Academic Library Leaders Research Articles

Changing Leadership: A Longitudinal Study of Decision-making by Academic Library Leaders

Changing Leadership: A Longitudinal Study of Decision-making by Academic Library Leaders

The Reflexive Library Leader: Developing Academic Library Leaders to Meet Modern Library Needs

The academic library is an institution in continual flux, with ever-growing demands and challenges for its leadership. Many leadership development texts focus on implementing selected styles or techniques in order to deal with these challenges. However, this article explores how developing reflexivity is an essential component of leadership development for academic library leaders. In order to develop this reflexivity, leaders must become disembedded via relational practices such as engaging within interstitial spaces. Discussion of the topic yields three suggested relational practices for leaders to become disembedded in their quest for reflexivity: (1) participating in regular strategic assessment; (2) cultivating faculty relationships; and (3) engaging in student outreach and embedded librarianship.

Overview of cultural capital theory's current impact and potential utility in academic libraries

This literature review introduces academic librarians and library administrators to Pierre Bourdieu's Cultural Capital Theory (CCT). CCT originates from the fields of sociology and education. People possess cultural capital in varying degrees according to their level of access to cultural resources, participation in cultural activities, and titles held in high regard by the cultural community. CCT argues that people can acquire certain forms of cultural capital, and those who are successful improve their social status. Academic libraries are in a prime position to be a source of cultural capital, and many already have an established ethos of assisting their vulnerable student populations. A survey of professional library and information science (LIS) literature was conducted to identify articles that substantially discuss cultural capital as it relates to education, libraries, and information literacy. We discovered that CCT has not been comprehensively studied in the LIS discipline. This literature review reveals the limited current understanding of cultural capital from an academic library perspective and posits that students may benefit from academic library leaders examining their services, resources, and programs through a cultural capital perspective. Challenges of this theory, its connection to other critical approaches, and recommendations for future research are also discussed.

Academic libraries' leaders' decision-making during the COVID-19 crisis

During the COVID-19 crisis, leaders of academic libraries had to make various decisions to retain library relevance and maintain essential services. The COVID-19 crisis raised the question of libraries' value to their universities more than ever. Libraries were facing financial difficulties but also operational challenges due to the services built around physical libraries. This paper uses a mixed methods approach to investigate academic library leaders' decision-making during the first year of the COVID-19 crisis. It combines quantitative and qualitative data from previous studies with primary data collected by the author to determine what kind of decisions university library leaders faced during the crisis and why. These studies show that leaders were concerned about the following main challenges: lack of access to physical services and collections, the safety of staff and patrons, new ways of working, and the library's role during the crisis. The results show that library leaders made decisions in smaller groups or some cases, individually due to the lack of time or information. While there have been numerous studies on libraries' response to the COVID-19 crisis in the past three years, this paper focuses mainly on academic library leaders and their decision-making to solve the crisis for their libraries.

Inspiration for Academic Museums: Two Decades of Academic Library Leadership Research

Inspiration for Academic Museums: Two Decades of Academic Library Leadership Research

A survey of transformational leadership traits for South African academic libraries in Gauteng province, South Africa

