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LIBRARY MANAGERS AND THEIR ROLES
Introduction
Any task requiring the coordination of a number of elements
needs to be managed.
Management is the process whereby a complex task is
completed satisfactorily with and through the use of other people and other
resources.
Management Functions
Managers have a broad responsibility to deal with resources
– the people, capital, information and technology necessary to do the job – and
the process – the procedures and practices for getting the work done. In order to do this work effectively,
managers need to undertake the following related activities:
- Planning
- Organizing
- Leading
- Controlling
Planning – both
short and long-term goals – for the organization as a whole, for work units
within the organization and for individuals.
Proper planning, in consultation with staff and client groups, will help
ensure correct alignment between organizational practices, staff concerns and
client or user needs.
Since long-term planning inevitably involves change of some
description, consultative planning helps in the management of this change,
leading to better outcomes for all concerned.
Organizing
Organizing is required to ensure resources such as staff,
equipment, appropriate training or materials are made available when required
in order to achieve the objectives of any plan.
Coordinating and prioritizing these activities are necessary parts of
achieving goals and outcomes within given timeframes and budgets.
Leading
Leadership is necessary to motivate, encourage and enthuse
staff in achieving both the organisation’s and their own personal goals. This includes supporting and motivating
staff, mentoring individuals, modeling appropriate behaiours and creating the
right environment for the development of individual potential. Without the encouragement and support of
management at all levels, staff will lack a high level of personal motivation
and involvement with consequent costs to the organization.
Controlling
Controlling is necessary to ensure that progress towards the
desired goals proceeds as expected. This
requires the establishment of proper procedures, milestones and standards –
again in consultation with staff expected to do the work – against which
progress can be measured.
Quality standards and timeliness are important aspects of
controlling any project or activity.
Management
Expectations
- Deliver agreed outputs to agreed deadlines
- Reach agreed quality standards
- Accept personal responsibility for the outputs and deadlines
- Try to improve systems and processes
- Be a loyal, effective and contributing team member
- Participate in meetings and discussions
- Support management decisions once consultation and discussion are completed
- Share responsibility for personal development and training
- Assist other team members as required
- Bring concerns initially to their immediate supervisor
- Implement OH&S policy and practices
Staff Expectations
- Guidance and leadership to the group
- Respect for the team and individuals
- A safe, healthy and respecting work environment
- Opportunities for group or individual input to decisions that affect them
- Creative and innovative solutions to problems
- Negotiated deadlines and priorities
- Adequate resources to undertake the task
- Delegation of responsibility
- Adequate training and opportunities for career development
- Effective representation of the area to higher management and to outside organizations or peer groups
- A good two-way information flow between upper management and the work group
- Fair and proper recruitment and promotion practices
- The ability and will to implement ‘hard’ decisions
Planning
One of the most important tasks undertaken by any manager is
planning, whether it is for activities to be done the next day or laying out
the strategic aims for the organization over the coming five years. A popular maxim says that
‘most
managers don’t plan to fail, they fail to plan’ – be warned!
For all managers, some level of formal planning, involving
strategic objectives and how they are going to be achieved, is an essential
part of their role. If it isn’t done,
the organization will drift, changes will happen haphazardly, uncertainty will
be high and staff morale will undoubtedly suffer.
All managers plan, even if only thinking about the next day
the previous night in bed. However, it
is formal planning, where objectives are thought through, discussed with others
and written down, that is considered here.
Why Plan?
Purpose and Direction
Planning is needed to give purpose and direction to an
organization, to ensure that it has clear goals and objectives. This is important as organizations increase
in size and work is broken down into smaller parts. Maintaining a clear sense of purpose, unity
to common goals and commitment across a wide range of geographically or
functionally spread units will be extremely difficult unless a well developed
plan, with goals and milestones, has been developed. The plan acts as a framework within which the
work of a particular section is undertaken, and toward which its activities should
be directed.
Conflicting Aims
Careful planning reduces the potential for overlap and
conflict between sections of the organization.
By clearly defining a common purpose and targets, all areas should
understand their role in helping to achieve these goals and thus limit
occasions when conflict or disagreements arise.
