a dean at the University of Colorado Boulder.

When the chief of staff left, Timpson stepped into the role, first in the interim and then permanently. 

“It became clear that the work I was doing—strategic planning, interacting with members of the Board of Trustees, helping the president connect with the campus and vice versa—I found myself enjoying and doing well.”

His career accomplishments include working with the administration at Roosevelt to help its board pass plans for a new building in downtown Chicago, which opened in 2012, and helping the California State University Maritime Academy develop its first-even strategic plan, which led to significant growth and expansion.

Now at COD, Timpson has discovered a strong atmosphere driven by the employees.

“People are drawn to this institution, because there’s a magneticism I’ve never felt anywhere before,” he said. “I want to build on this and help employees be effective and collaborative in their work by providing greater connections to the scope and vision of the College. I want to better connect the campus to the president, one department to another, and create greater avenues for understanding.

“I love that I get to interact with people across every level of COD, where I can cultivate relationships in meaningful ways. Every person I speak to makes an impact, whether they are a front-line employee or the Board chair, and the conversations I have with people matter.”