Library leaders at all levels are, and will be, in great demand in the coming days and years. Our profession is caught in the societal turbulence that grips us all. Budgets are tight, debts are huge, and technology is forcing change in all facets of society. These challenges will demand energetic and wise leadership if our profession is to prosper. What qualities will best enable our leaders to lead successfully for themselves, their libraries, and the profession?
Leadership and Management in Action | Focus on Leadership and Management
By on March 11, 2013 Leave a Comment
All of the advanced warnings were precise and dire; a mega storm was about to batter the City of Wishmere with torrential rains and gale force winds. The community’s Emergency Preparedness Task Force met earlier in the day to review and revamp its community disaster strategy, in light of the unusually severe weather forecast, and [...]
Good Leaders Learn What Not to Do | Leading From the Library
By on September 26, 2012 2 Comments
It’s Time To Fix Library Advocacy, Now! | Blatant Berry
By on September 7, 2012 12 Comments
The library profession’s advocacy efforts have had very little impact. Why we have not addressed this obvious problem more aggressively is a mystery. Of course, there have been some successes, especially at the local level. They have been good enough to show us that the great reservoir of public support for public libraries is still full and can be tapped. Still, the profession simply has not found a way to tap that public support to influence the political process.
Libraries Need Leaders At Every Level | Lead The Change
By on August 30, 2012 Leave a Comment
Hennepin County Library is a national leader of library service, innovation and excellence. In that spirit, we were proud to host “Lead the Change! Minnesota” on August 21 at Ridgedale Library in Minnetonka, Minnesota. Staff from across HCL and other systems had a unique opportunity to engage with library directors from the seven-county Twin Cities [...]
Virtually Branching Out | Lead the Change
By on August 30, 2012 Leave a Comment
The idea that libraries need to take their services “outside the building” is well-established, from bookmobiles to digital branches. But more innovative, effective, inexpensive ways to take the library into the community are still needed. At the recent Lead the Change event in at Denver Central Library, presenter David David Bendekovic cited Southlake, TX, Public Library’s [...]
Learning to Lead Others to Change | Leading From the Library
By on August 23, 2012 4 Comments
Great leaders have a way of inspiring followers to believe in a cause that makes them want to change. Actually doing this is a tremendous challenge. What does it take to be that kind of leader? As I travel to conferences and libraries, I hear one particular complaint more often than others. It’s from academic [...]
Leadership Is Not a Static Endeavor | Lead The Change
By on August 16, 2012 Leave a Comment
Leading today’s libraries demands fluidity, which requires the willingness to recognize the need for change, and then, the ability to lead that change. And, as we say at the Lead the Change sessions, “You don’t need a title to be a leader!”
Library Support Requires Active Leaders | Lead the Change
By on August 16, 2012 Leave a Comment
Are extraordinary initiatives the business of public libraries and their leaders? In my view, they exemplify the leadership role for public libraries.
Taking the Sting from Group Projects | Peer to Peer Review
By on May 10, 2012
I hated group projects when I was a library-school student. Oh, did I hate them! Slackers going unpunished, poor communication, floundering, missed deadlines causing panic, what’s not to hate? Now that I’m teaching library school, I assign group projects anyway. A terrible hypocrite am I. The logistics are compelling enough. SLIS’s introductory library-technology course seats [...]
