The Academic Library Administrator's Field Guide by Bryce Nelson

Author:Bryce Nelson [Nelson, Bryce]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: LAN025010 Language Arts & Disciplines / Library & Information Science / Administration & Management
ISBN: 9780838912379
Publisher: American Library Association
Published: 2014-06-17T16:00:00+00:00

Update Meetings

A basic way the Director can build and sustain a working relationship (at the right level of trust) with librarians and other key staff is to have regularly scheduled, individual update meetings. Talking privately with individuals is a basic part of an administrator’s job.

In small-staff libraries, where having a scheduled update meeting may seem silly, the Director should nevertheless schedule them. The structure of a defined day and time suggests that the Director and a fellow librarian shouldn’t just “talk business” whenever it occurs to one of them. Rather, most topics can wait until the next meeting. It is often better to wait, to think, to prepare, and to talk in an office according to a schedule. That may not be how some people prefer to operate, but it may be better for the operation of the library.

In libraries with one administrator, the update meetings are between the Director and each librarian, and some others who may not be librarians, such as the lead person for Access Services, Technology, and the Administrative Assistant. In larger libraries with several administrators, the update meetings are between department heads and librarians, and the Director and administrators and other key people.

The purpose of an individual update meeting is about two-way communication, and not really about control. The administrator and the person have a chance to talk about current projects, how well those are going, what tasks are upcoming, what support the person may need from the administrator, and if there are any other issues. This is also the time for the administrator to outline what he or she is thinking about or working on. An individual update meeting is the best way for a Director to understand how his or her leadership is perceived, glimpse the morale of some staff, and hear things that would otherwise not be said.

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