PurposeThe purpose of the paper was to survey transformational leadership traits in three academic libraries in the Gauteng province in South Africa. The three academic libraries were chosen based on the fact that two of the universities were residential research-intensive universities and the third was an academic library of a distance learning university.Design/methodology/approachThe study adopted a quantitative approach with a survey design in three academic libraries in the Gauteng province in South Africa in which a close-ended questionnaire yielded quantitative data. The study included 29 academic staff from the rank of assistant librarian to the director from the three academic libraries, as these are the personnel in leadership positions. To code and analyse, quantitative data from a Likert scale, SPSS version 25 was used. Cronbach's alpha was used to evaluate the instrument's reliability on the five constructs used in this study to determine readiness to adopt a transformational leadership style. The overall level of internal consistency exceeded the theoretical minimum of 70 percent. The Shapiro-Wilk test was used to determine the normality of the data and the p values were greater than 0.05 (p > 0.05). Tables have been used to present descriptive and inferential statistics based on data.FindingsParticipants expressed favourable opinions about academic libraries' ability to learn from the best practices of others in the profession, with mean scores greater than 3.5 on a 5.0 scale. Participants' perceptions of transformative versus traditional management styles yielded a moderate mean score of 3.0, with moderate mean scores ranging from 2.8 to 3.3. The average score for talent identification and succession planning in academic libraries was 3.5. Perceptions of leadership responsibilities had a mean score of 4.1, with attributes on leadership responsibilities scoring at least 3.5. Perceptions of problems for the next generation of leaders in academic libraries were moderate, with a mean score of 3.2 on a scale of 5.0.Research limitations/implicationsOnly three of the seven public university libraries in the Gauteng province in South Africa were surveyed in this study. The sample size was reasonably small for generalizations beyond the South African Gauteng province academic libraries. However, it was felt useful for this particular case. A survey of all 26 South African public universities is required to assess transformational leadership traits in academic libraries.Practical implicationsNext-generation leaders in South African academic libraries are perceived as not being aggressive in terms of team building, coaching and motivating others.Social implicationsIn the wake of COVID-19, new leadership traits such as scenario planning are needed for academic libraries.Originality/valueLeadership studies abound in the library and information studies (LIS) profession and they are not new. However, research on transformational leadership in South African libraries is still in its early stages. As a result, this study fills a gap in the literature on transformative leadership in academic libraries in South Africa.

Academic Library Leadership in Nigeria and ICT Adoption

Leadership is vital to the accomplishment of librarianship in the modern era. This paper investigated academic library leadership in Nigeria and ICT adoption. A descriptive research design was used for the study. The Multifactor Leadership Questionnaire (MLQ) was used for data collection. The population of the study was 402 librarians in academic libraries in South-west, Nigeria. It was found that library leadership plays a significant role in ICT adoption in academic libraries in Nigeria. The study found that though both transformational and transactional leadership styles are good in an academic library setting, the respondents rated their leaders as more transformational than transactional. The extent of the adoption of ICT in performing library operations is high. The libraries benefited enormously from the adoption of ICT, even though the libraries face a lot of challenges in the adoption of ICT. It was recommended that Library leaders should imbibe transformational leadership practices in the management of their libraries as it offers effective leadership and is acceptable to the subordinates. The academic libraries should also make full-scale adoption of ICT in performing their operations due to the numerous improvements ICT brings to job performance and service delivery

Effective Leadership as the Roadmap towards Academic Librarians’ Service Delivery

Service delivery is simply the act of providing service to users, customers, or clients. It is a component of activities that defines the interaction between providers (librarians) and clients (users). Leadership is the influencing process of leaders and followers to achieve organizational objectives through change. Influencing in leadership is about the relationship between leaders and followers, it does not necessarily mean control is enforced on the followers. This paper discussed effective leadership as the roadmap toward academic librarians‟ service delivery. A general overview was explained of what leadership is, looking at the leadership styles that leaders of academic libraries and others alike may employ to carry out their daily activities to ensure service delivery. This paper also described the effectiveness of leadership for service delivery which showcases the ability of the individual to successfully direct the activities of the group of librarians to the attainment of stated goals and objectives. The role of leadership in academic libraries in service delivery was expatiated. The conclusion of this work stated that leadership is a function of group association and interaction. It was recommended among others that there should be effective leadership in the library so as to bring about good service delivery and information dissemination to the library users.

Open Access Overtaking Academic Library Leadership: Staying Ahead of the Organisational Dynamics an Increasingly Open Future May Bring

Open Access Overtaking Academic Library Leadership: Staying Ahead of the Organisational Dynamics an Increasingly Open Future May Bring

Structured Interviews Reveal That Reference and Liaison Librarians—as Engaged, Proactive Partners—are Vital to the Academic Enterprise

