The purpose of this qualitative study is to explore the leadership experiences of department chairs in for-profit, higher education institutions to identify effective leadership competencies for the role. The study utilized Gigliotti and Ruben's (2019) Two-dimensional Competency Approach for Effective Leadership and Ruben's Leadership Competency Themes as frameworks for the study. Ten experienced department chairs in for-profit higher education institutions were individually interviewed for the study. Competency themes that emerged were personal, analytic, communication, organizational and positional themes. Subcompetencies were identified within each competency theme. Subcompetencies within the personal theme were persistence, passion, commitment and service, collaboration and relationship building, initiative, ownership and accountability, adaptability and agility, and resourcefulness and organization. For the analytic competency, the subcompetencies are self-awareness and reflection, systems analysis, perception and insight, and data analysis and application. Communication competencies include presence, accessibility, effectivity, and honesty. Organizational competencies pertain to the knowledge of business operations. Positional competencies concern the relevant industry and role knowledge. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://bibliotheek.ehb.be:2222/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]