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Program
ALA Unit/Subunit: ALA
Meeting Type: Program
Cost: Included with full conference registration.
Open/Closed: Open
New librarians today face challenges which are unique from those experienced by previous generations. This presentation will explore how changing library environments and services affect leadership and management for new library professionals, and the effects on early career librarians in particular. Conversations with managers, seasoned librarians, and leaders revealed new challenges and opportunities for early career librarians. Who do we imagine as leaders? How do we view entry level librarians or paraprofessionals? How do we change any preconceptions to give new librarians the opportunities to shine and make change? We would like to highlight these topics and open them for discussion.
Currently, there is little literature on management and leadership from the perspective of early career librarians, upcoming generations, and those outside management roles. We will discuss existing literature that focuses on new librarianship, management in libraries, and leadership, as well as avenues for additional research. Input gathered from participants from this session will help guide our research about this topic.
Our discussion will explore several key points, which include: our personal experiences in leadership positions, organizational change, roles in hierarchical organizations, how qualities of leadership translate into outcomes and actions, and how “traditional” librarianship is evolving toward more functional service positions.
In addition to the presentation and panel discussion in the session, there will be a worksheet to help define what leadership means and how attributes affect outcomes. The worksheet will allow attendees to apply design thinking to leadership and management concepts. Design thinking is intended to solve complex problems by focusing on action-oriented solutions (Creativity at Work). Drawing from Ayse Birsel’s Design the Life You Love, we want attendees to deconstruct their career goals, develop a holistic vision, and reconstruct action into positive plans for the future.
This session will provide content of interest to newly minted librarians, managers of new librarians, and those interested in mentoring or supporting new librarians.
Elia Trucks
User Experience and Student Outreach Librarian
University of Denver
Holly Kouns
Interim Department Head for User Engagement Services
University of Texas at Arlington Libraries
Elia Trucks
User Experience and Student Outreach Librarian
University of Denver
Holly Kouns
Interim Department Head for User Engagement Services
University of Texas at Arlington Libraries