Staff Direction
It is necessary to plan to ensure that staff are working
towards commonly understood goals and not losing sight of the ‘big
picture’. It is easy for an individual
to get caught up in the day-to-day of a job or in the practice of professional
skills, forgetting what they are ultimately trying to achieve through their
work. A clearly articulated goal and
purpose which staff have been involved in developing, and which is strongly
promoted by senior management, will help ensure commitment and success for the
organization and maintain focus at all levels.
Internal and External
Environments
Development of a plan will encourage management to consider
external threats and opportunities and the internal strengths and weaknesses of
their organization. This necessary step
feeds directly into all types of planning in order to prepare realistic targets
and goals that take account of the organisation’s environment.
Gathering and
Analysing Information
Planning provides a discipline that encourages a logical and
argued approach to decision-making. In
developing any plan, management are forced to gather and analyse information,
reappraise priorities, consider resource availability and try to predict future
patterns, planning undertaken in this
way will have more success than ad hoc approaches, based upon the hunches or
feelings of a senior manager.
Big Picture View
Planning encourages a ‘big picture’ view by management
committed to long-term prosperity of the organization. Planning on the medium – to long-term (two to
five years) maps out a future for the organization that reinforces for
management and staff that long-term health and prosperity are basic goals.
Identifying Key Areas
Planning can help in identifying key areas that may help or
harm the organization. These areas
should become evident through the sifting of information, both internal and
external to the organization, which occurs when developing the longer-term goals.
Proactive, not
Reactive
Planning discourages ‘fuzzy’ thinking and actions by
management, limiting ‘knee-jerk’ behaviours and responses to situations. This benefits both the organization (which is
not misdirected from its path by irrational responses to situations) and staff
(who can have confifence in the decisions that are being progressed).
Control
Proper planning is essential to allow measurement and
assessment of the performance of staff, management and the organization as a
whole. Without a written plan and goals,
comparing actual achievements with expectations will be extremely difficult.
The Planning Process
Planning is often understood as comprising two stages to
support the global mission of an organization.
These stages are strategic planning, dealing with long-term objectives, and
operational (also called tactical) planning dealing with day-to-day
operations. Both planning activities are
inextricably linked, and are discussed in more detail in the following
chapters.
How to Plan
Successfully
All planning has to consider the basic steps described
below:
- What is to be done
- When to do it
- How to do it
- Who is to do it
What is to be done
Whether long or short-term planning is involved, it is
essential that proper objectives are defined.
These objectives are used as performance measures to assess whether or
not, at the end of the cycle, the plan has been achieved. Thus a plan needs to consider the product or
service to be delivered together with measures to assess quantity and quality,
within some sort of timescale.
Exercise 1.1
Liz heads the circulation desk
in a busy public library. She has to
ensure it runs smoothly and that it is properly staffed at all times. Including part-timers, there are fifteen
staff who do this work. Some are casual
and only work weekends, some work purely on the circulation desk and some work
on the desk and do other duties such as shelve, answer reference enquiries
etc. The head of the library mentioned
to Liz the other day that she was concerned that not enough staff were rostered
to fill the evening shift on the desk: this appeared to be an increasingly busy
time, now that the nearby supermarket was open until late. She asked Liz to draw up a new roster that
meant that two staff were on the desk at all times, but taking care not to
increase costs or give people shifts longer than four hours.
Planning Clarifying the availability of staff
for particular times and duties
The
actual timetable/roster
Staff
recruitment if necessary
Changes
in work practices and procedures that may be necessary
Budget
implications and how to manage them long-term
Organizing That
money is available to meet the costs
That
enough suitable staff are available
That
appropriate systems are in place
Leading Setting
an example by working some evenings on the dest
Being
available to meet and discuss staff concerns
Explaining
the reasons for the change
Enthusiastically
implementing the change, ‘selling’ it to staff
Controlling Setting
review processes in place to see how it is working out
Monitoring
budget expenditure
Encouraging
staff and user feedback
Exercise 1.2
In the situation described
earlier, Liz must undertake a number of tasks to reorganize the circulation
desk roster. Divide these tasks into the
broad general skills discussed above.
Human skills Exercising
skills to meet staff concerns over the change
Keeping
the balance between casuals and permanents
Ensuring
that staff are not stressed and have the requisite skills for the work
Technical: Budgeting
skills
Rostering
skills
Understanding
of how circulation, reference duties etc. can be balanced
Conceptual: Considering
how long-term planning may impact on the system
Considering
how long-term changes in the area may affect demand
Exercise 1.3
In a large university library,
consider each level of management and their responsibilities. List some of the areas you feel may be of
concern at each level.
