Maturity, leadership and generational change in libraries

Abstract

Librarians tend to enter their chosen field at a later age than other professionals. Among other factors, this leads to an extended “professional adolescence”, which is also evident in the profession as a whole. Other experienced managers commenting on the proposition that librarians often demonstrate lack of professional maturity tended to agree, and offered their analyses of causes. The causes cited included: the tendency of academic librarians to mirror similar tendencies among faculty; the lack of significant consequences of choices and actions; failure to develop measures of effectiveness and accountability; and inward focus on the library and staff rather than on service to the user. Discusses potential behavioural and organizational changes, for both library managers and staff. Increasingly, the knowledge society requires mature professionalism among those information professionals who expect to have significant roles in it.