Library Leadership & Management (Texas Digital Library - TDL E-Journals)
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Emotional Intelligence for Librarians
No full textEmotional intelligence (EI) is the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships effectively within your library. Theories about developing emotionally intelligent staff through training, mentoring, and succession planning are discussed specifically in relation to librarianship. The theories and discussed philosophies and practices of EI will encompass and blend new concepts into existing and widely valued library literature with theorists from within the business sector. This article discusses how EI is used in the employment selection process and how it defines the core competencies we see in our employees. This article will delve into training, benefits, challenges, and how It is used in the change management process. In healthy libraries, EI is for leaders, managers, and employees at all levels
Redesigning staff recruitment for the 21st century: a case study from the University of Chicago Library
No full textThe University of Chicago Library acquisitions department experienced a significant amount of clerical and supervisory staff turnover between 2016 and 2019. Viewing this period of change as an opportunity to recruit a highly skilled and diverse staff poised to sustain the department for the future. We knew that we had to think differently about what skills we needed and what skills would be transferable from industries outside the library or academe into the library. This paper provides an outline of the potential benefits of non-library industry hiring by looking at current departmental needs and anticipating future industry developments and changes through hiring, and why considering applicants new to the Library may address each of those challenges, why and how to reframe job descriptions and interviews to focus on transferable and soft skills, in the absence of relevant library experience, and looks at needed training and development to acclimate new hires into library work
Thinking About the Unthinkable: Active Shooter Preparedness in Library Environments
No full textThere is limited aggregated data showing the amount and levels of preparedness training for active shooter situations in public, academic, and K-12 libraries in California and across the United States. The purpose of this research is to assess the state of preparedness of librarians, staff, and volunteers working in these libraries for active shooter situations. In 2018, the authors collected data from academic, public, and school library personnel about their attitudes and levels of preparedness for active shooter situations. It is hoped that this research will contribute to the development of best practices in raising safety awareness in academic and public libraries
The Perceptions of Librarians in Regional Universities in Texas Regarding Leadership Development Experiences
No full textThe purpose of this phenomenological narrative study was to examine Texas regional university librarians’ perceptions of leadership development experiences in order to provide better library services to patrons from all backgrounds. The selected ten academic librarians were interviewed either face-to-face or virtually with in-depth questions about leadership development. The interviews were analyzed to understand the essence of the participants’ experiences and divided into different themes to find patterns. The findings revealed the participants’ perceptions regarding the need for leadership development, their participation in leadership opportunities, and the obstacles to attaining leadership development. Implications included the need for more administrative support and for changes to library school curricula
New and Noteworthy: Staying Inspired in Difficult Times
No full textThis issue's column suggests a few new releases to prompt professional reflection and renewal
Creating Diversity in Libraries: Management Perspectives
No full textWhile existing library literature tends to focus on various diversity programs and discuss lack of diversity in the occupation, research is lacking on what libraries, individual managers, and minority librarians can do to cultivate diversity based on findings from management literature. This study explores linking those findings with practical steps that libraries, managers, and minority librarians can take to increase diversity in libraries. Review of management literature found that successful minorities have sponsors who advocate for them as well as mentors who provide guidance and psychological support. It also found that voluntary initiatives such as awareness building through increased contact with minorities, eliminating biases through processes and structures, setting specific goals, and increasing social accountability were more effective than mandatory diversity training programs. Based on the findings from the management literature, libraries are advised to communicate management commitment through their websites, job posts and other venues, set specific goals, evaluate outcomes, and make managers accountable by incorporating diversity-related performance goals in their evaluation. Managers’ willingness to be bias interrupters and serve as diversity champions also contributes to the success of diversity efforts. Appealing to people’s desire to look good to others is also found to be more effective than coercive techniques. Structured hiring practices and objective evaluation criteria for promotion also eliminate biases and lead to improvement. Minority librarians are encouraged to seek out sponsors as well as mentors, build on their resilience, and establish genuine personal long-term relationships with people of different backgrounds to achieve success in their careers
Research Participation and Employment of Persons with Autism Spectrum in Library and Information Science: A Review of the Literature
No full textPersons with autism spectrum disorder are a growing population and important to library and information science research and employment in libraries. Including them in all stages of research about the neurodivergent experience is valuable, and their input and participation is increasingly used in technology research, particularly usability studies. Neurodiverse persons also have unique abilities that align with a wide array of information professions and accommodations can be made that allow them to thrive in the workplace. It is critical that meaningful involvement of autistic individuals is a component of making policy at all levels
Integrating Student Assistants into Digital Repository Workflows: Challenges and Best Practices
No full textThe Scholarly Communication Initiatives and Digital Collections departments within the University adapted staff workflows to become student-centered, where workers create digital content for the University’ digital repositories. Each department has a diverse set of needs; Scholarly Communication Initiatives hires students to help with the creation of metadata records, review open access options for sharing each work, and upload items into the institutional repository. Digital Collections relies on students to scan, create metadata, and upload images online that reflect physical holdings in Special Collections and Archives. Utilizing student workers also provides more time for full-time staff to work on higher-level projects and to update, rethink, improve, and streamline existing workflows. Both departments have found that student-centered workflows teach technical and transferable skills while also encouraging students to grow professionally, academically, and socially, setting students up for success beyond graduation. Empowering the whole student and encouraging their personal and collaborative growth thus helps each department to become more efficient and successful in their missions, a triumph that is possible for any library department of an academic institution. While there is a large body of research on student workers in libraries, including on the topics of management and specific functional areas, there is very little research focused on student workers in digital repositories. This article begins to fill this gap and discusses the philosophies and methodologies of both departments’ approaches, as well as the results of implementing student-centered processes for the department and full-time staff