A Review of: Johnson, A.M. (2020). Reference and liaison librarians: Endangered species or “vital partners?” Views of academic library administrators. Journal of Library Administration, 60(7), 784-799. https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2020.1786979 Abstract Objectives – To investigate the current state and prospects of reference and liaison librarianship. Design – Structured interviews consisted of 10 questions that lasted between 30 and 75 minutes. Setting – Fourteen medium-sized, urban universities geographically spread across the United States of America. Subjects – Fifteen library administrators with at least 10 years of experience. Methods – The author contacted academic library leaders from 17 benchmark institutions and head librarians from other R1 institutions whose libraries were members of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) or whose campus size and characteristics mirrored the author’s institution in that they were medium-sized urban universities. The study examined five primary questions and included an appendix with the 16-item survey instrument. The structured interviews included 10 questions about the current state and prospects of reference and liaison librarianship, along with questions related to demographics. The author transcribed the interviews and removed all identifying information. Since the interviews were structured and thus thematically similar, coding software was not used. The author compiled and analyzed the responses to the questions. Main Results – The concepts of connecting, discovering, listening, and partnering were inherent in the definition of being a liaison librarian. In general, the library administrators, all of whom had been in the profession for 10 years or more, felt that liaison librarians should be active in furthering scholarly activities in such areas as grant-writing, generating scholarship, or data curation. There was an emphasis on outreach, being proactive, and engaging with faculty, which raised an important question for administrators: Is this skill set too broad for any one person, and if so, how can the library profession collaborate to draw upon each other’s strengths? There was a consensus that while the work of reference and liaison librarians is vital to the academic enterprise, this work need not be situated at a central reference desk. Rather, librarians would be physically embedded or electronically linked to students and faculty, helping them to formulate answerable questions, locate high-quality, evidence-based information in specialized databases, or provide support in such areas as open educational resource development, augmented reality, or scholarly communications. Conclusion – In the view of current library administrators, being a reference and liaison librarian means partnering proactively with students and faculty to ensure a deep understanding of their teaching, learning, and research needs while also maintaining a thorough knowledge of the libraries’ collections and resources. To accomplish this, the librarian must be visible to their constituencies, tell memorable, authentic stories of what they have to offer, and build lasting relationships. Reference and liaison librarians require traditional knowledge of library functions and systems and teaching skills and possess qualities such as collaboration, communication, and flexibility. Overall, library leaders believe that liaison librarians will continue to be vital partners and that without a central reference desk, there will be a deeper integration within the academic enterprise.

The current influential factors in adoption of innovations in university libraries of Pakistan

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to explore the salient factors in adoption of innovations in university libraries of Pakistan. The topic is important because academic libraries need to be innovative for meeting the new vision/mission of higher education. A previous study conducted by the same researchers concluded an inappreciable state of a large majority of university libraries in Pakistan (Awais and Ameen, 2018). It is, therefore, necessary to examine and investigate the ground realities and important factors influencing in the local context.Design/methodology/approachQualitative design is used to explore the important influencing factors. Data are collected through conducting a series of semi-structured interviews from 15 academic library leaders belonging to traditional and 15 with a better status of innovations.FindingsMajor factors like behavioral issues of library staff, lack of trainings, lack of budget and leadership skills are causing hindrance in leading to adopt new trends and innovations. Vision of higher authorities, library team with new skillsets, funding by the Higher Education Commission, etc. favor adoption of innovations. All leaders of the academic libraries need to have a positive strong attitude, vision and planning to overcome the barriers in the path of adoption of innovations to survive and thrive.Research limitations/implicationsThe study is conducted in local context of Pakistan. Only viewpoints of librarians at top level are taken. Viewpoints of higher authorities, library staff and users are not taken for this study. Similarly, viewpoints of only 30 library leaders are taken, which is also a limitation of this study.Practical implicationsTraditional-type library leaders can overcome the barriers by going through the findings and conclusion. They can get ideas from the discussion of innovative-type library leaders.Social implicationsUniversity libraries can be improved by the help of policy makers and higher authorities. Eventually, users would get better learning, teaching and social environment.Originality/valueThe study is conducted in a local context of Pakistan. It may provide a guideline for some future planning and development of university libraries. The research will be also useful in creating awareness among professionals of other developing countries.