- The university librarian will need to plan for:
Long-term
growth
Budgeting
over the next five years, including revenue raising and related issues
Accommodation
Relations
with the rest of the university
Technological
change
- Middle management:
Coping
with increased demand and less stable staffing
Developing
smarter ways of doings things – getting more out of staff
Need
for ongoing staff training and development
Fewer
permanents, more casuals
- Supervisors:
Concerns
over job security; maintaing morale
Increasingly
demanding client base
Expanding
resources available, eg the Net
Doing
more with less
When to do it
A timescale is essential for proper planning, and again, to
act as a performance measure. In order
to ensure the provision of the right resources at the right time, managers need
to be clear on the timing of events and the order in which they will
occur. One common planning procedure
identifies a ‘critical path’ to ensure that events proceed in a logical and
efficient manner in order that a complex task is completed in the minimum time.
How to do it
This aspect is identified with operational planning. It is usually missing from the bigger picture
strategic planning activitiy, which concentrates more on outcomes than on the
specifics of how to achieve them. As in
the previous steps, the ‘how to do it’ can be used as a performance measure to
assess the quality of outcomes and appropriateness of this particular
process. It is thus useful in evaluating
practices and procedures, leading to changes and improvements in systems.
Who Is To Do It
It is essential to allocate responsibilities to oversee the
implementation of long-term, strategic goals and to identify individuals to
undertake specific tasks in day-to-day operational plans. Organizational structure and levels of staff
abilities and training, together with an understanding of an organisation’s
culture and ethos will help in making the correct decisions is this area.
Stoner (p.131) describes four basic steps in planning:
- Establish goals that relate to the organisation’s mission, objectives and priorities. This will assist in ensuring that resources are directed to the most important aspects of its long-term strategy.
- Define the present situation to assess how well-place the organization is to reach the goals. Will additional resources be required? Is the existing structure appropriate and helpful in achieving these goals? Is the necessary information available to help in setting priorities and allocating resources?
- Identify aids and barriers to achieving goals, both within the internal and external environments. Is it possible to foresee problems or anticipate difficulties? How vital are some issues in goal achievement and how can these critical items be monitored or assessed?
- Develop an action plan that, ideally, provides alternative courses of action to achieve the desired goals. Choose the most appropriate course and monitor progress.
STRATEGIC PLANNING
Introduction
Strategic planning is concerned with the long-term direction
of an organization. It deals with issues
such as defining mission statements analyzing environments, considering
alternatives and selecting a path to pursue.
It is a continuing, systematic process for any organization, forming
part of an endless cycle that usually involves staff at all levels in planning,
decision-making, team work and evaluation.
Strategic planning provides the framework for operational
planning (the day-to-day running of a business). Above strategic planning lies the mission or
vision statement, outlining in very broad terms the business of the
organization and where it is heading.
There is a hierarchy of management planning, as shown below:
(defines the purpose
of the organization)
Strategic Plan
(long-term plans to
achieve the Mission )
Operational Plans
(short-term plans to
support the Strategic Plan)
The mission statement is intended to provide a high-level
description of the purpose of an organization.
Usually it is a short, concise paragraph or two dealing with the
fundamental reasons for the organisation’s existence. It lays down in extremely broad terms the overall
aims or purpose of the organization.
While these will inevitably change, there is usually an underlying sense
of continuity about the mission.
It is important that staff understand the mission statement
and relate to its goals, which must feel are meaningful and achievable. Customers and stakeholders should also be
able to understand the purpose of the organization as expressed in its mission
statement.
STRATEGIC PLANNING
Supporting the mission are a number of strategic plans or
initiatives that focus the organisation’s direction in achieving its
mission. These are long-term strategies,
yet are regularly reviewed to ensure
their relevance and appropriateness in a rapidly changing environment. The strategies adopted will support broader
organizational aims that may concentrate on growth or expansion, stability and
maintainance of market share, or possibly downsizing and retrenchment.
