Perceptions of Transformational Leadership in Academic Libraries

ABSTRACT

Transformational leadership is highly correlated with effective organizations and successful change, yet few studies of this leadership style exist in the library literature. This study examined perceptions of transformational traits in academic library leaders. The study asked academic librarians at 4 year institutions to rate their library's leadership using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. While the librarians perceived their library leaders to be more transformational than transactional, the mean score for transformational leadership was middling, as were the scores for each of the transformational components. This could indicate a lack of change readiness in these libraries.     

Face the Books: A Leadership Journey

Leadership, as a topic, has seen a lot of interest in academics as well as with practitioners. The search, however, has not yielded a concrete formula, though there are quite a few theories which have worked well in certain contexts. The context of special libraries is one such area which has a huge potential in discovering what leadership actions have worked well and what can be a framework for success in other special libraries, especially when the utility of special libraries is being questioned in a corporate environment. The dearth of leadership and leadership development literature in special libraries, from a practitioner's point of view, provides a good opportunity for sharing a small journey of success. The column builds upon the application of leadership actions deriving from diverse and merging fields like learning and development, organizational behavior, marketing, and human psychology of reading in making a case for the utility of corporate libraries in the development of employees.     

Academic Library Leadership in South West Nigeria and Recession: An Exploratory Study

ABSTRACT

Academic libraries in developing countries are underfunded and require transformational leadership to manage the resultant changes and ensure organizational effectiveness. This study attempts to identify the prevalent leadership styles in academic libraries in South West Nigeria using the Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire. The study reflected that the library managers portrayed mostly a mix of transformational and transactional leadership styles. The library budget, equipment, and acquisition were most affected by recession. The library leaders preferred a mixture of investment and retrenchment (cost controlling) strategies to cope with recession. Leadership assessment using transformational model for coaching and recruitment is recommended for libraries.     

Hidden Leadership in Small Special Libraries

“The Specialist” addresses the administration of special libraries, however, identifying the administrator of a small special library is problematic. In these small libraries within organizations, the librarian often works alone and the library is overseen by a non-librarian manager. In these cases, it is not as easy to identify or define the library's administrator as it would be in a public or academic library, or even a larger special library. This column introduces a model where the administration of small special libraries is a collaboration between librarians and non-librarian managers. In this model, information professionals exercise hidden leadership and management skills without leading a staff or possessing a management title. The column also suggests ways information professionals without explicit management responsibilities in the workplace can develop these skills and apply them in their jobs.     

National Information and Communication Technology Policy and Digital Era School Librarianship in Botswana

School librarianship has advanced in the digital era to encompass interactivity, connectivity, and access to a wide variety of information in different formats, through the capabilities of information and communication technologies. School libraries exist to support learning in schools and the importance of the digital age in student's learning cannot be overstated. Today's students are born in the age of technology; therefore a school library that does not encompass the use of electronic media will not meet the needs of the digital generation. The purpose of this article is to find out the status of technology diffusion and use in Botswana school libraries and to advance reasons for the lack of information and communication technology uptake in school libraries. A document analysis of literature was done to determine the factors that hinder the growth of school librarianship in Botswana during the digital era, using the stakeholder theory as a lens for the investigation. Findings reveal a weakness in the social, political, and economic areas of leadership in national information policies which seem to be a remnant from the beginning of the digital age in Botswana and indeed in most African countries. Some of the recommendations point to using the stakeholder theory to tackle the hurdles in school librarianship leadership and policy in the information age.     

Collaborative Leadership

Abstract

In 1991, Joseph C. Rost published Leadership for the 21st Century (Praeger) in which he presented a definition of leadership that focused on the influence relationship among leaders and followers rather than on the traits of the leader or the functions of leadership. Rost's model is useful for academic reference leaders who usually head a group of professionals who are involved in a variety of responsibilities that require them to be leaders. This article applies Rost's theories to academic reference leadership and explores a model that will provide for better job satisfaction for librarians and improved services to library users.     

Desired Characteristics of Management and Leadership for Public Library Directors as Expressed in Job Advertisements

ABSTRACT

Advertisements for public library directors can reflect the evolution of the public library environment as libraries adapt to changes related to funding and technology. No study has examined whether the skills and attributes desired of public library directors have changed over time and whether they are associated with the characteristics of management or leadership. Content analysis of public library director job advertisements from 2000–2011 revealed a closer association with management than leadership traits and an omission of characteristics like advocating, fundraising, being politically savvy, and having a vision needed to position the public library as an essential resource to stakeholders.     

From Women-Staffed to Women-Led: Gender and Leadership in Academic Libraries, 1974-2018

This article reviews post-1974 scholarly literature on women’s leadership in academic libraries, with the emphasis on the United States. The purpose of this synthesis is to highlight research areas and themes that have significantly expanded the profession’s knowledge about gender and its impact at the top administrative level. The article starts with a brief overview of theories of gender and leadership before tracing scholarship on the gendered career patterns singled out in Schiller’s work (1974). The article then focuses on additional issues related to gender and library administration, including leadership styles, perceptions of differences between male and female leaders, and the lack of diversity among academic library women directors.     

Emotionally Intelligent Leadership at 30 Rock: What Librarians Can Learn from a Case Study of Comedy Writers

ABSTRACT

Emotional intelligence is the ability to manage one's own and others’ emotions and build relationships with people. Emotionally intelligent leadership is more and more important in today's ever-changing organizations like libraries. This article uses Goleman's five-point framework of emotional intelligence (self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, and social skills) to analyze the leadership in the comedy sitcom 30 Rock and critique the importance of emotional intelligence in leadership.     

