Survive and Thrive as a Library Director: Part 3

1. Survive and Thrive:
those you report to

2. More show & tell
time
• What have you done differently as a
result of the last two weeks?

3. Poll time!
Who hired you?
Whom do you report to?

4. The person who hired you
may be your best supporter
So when that person leaves…

5. Bad manager/board chairs

6. Mission
Your mission is to strengthen your
community. Make that known.

7. Know your
respective roles

8. Read the charter and
then confirm with
actuality
• Tradition overrides rules until
absolutely necessary
• But always work for term limits!

9. Bridgeport example
• Percentage of the mill rate
discovery. The library won but
made enemies.

10. What are their
responsibilities?

11. Board committees
• Governance and nominations
• Finance
• Long range planning
• Executive committee (officers
plus committee chairs)

12. But not these
• Development
• Personnel
• Buildings and grounds
• Any others?

13. If a board member
does anything not in
the purview of the
board’s charter, they
are acting as a
patron, not a board
member.

14. You and the Board Chair
(or City Manager)
A special relationship, if you’re lucky

15. Put yourselves in
their position
Visualize the meeting, the effort,
the value

16. Poll time!
Who does a formal board or
manager orientation?
Who does board evaluation?

17. Board selection

18. Board orientation

19. Board orientation
Sign up for library social media, get a
library card, take a tour (physical and
virtual), email etiquette and rules (no
reply all!), FOIA, finance and budget,
past minutes, past director’s reports,
committee opportunities.

20. Board evaluation

21. Using outside
consultants

22. How do you use the
allotted meeting
time?

23. Boards
Can Become
Bored
It’s up to you to prevent that

24. Use images
It adds credibility and keeps it
lively. Video what’s happening in
your own library. “If only they had
been there” is solved.

25. Our stories are more
powerful than our
statistics

26. Calendar of topics
• Local issues
• National issues
• International issues

27. What does your
reporting look like?

28. No surprises!
Have “fire drills”

29. Speak their
language
• Economic development is always a winner

30. How do you use the
informal time?
Have stories ready for every party,
concert, and ball game.

31. Typical challenges
• The know-it-all (“I’m not expert, but…)
• The resume-builder
• The distracted one
• The latecomer
• The gossiper

32. Know their soft spots
• They are also humans with
needs and feelings
• Make them smart and important

33. Know when to step
back and forward
• Yoyo moves are common when
the players change

34. Where do you sit at
meetings?

35. How to make deals

36. When not to make
deals

37. What did I forget to
mention?

38. Resources
• simonejoyaux.com
• ALA think tank on Facebook
• Library Administrator’s Digest
• ICMA (International City Management
Association

39. Class yearbook
(monthbook?) time

40. Tim Wiles

41. Betcinda
Kettells

42. Class #4,
the final chapter
• Friends groups
• Vendors
• “Physical space” leadership
• Plus, how to know when it’s time to
leave your position