Leadership in Libraries
There are tools to use if you want to be good at it (also works in nonprofits!)
I actually am a doctor of library science! (I don’t just play one on TV.) And the area I studied and taught and wrote about and researched for many years was management and leadership in libraries.
Now we could sit here all day and chatter about the philosophical differences between leadership and management. But my other area of specialty was in looking at the practical stuff, the let’s-get-down-to-it stuff. So: I don’t really care that much about these philosophical differences, but if you want to explore this area there will be a lot of discussion you can find.
Instead, I would like to talk about some of the competencies I found that are important for leaders in libraries to possess if they want to be successful. I believe these can also include people who want to be successful leader in education and the nonprofit world in general. (I’m not sharing this perspective from quantitative research of my own, but with a lot of qualitative observation over many years!)
Good leadership is so vital. I hate when people say “oh, the chaos of life today! worse than ever!” as if life has not always been chaotic and difficult for people! But there is something to the idea that as all organizations become more streamlined, fewer staff doing more things, and are facing our current set of challenges from technology and money flow - things are challenging. Good leaders will help to maintain good employees, promote good business strategies, and good customer relations. It’s hard to be good at this! But a few competencies will help to make anyone better at leading and being successful at it.
In my dissertation research, I wanted to figure out what was needed to be a good library director/leader/manager. I started with about 300 different ideas from a very extensive literature review, then did assorted work to narrow them to the most important ideas. The final stage was a Delphi survey of library directors from around the country, and they honed it down to the final few. I ended up with nineteen competencies identified and defined. Let’s look at a few of those identified as the most important.
These first three seem very similar, and I thought some might fall out because they overlapped. But the group felt very strongly in their notes that all of these were vital for leaders. And I agree: if the people around you cannot trust that you will do what you say, or that you will not be reliable - your relationship is broken. And you cannot lead people who do not trust you. It may seem basic, but it’s a foundational idea in any sort of leadership position. People have to WANT to follow you, or to buy from you, or to work with you; and nobody wants to bet their time, money, or careers on someone who is shady.
Integrity: following professional code, being honest, being a role model for how to behave; honesty
Credibility: building trust in others; doing what you say you will do; being consistent in speech and actions
Accountability: taking responsibility for results - positive and negative
The next three are all about being able to connect with people. (I’m going to insert a plug for learning to listen to people - not just to talk!)
Customer service: both internal and external; remembering that patrons are the focus of the library
Communication skills: speaking, writing, listening; understanding your message and conveying it to others
Interpersonal skills: effectively working together with others of different levels or different positions (staff and public); good social skills; building rapport
And these last two are about being able to step back from the immediate tasks and pressures of today, and look at the bigger picture of the things you want to accomplish - always trying to find the best way to get there.
Vision: looking at the future and see where the library can go; articulating directions
Political Understanding: government relations, Board relations, working with City departments, understanding organizational structure
It’s always complicated to lead, whether you are working with an entire library, a department, or a team of a few people. But it is something people can learn to do well. We’ll talk abut ways to develop these competencies, and you can also work on building them yourself!