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Why the accidental Manager Model doesn't work anymore

Photo from Historic Pittsburgh: http://digital.library.pitt.edu/images/pittsburgh/. Why the accidental Manager Model doesn't work anymore. …and what we can do about it. Michele Leininger, PhD, Adjunct Faculty School of Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh

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Why the accidental Manager Model doesn't work anymore

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  1. Photo from Historic Pittsburgh: http://digital.library.pitt.edu/images/pittsburgh/ Why the accidental Manager Model doesn't work anymore …and what we can do about it

  2. Michele Leininger, PhD, Adjunct Faculty School of Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh Susan Banks, Deputy Director Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Jennifer Pickle, Library Services Manager Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh — Knoxville

  3. Context: the Public Library Today

  4. Increasing Complexity of the Public Library Organization… • Ever-changing technologies • Budgetary pressures • Proof of Return on Investment (ROI) • New and wider-ranging demands from users and communities • Leads to ever-evolving services, programs and collections • https://www.flickr.com/photos/philbradley/5418424044/in/photostream/

  5. …Necessitates Managers with Complex Set of Skills • More and broader technical skills ~ along with ability to help staff acquire them • Demands wider set of “soft” skills: team-building, coaching, leadership, relationship-building • Speak multiple “languages:” ROI and other economic realities, unfunded mandates, outcome-based evaluation, community needs, data-driven decision-making… • It’s not just opening the doors… • https://www.flickr.com/photos/homerlibrary/433102383/sizes/m/in/set-72157600025264371/

  6. Why this study? Researcher Motivations • Personal journey to become a manager began early, although unaware that was the path I was on. • Observations of other new managers’ difficulties that I tried to avoid. • Anecdotal responses of friends and mentors: • “I didn’t intend to become a manager; I kind of fell into it…” • “I was thrown into the deep end of the management pool so I learned to swim out of necessity, while making many mistakes.” • “No one trained or talked to me. I had to learn it all on my own.”

  7. Best way to answer these questions? • Very little research on how librarians become managers. • Lots of ideas and assumptions with regards to training, what the right competencies are and how leaders are better than managers ~ all “borrowed” from other industries. • Complexity of public libraries leads to questioning such borrowing. • What are those experiences that lead to proficiency; are there commonalities among those stories that could help new managers and an organization shorten the time to proficiency; are there unique challenges for public library managers?

  8. Choosing the Case Study • Research advantages to studying a single, larger organization: • Larger pool of people • Look at multiple levels: individuals, comparing individuals and viewing the organizational journey • Is there a network? What does it look like? • CLP: Strategic Plan and an updated manager job description • https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Carnegie_Library_of_Pittsburgh_Main_Entrance.jpg

  9. The Case Organization: The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh

  10. Why let a researcher study your library? • Unique opportunity to learn about the organization, the staff and practice over time. • Value of asking the managers to free themselves from daily routine to engage in reflective practice. • Managers explore their experience as a way to understand the expectations outlined in the new position description. • Photo from Historic Pittsburgh: http://digital.library.pitt.edu/images/pittsburgh/

  11. Who participated? • Population defined: front-line public library managers who had MLS/MLIS degrees and supervised staff who served the public. • Population described: 30 managers • 24 female, 6 male; 19 from branches, 8 from Main and 3 in systemwide positions • Participants: 27 managers agreed to participate with 21 finishing and included in the results. • Data Collection: Written diary responses + one-on-one interviews

  12. Why agree to participate? • An opportunity to stop and reflect on the process of becoming a mentor. • Recognition of the importance of mentors in the formation of successful managers. • Cohort that developed among participating managers. • Informed process that created updated LSM job description (we stopped to think & reflect in this way before contributing to that process). • Photo from Historic Pittsburgh: http://digital.library.pitt.edu/images/pittsburgh/

  13. What were they asked? Diaries • 21 Participants wrote responses to questions that explored how they initially became a manager, gained supervisory knowledge and developed proficiency in their work. [Handout] • Prompts were to get them thinking about critical stories, incidents or transitional moments ~ basically, descriptions of key points on each person’s managerial journey. • 11 of them were interviewed for clarity and a chance to expound on their written responses.

  14. What were they asked? Interviews • 10 were selected for second round of two in-depth interviews. • First interview asked all the same questions which explored their managerial work, workplace relationships and their learning processes. • These questions were also aimed at uncovering those key points along the journey, but also focused on the individual’s learning process. • Second interview was for clarity and for them to expound on what they wrote or said in the first interview.

  15. the Discoveries

  16. Experiences • Previous Experiences: children’s librarianship • The “unofficial” manager • “Apprenticeships” • Lack of previous experience • http://mecanem.com/blog/?p=255

  17. Influencers • Bosses • Managers as models • Current supervisors • Peers • Mentors • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carnegie_library

  18. Challenges of Change • For a manager: • Supervising staff • Balancing acts • For an organization: • Strategic plan as catalyst • Friction points between “old” and “new”

  19. Lessons Learned

  20. The Participant Manager • Regret that there was no training, coursework on management principles/budgeting/human resources in MLIS program. • Previous managers mentored & taught me virtually everything I knew coming into the position and reduced my learning curve as a result. • Taking the time for personal reflection is critical to professional development and growth along with having a cohort to share and discuss issues/policies/etc. • Each manager’s story is different but everyone felt somewhat unprepared and insecure during the process.  We often asked---what did you say in your interview?  Compared notes. • http://www.punxsypage.com/news/start/305778_Newsmaker__Mark_Lee.htm

  21. The Organization • What we need to understand about our managers – both new and long-standing staff. • What we seek in new hires in management positions. • What structures and opportunities we provide (or need to) to help managers be successful. • http://www.brooklineconnection.com/history/Facts/Carnegie.html

  22. The Researcher • Unexpected outcomes: • The power of telling a specific story multiple times and ways. • The power of telling an organizational story one person at a time. • The power and influence of reflective time and writing. • Personal Photo: University of Pittsburgh Cathedral of Learning

  23. But What Does It Mean? …and where do we go from here?

  24. Unique Approach to Building Public Library Managers • Leveraging the power of telling AND listening/reading managerial journeys. • Creating a pool of stories that translate into data for researchers to tell the universal side of these managerial journeys. • Using data to create pathways for those who are currently on and will be starting on those journeys. • Ultimately, avoiding the “accidental manager” approach and, instead, honoring the uniqueness of the public library organization and our communities by providing the best and most prepared managers possible….

  25. Finding Your Own Journey: Replicating the Study • Write and tell your own story. [Handout] • Help others write and tell their own stories. • Organizations and Associations: Facilitate the writing and telling of these stories. • Gather and share these stories with each other. • Consider sharing them with a researcher.

  26. Final Thoughts… • …From a Manager • …From an Organization • …From a Researcher • http://carnegielibrary.org/about/strategicplan/updates/

  27. Thanks! • Michele Leininger, Adjunct Faculty • School of Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh • mal205@pitt.edu • Susan Banks, Deputy Director • Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh • bankssu@carnegielibrary.org • Jennifer Pickle, Library Services Manager • Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh — Knoxville • picklej@carnegielibrary.org

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