Academic Library Leadership

Nearly 80% of American librarians are women. Similarly, the majority of American librarians are White; people of color – e.g., African Americans, Asian Americans, and Latino Americans – represent a small percentage of the U.S. library work-force. Throughout history, library leadership positions, regardless of the type of library (e.g., academic, public, or special), have been held by White males. This library leadership landscape was significantly altered following the enactment of a number of progressive laws and affirmative action programs, starting with the passage of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The problem, however, is that not every underrepresented group benefits from these laws and programs (hereafter policies). In fact, based on the present study, it appears that these policies have done little to help increase the number of people of color who are library directors in some of America’s largest and most prestigious academic libraries.

Academic Library Leadership Lessons from COVID-19

Leadership played a critical role during the COVID-19 crisis. During the first ten months of the crisis, the library leadership at the Norman Girvan Documentation Centre at the University of the West Indies, Mona Campus, had to make some serious decisions that impacted all stakeholders. This article outlines some of the key library leadership lessons drawn from the experiences of the library leader that other librarians can reflect on, especially as another wave of the virus looms in the near distance.

Leader responsibility for diversity, equity, inclusion & justice in academic libraries: An exploratory study

This article explores how ambiguity is present in academic library leadership around the terms diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice. It reports the results of an exploratory research study that surveyed library leaders about their responsibility for creating equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice within their own organizations and their perceived ability to do so. The authors distributed four identical surveys except for one key term to a national population and compared the results in order to see if leaders feel more responsible and/or capable depending on which of these four terms they are considering. The research highlights some noteworthy differences between the terms and advances the dialogue around diversity, inclusion, equity, and justice in libraries, higher education, and leadership.

Academic library leadership in the dawn of the new millennium: a systematic literature review

This study was conducted to systematically collect and analyze the literature on academic library leaders focusing on the challenges faced by them, the set of skills needed to overcome these challenges, and ways for them to develop these leadership skills. A systematic literature review was conducted of the relevant studies published in the first two decades of the 21st century by following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines. Five major scholarly databases (Scopus, Web of Science, Library, Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA), Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA), and Google Scholar) were searched for the relevant literature. It was found that rapid change, primarily a consequence of rapid technological innovation, continued to present a fundamental challenge for the profession. It emerged that library leaders needed to be visionary and innovative with effective communication and social skills to encourage a collaborative and agile culture in academic institutions. It was also found that the development of library leadership skills has been a comparatively neglected area in the library profession especially for junior and mid-career library professionals.

Covid-19 impact on the Caribbean academic library: Jamaica's preliminary response to people, place, product and services

PurposeThis paper examined the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on people, place, product and services in Jamaican academic libraries. It also compares the Jamaican academic library’s COVID-19 experience with US academic library’s COVID-19 preliminary experience.Design/methodology/approachThe local academic libraries in higher education in Jamaica (also referred to in this paper as university libraries) were surveyed.FindingsGovernment mandates, university mandates and the absence of a vaccine influenced academic library response. The measures implemented, though unplanned and developed on-the-go, constituted a behavioural change model (BCM). COVID-19 has had a positive-negative impact on library people, place, product and services and has created a new normal for Jamaican academic libraries.Research limitations/implicationsThis paper captures the preliminary response of Jamaican academic libraries to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on library people, place, product and services. As such, a follow-up survey on changes, challenges, strengths, impact, lessons and plans would be a useful complement to this paper. As COVID-19 information is rapidly evolving, this preliminary response of Jamaica is neither the final nor complete response to the pandemic.Practical implicationsThe COVID-19 pandemic has revealed a gap in the literature on disaster management generally and pandemic management in particular, and on the management of health disasters in academic libraries; this paper seeks to fill this gap, albeit incrementally, through Jamaica's preliminary response to the COVID-19 pandemic.Originality/valueThis paper gives voice to the Caribbean academic library’s COVID-19 experience, through the voice of Jamaica. It is the first scholarly paper on the impact of COVID-19 on university libraries in the Jamaican / English-speaking Caribbean, and so presents the elements of the BCM implemented by Jamaica, which provides an important guide to Caribbean academic library leaders. The findings can also inform the Latin American and Caribbean section of international library papers on COVID-19 impact on academic libraries globally.