Eg
Growth industries: full text databases, electronic journals,
digitizing images
Stable industries: traditional
printing and publishing, automated library systems
Declining industries microfilm,
microfiche technologies, printed encyclopedias
Developing the plan is usually done by senior management who
must then ensure it is properly communicated throughout the organization to
ensure ‘ownership’ of its objectives.
Focus groups may be used with staff – and frequently customers – to find
out more about how the organization is performing, to gain ideas as to where it
should be going and, importantly, to find out where it is not achieving.
OPERATIONAL PLANNING
Operational plans are for the shorter-term, providing the
means to implement the longer-term strategy.
These plans give life to the overall strategy by spelling out very
specific activities aimed at achieving the broader goals announced in the
strategic plan. It is through these
plans and their related performance indicators that progress towards achieving
broader aims can be measured. Thus it is
suggested operational plans must be:
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Time-constrained.
Steps in developing a
strategic plan
Once the mission statement has been developed into a clear
statement of overall objectives, the strategic plan can be developed to achieve
its goals. This can be time-consuming and
difficult, but is essential to provide direction over the medium term. By building suitable control measures into
the associated operational plans it should be possible to assess progress
towards the strategic objectives.
- Ensure the mission statement is clear and concise and correctly summarises the role of the organization. If the mission relates to a sub-unit of a larger organization, such as a library in a university, it must fit comfortable within the organisation’s culture and support the overall mission of the organization as a whole. Thus a government department, school or university will all have their own broad mission statement that the library in these institutions will need to support.
- Evaluate internal and external factors using devices such as the SWOT analysis (Strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) as discussed earlier. Involve staff and users in this analysis in order to gain depth and breadth of input.
- Evaluate current performance level and availability of resource. Assess existing strengths and weaknesses, opportunities, threats) as discussed earlier. Conduct comparisions with like organizations and learn as much as possible about their strategic plans and concerns.
- Clearly define the organization philosophy that is supported by top management. This relates to fundamental issues that define the shape and nature of the service provided. Ensure there are no major policies that contradict each other, or will hinder achievement of the ‘big picture’ goals.
- Consider the values of the organization and how they shape its culture and activities. These have usually developed over time and will have a big influence on organizational philosophy. Planning needs to use these values as a basis upon which to build, rather than see them as a hindrance to future growth.
- Determine user demand by talking to users and non-users, conducting surveys and through literature surveys. Reassess target groups and client needs. Consider future trends.
- Using the information gathered, develop a set of objectives and priorities focusing on long-term success and growth for the organization. Traditionally, these strategies have concentrated on providing value for money – eg the best product at the lowest competitive price; providing a clearly different product to the competition or concentrating upon one particular market segment or target group.
Strategic Planning –
Why and Why Not?
Strategic planning occasionally goes out of fashion and,
quite frequently, is not done to the depth and degree necessary to provide a
solid base for the future growth of an organization. Like all activities, there are benefits and
costs in undertaking strategic planning.
It is important to consider these when deciding on the extent to which
the organization will devote resources to the task.
Benefits
The benefits of strategic planning vary across
organizations, depending on the nature of their business and the environment in
which they operate. Generally, however,
strategic planning will:
- Motivate the management team
- Force management to consider its key objectives
- Provide a framework for operational planning and help keep that on track
- Act as a control on management going off on ‘hare-brained schemes
- Help maintain focus during periods of rapid change
- Stimulate awareness of strategic issues amongst management and staff
- Contribute to innovation
- Increase staff awareness of the business environment
- Promote better coordination of activities and resource allocation
- Provide staff with a vision for the future
- Help promote the organization to external organizations such as funding bodies.
Costs
The problems or
disadvantages inherent in strategic planning sometimes cause it to fall out of
favour as a management tool. Most of
these difficulties lie outside the organisation’s control, leading to
frustration when carefully laid plans cannot be pursued. The problems are:
- The difficulty of planning medium to long term in a rapidly changing environment which can be quite unpredictable
- The volume of information required to devise the plan
- The time taken to produce the plan
- The need for flexibility to meet unforeseen challenges and opportunities, and not be tied down to a plan drawn up months before
- The lack of support from staff more usually concerned with short-term, even day-to-day activities
- The possibility that resources may not be available when the time comes to implement the plan
- Unrealistic, impractical plans that do not match organizational resources, values or philosophy.
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