This report examines the school superintendency in British Columbia (Canada) by focusing on superintendents' perceptions of their role's emerging skill requirements. From 1979 through June 1987, the transition from provincial employment to employment by local boards of school trustees resulted in the departure of nearly 52 percent of superintendents. To clarify the issues, interviews were conducted in 1987 with 42 superintendents who had held the position since 1980. The respondents believed that changes in the character of boards, in employment relationships, in societal and political parameters, and in the demands on superintendents have created different skill requirements. The superintendents stressed the essential nature of such skills as leadership initiative, communication and team-building abilities, and political statesmanship. The changing leadership demands appear to have contributed to the departure of some from the superintendency. To assess the issues further, information from informants in eight provinces was compared with the circumstances in British Columbia. In all the provinces, superintendents are employed locally. New Brunswick and British Columbia had similar experiences with turnover and the politicization of school boards. The report concludes that the future of the superintendency depends largely upon the board/superintendent employment relationship and its joint ability to develop comprehensive guidelines for recruitment, selection, and employment. Two reference pages and eight tables of data conclude the report. (CJH)