Demonstrate professional leadership and communication skills
Introduction
The last few decades those in the information profession have seen a seismic change in libraries with the incorporation of the internet, social media, and the proliferation of misinformation. Information professionals need to be leading the library community through these turbulent times. But, what does that mean? Leadership can be hard to define because most often it gets confused with management. Although the qualities and skills of leaders and managers overlap, there is a distinct difference. Many times those that ascend into leadership positions do so because they were competent managers. These individuals will often flounder in their new role because real leaders articulate a vision for the future of an organization whereas managers maintain the present state of an organization (Romaniuk & Sheldon, 2018, P. 86). Many have attempted to define leadership but a good working definition is that good leadership “requires an ability to articulate a compelling vision, chart and communicate a direction and align priorities – all to produce useful change” (Romaniuk & Sheldon, 2018, P. 86). Leadership within libraries is essential to charting our path through the changing information landscape.
Much early research into leadership focused solely on defining a set of traits that made a good leader. Stogdill identified the following five leadership traits : “cognitive ability, personality, motivations, social appraisal and interpersonal skills, and leader expertise and knowledge” (Romaniuk & Sheldon, 2018, P. 88). This emphasis on trait research was never quite sufficient to understand leadership as it never produced one definite list. Evans and House developed a theory of leadership called Path-Goal which incorporates situational context. This research had good instruction on prioritization of the most important goals above all else. Finally, with the introduction of transformational leadership theory, James MacGregor Burns focused on the relationship between the leader and the led. Transformational leadership is characterized by inspirational motivation, individualized consideration, idealized influence and intellectual stimulation. As Romaniuk and Sheldon (2018) point out in their essay on leadership, “most of us would want to work in a transformational environment” because the leader had an inspirational common vision that allowed staff to innovate and be creative when working toward that vision.
Becoming that type of leader Romaniuk and Sheldon describe is possible. The push to understand leadership has made clear that good leadership is a skill that can be learned and taught. Warren Bennis, a researcher and thought leader on leadership, has developed a framework which is commonly used in many library leadership trainings. His framework identifies the following four items: know yourself, create and communicate a vision, maintain trust through integrity, and realize intention through action (Romaniuk & Sheldon, 2018, P. 92).
Bennis’ first element emphasizes the importance of self reflection and growth in order to truly understand one’s strengths and weaknesses and how those affect one’s work. This aspect of leadership is essential in the every changing world one confronts as a library leader in 2021 and beyond. The ability to adapt to new environmental factors requires one to constantly self-assess and adjust.
The importance of creating and communicating a defined vision cannot be overstated. As said previously, good leadership requires a vision for the organization for the future. This vision needs to be all encompassing, aspirational, and most importantly attainable. Most importantly a good leader needs to be able to communicate this vision out to all. This requires a leader to be able to communicate with many different stakeholders including the hourly staffer, the middle manager, and the board of directors. Each of these different stakeholder groups needs to have the vision message customized to their role. A good leader is able to effectively communicate in many different ways to modalities including both in writing and in person.
Competency development
Personally, my commitment to volunteering in my community has put me in many leadership positions. I was on our HOA board and served as the treasurer, served as the communications chair for my children’s elementary Home and School Club, and also was the lead for the school ceramics program. Each of these positions forced me to communicate with a different group of individuals in a clear and purpose driven fashion. In my professional experience I stepped into a library position where there had not been much leadership on the vision for the library. I am responsible for creating that vision, in conjunction with the principal, and have now had the opportunity to communicate the vision of the school library to our parent community at Home & School Club Meetings.
Throughout the MLIS program at SJSU I have received ample opportunities to work in groups with my fellow students. This requirement allowed me to receive much practice working and communicating in a team. Through these collaborations I was able to hone my ability to communicate over email and via Zoom virtual meetings.
Evidence Description
Professional Experience – Presentation to Home & School Club
This piece of evidence is a presentation I did to the Home and School Club. It details the community analysis, collection analysis, and library funding proposal. I successfully delivered this presentation to the Home & School Club meeting and secured additional funding.
Professional Experience – State of the Library Report
The State of the Library report I wrote was sent to the Home and School Club board to request additional funding and support that request. The above two pieces of evidence together show how my written report to the Home & School Club board complimented the oral presentation given during the general meeting.
Professional Experience – BookFest event presentation,
I chose to include the presentation I created for my principal to share with other district principals regarding the BookFest event. The presentation shows my well written and professional level of communication.
Professional Experience – School board presentation video
I am including this short presentation video about the Bookclub event which was delivered at the school board meeting in January 2021. I condensed the program vision, activities, and results in an engaging and dynamic way to advocate for the library while still respecting the board’s limited time.
Concluding Remarks
Managing and leading are two different leadership activities. Managing requires one to maintain the status quo while leading requires one to have a vision for the future of the organization. This key difference is essential, but it is not the only quality that makes a good leader. The ability to communicate this vision to different stakeholder groups, maintain personal integrity, and finally to produce results through action are all necessary. Currently, the information community is experiencing many shifts as the world grapples with the impacts of the internet and social media and the need for library leaders who communicate a vision for the library is needed now more than ever.
References
Romaniuk, M., Sheldon, B. (2018). A conversation on leadership: Taking another look. In K. Haycock & M.-J. Romaniuk (Eds.), The portable MLIS: insights from the experts (Second edition, pp. 85-102). Libraries Unlimited, an imprint of ABC-CLIO, LLC.
Last Updated October 17, 2021 8:44 am.
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