The Transformation of Singapore's Public Libraries: A Case Study

This article is an overview of the vast changes that were made in Singapore's public libraries, focusing especially on how leadership made the reforms both relevant and healthy for the future of the system.     

Strength in Numbers: Encouraging Every Staff Member to Work to Capacity

Libraries play a critical role in enhancing the learning landscape of the schools they support. In order for any library to become a powerhouse and a community meeting place, all library team members need to align with the library's vision, own it and begin to add their own strengths and talents purposefully. This article explores practical strategies for developing a visionary team, including supportive leadership, daily stand-up meetings, weekly staff meetings, special-focus teams, rostering and the “five conversations” approach. These effective strategies can be implemented across a broad range of library workforce contexts in order to ensure the most effective workforce teams are built.     

Leadership Reflections: It is Not About the Perks

Abstract

Our guest columnist is Karl Bridges who has served in a variety of leadership roles in academic libraries. I have gotten to know Karl over the past few years as he was asked to serve in an interim dean role and then hired into the permanent dean positions. At the time, I was at the University of Wyoming and serving as a leader in sparsely populated state where everyone knows your name. Western leaders have to form a tight bond – there are fewer of us and the distances are great. But regardless of geographical situations, leaders need and depend on peer networks that provide a safe space for frank conversations and sharing ideas that help all libraries achieve their goals. Karl has dealt with changing university leadership, library transformations, and dire budget situations. Well, pretty much what every library leader must face. Despite these challenges, library leaders have an opportunity to make a real difference. Karl draws upon his years of experience to provide a thought piece about library leadership noting the complexity, the importance of leadership, and the real joy of making a difference in someone’s life. I hope you enjoy this raw look at leadership and that it reminds you of the purpose of leadership.     

Special Academic Libraries and the Millennial Patron

ABSTRACT

Special academic libraries are in the unique position to blend the innovative and user focused services of academic libraries with the niche collections of special libraries when serving their Millennial student population. Millennials are a highly researched generation, but special libraries may have not updated their services to reflect the needs and expectations of this rising generation. Maine Maritime Academy's Nutting Memorial Library serves as a case study of methods in which special academic libraries can incorporate Millennials' expectations of library spaces, services, and collections in sustainable ways.     

On the same page: Improving the connection between public services units in academic libraries

Communication quality between public service units in academic libraries can make the difference between mediocre and exceptional service. If units do not communicate well, patrons may receive inaccurate information and experience short-term frustration, leading to long-term damage to the library's reputation. Poor communication creates adverse effects on employees through decreased productivity, negative work culture, and low morale. This article explores the importance of quality communication through a review of the literature and a case study at one academic library. The authors share practical communication improvement strategies for libraries of every size and fiscal ability.     

More Than Just a Student Voice: Facilitating Student Leadership Development Through the Library Student Liaison Program

This article explores how the library-student liaison program at Eastern Washington University (EWU) Libraries has evolved into an opportunity for students to develop leadership skills. Originally designed to foster better communication between the EWU Libraries and students enrolled at the university, we recognized that the process of achieving established goals for the program provided a vehicle for students' leadership-skill development. To facilitate the leadership process, librarians employed the Social Change Model. Designed specifically for college students, this model engages the student to develop individual capacities to strengthen group activities that foster positive changes in the community and society.     

LIS Leadership and Leadership Education: A Matter of Gender

To grapple with the difficulties of change, LIS literature often turns to a discourse of leadership as a way of gaining an understanding of how change can be effectively and appropriately managed. However, much of this work fails to account for the feminized nature of the profession and the gendered practices that shape the roles of men and women who choose this field. Furthermore, there is an absence of literature that interrogates the ways in which LIS master's programs address gendered practice. Beginning with an examination of how the field of LIS is feminized, I set out to reveal how, within the context of gender, the experience of women who advance in LIS leadership and administrative positions remains poorly understood. I suggest that the adoption of masculinized practices is a response to the devaluation of “women's work” that has historically defined the service ethic of librarianship. This article serves as an example of the ways in which it is possible to interrogate assumptions about leadership.     

Young and in Charge: Early-Career Community College Library Leadership

Although young leaders and entrepreneurs have become prevalent in the business and technology industries, academic libraries remain much more traditional. Library administrator job advertisements often require seven to ten years of library experience in progressively responsible roles as well as supervisory experience. This article shares the experiences of an early-career community college library administrator working with different generations, provides suggestions to become a manager through intentional leadership, and explores how managers learn to lead. Additionally, the author encourages community colleges to consider younger and/or newer librarians that bring a different perspective to addressing the critical issues facing community college libraries today.     

A Tale of Two Libraries: A Merger and Its Challenges. A Case Study

In 2005, representatives from Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS), the Universities at Shady Grove (USG), and the University of Maryland Libraries, explored a potential partnership between their libraries. With different patrons and missions, merging the two library cultures and functions presented challenges and opportunities to administrators and librarians.

This study examines the dimensions and impact on both libraries. It will inquire whether it resulted in a limited, primarily administrative arrangement, or whether the libraries were able to achieve true collaboration. The findings highlight some issues libraries could take into account before embarking into a merger process.