Women Academic Library Leadership in Pakistan: A Qualitative Study on the Journey of Career Progression and Serving the Community

Women library professionals are greatly underrepresented in key leadership positions, especially in the developing countries. This study explored the women academic library leadership in Pakistan and investigated the major challenges faced by women leaders during their ascending to the top, the key indicator of their success, as well as the community services and professional contributions made by them during the course of their careers. Qualitative research design was used and data were collected by conducting in-depth interviews of 16 senior woman library leaders in Pakistan. The findings indicated that organizational challenges, family responsibilities, and gender discrimination were the major barriers that hindered the women leaders during their career progression. The key indicators of their success were effective use of technology, professional commitment, academic contributions, community services, family support, international exposure, and continuous learning. The implications of the study highlight the various areas of improvement for women library leadership.

Saudi Academic Library Leadership: A Phenomenological Qualitative Study

This is the first qualitative phenomenological study to investigate the state of leadership in Saudi libraries. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 14 library leaders or section heads in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Library leadership was found to be strongly associated with management skills, visionary thinking, teamwork, and mentorship. While almost half the participants could not differentiate between library leadership and library management, "personal attributes and skills" emerged as top assets of a library leader. Identity crises and cultural issues were identified as major challenges. Possible solutions were creating and developing user-focused services and spaces, continued professional development programs for library staff, seeking new avenues for public-private partnerships, and promoting information literacy programs. The Saudi Library and Information Association, Saudi library schools, and deanships of library affairs in Saudi universities should increase collaboration and offer more continued professional development and higher education opportunities for senior and mid-career librarians. Such steps will help to align library services with the current and ever-changing needs of library users.

In Pursuit of Diversity in the CUNY Library Profession: An Effective Approach to Leadership in Academic Libraries

Maximizing the current organizational culture and diversity/inclusion practices within CUNY libraries is crucial to retaining highly talented support staff with significant potential for future leadership roles. This research explores equity, diversity, and inclusion within the library profession, with the intention of implementing strategic frameworks to attract, recruit, and retain underrepresented groups within the University. To spotlight areas of upward mobility within CUNY academic libraries, a CUNY-wide Library Workplace Climate survey on the perceptions of diversity, universal inclusion, and career progression was conducted. The scope of the survey study compares the different perspectives of CUNY librarians, full-time library classified paraprofessionals, and part-time classified staff to measure CUNY’s commitment to addressing the diversity gap in the library profession. CUNY-wide, 141 library employees participated in a survey study to uncover professional development opportunities in support of career advancement and upward mobility. Nearly 2 in 5 African American/Black library staff-members are paraprofessionals, while 13.5% are faculty. A stark contrast to 3 in 5 or 64% CUNY library faculty, which identified as White/Caucasian. The findings reinforce the need for measures to maximize workplace diversity through support-staff mentoring, guidance, and recruitment. Workplace mentorship and career development—across all levels within CUNY libraries—cultivate skills for a better work environment that can lead to promotion and successful plans for succession. Investing and sustaining structured library professional development opportunities geared toward underrepresented groups—generally in paraprofessional and student-worker roles—will help identify next generation CUNY library leadership.

Academic library's leadership and stakeholder involvement in research data services

AbstractIn the last decade, academic libraries have made progress in establishing themselves as hubs and leaders for research data services on campus. The importance of collaborating with a range of institutional stakeholders, such as the research or information technology office, as well as external partners in developing and delivering research data policy, services, and infrastructure, has been well‐documented. However, there is less evidence as to how libraries play a crucial role in leadership, whether other stakeholders’ involvement actually makes a difference and if so, how they make a difference. As such, the goal of this study is to explore the academic library's leadership role in research data services and how collaboration and partnership with stakeholders and interested parties might impact the maturity of the research data services the library provides. The secondary analysis of the existing survey data found that libraries offer more mature services when they take a primary responsibility in developing the services. It also found internal stakeholders’ and external partners’ involvement leads to more mature services in the selected activities.