New Directors' Workshop: The Ins and Outs of the Law Library

AALS, 2001 - Section on Law Libraries
NEW DIRECTORS' WORKSHOP

Betsy McKenzie, Suffolk University School of Law

I based the "Managing Your Dean" skit on these notes from the award -winning "Managing the Boss," Janis Johnson, 89 LLJ 21 (Winter, 1997).

Managing the boss ...

Does NOT mean manipulating or controlling behavior, reforming or changing your boss..

DOES mean working with your boss to improve both your performance and your boss's. This requires a relationship of mutual creation & dependence "Bosses cannot succeed without successful subordinate performance and it's hard for subordinates to succeed when their boss is failing. ... When you enhance the boss's performance, you enhance your own value to the boss and to the organization. When the boss is succeeding, your reputation will grow along with that of your boss and that of your organization. (Not to mention the fact that a successful boss who is accomplishing his or her goals will probably be less stressed out and more pleasant to be around.)" p. 22

Principles:

1. "You have to take responsibility for building an effective working relationship with your boss." P.22. You need mutual respect and trust; you can't wait, complain passively. Have to participate, even if you are working on the relationship one-sidedly.

2. Learn what your boss's goals and objectives are and develop ways to support their achievement. P. 23 Pay attention to clues, be creative in finding ways to support his/her goals. If boss's goals differ from yours, look for what you have in common, respect disagreement without animosity.

3. Understand the pressures under which your boss operates. P. 24. Look for ways in which you can reduce the pressures.

4. Evaluate whether you help or hinder your boss's effectiveness. P. 24. Solicit feedback: what am I not doing that would help; what do I do now that I could do better?

5. Learn the preferred work habits of your boss. P. 25. Prefers to know cost? Written reports? Prefers informal verbal reports? Periodic updates or only when something significant?

6. Know your boss's strengths & weaknesses. P. 26. "Your job is to maximize your boss's strengths and minimize his or her weaknesses." P. 26. Evaluate objectively your own, match them up and create strategies to compensate where both are weak. Think of you and your boss as a team.

7. Keep your boss informed. Don't make your boss speculate on whether you are making good use of your time. Don't expose your boss to surprises. P. 27. Make it easy for your boss to keep you informed.

8. Manage the flow of information to your boss. P. 28. Consider when and how to present the information. If you report on a problem, include information on how to solve it. Don't hesitate to tell bad news, don't hide your mistakes. Take responsibility for both good and bad.

9. Make decision making easy. Getting good decisions made in a timely manner is an art. P. 28. When you present an issue, be sure you have given enough background info for a well-informed decision. Anticipate what kind of information the boss will want before making a decision. Present issues in a way that ensures quick and appropriate decisions.

RE DEANS:

* Educate your dean about the library.

* Be sure your dean understands and appreciates how the library functions.

* Be sure understands why the library needs all those resources;
+ the better deans understand the WHY, the more likely to respect your "dance space."
+ the better YOU understand the WHY, the better you will understand what to defend and what to compromise.

2 LIBRARY DIRECTORS TALKING OVER DRINKS AT THE ANNUAL MEETING:

Dir 1: Well, how do you like your new dean?

Dir 2: She's a busy, busy woman – never has time to visit the library, never has time to hear about the library problems. Still, I guess like the rabbi says in Fiddler on the Roof, "God bless and keep the dean – far away from us!" Maybe I should just count myself lucky that she doesn't come meddling.

Dir 1: Gee, that doesn't seem like a very productive relationship.

Dir 2: Well, I sent her a long library report when she first got there. I had a chapter on the budget, and how low we rank in the ABA rankings and U.S. News and World Report because they just don't put the money into the library. I put in a chapter on the physical plant, pointing out the roof leaks and how the old building needs complete revamping. I added a chapter on the faculty's low use of the library, and who uses Interlibrary Loan and who doesn't. I included a complete report of how old the collection is, subject area by subject area. I had a chapter on how much the library spends by subject area, with tables comparing previous years' spending. I included an analysis of the library automation and what it needs to bring it up to speed. I added some appendices showing how our library spending compares with our competitor schools in a number of areas, including staffing. It was a really complete report. I just never heard anything back.

Dir 1: coughs to cover laughter.

Dir 2: Bless you!

Dir 1: How does your dean communicate with the faculty and administrators?

Dir 2: She uses e-mail.

Dir 1: Are her reports to the faculty and administrators long and detailed?

Dir 2: No, she makes really short reports, and tells people if they want more detail, to ask the associate dean on the e-mail. It drives me crazy. She just isn't detail-oriented. And I think she must be math-phobic. She's hiring a budget director to deal with the money.

Dir 1: Hmmm.

Dir 2: Why do you think she's so unavailable to me? It seems like she's always dealing with other issues around the school. I just can't seem to get her to read my reports. How do you think I can get her to change?

Dir 1: What are your dean's goals? What is she working on at your school?

Dir 2: Gee, I don't know.... I guess she's trying to boost faculty scholarship. That's something she talks about a lot. We need a new building. She's working with the central administration on that and that makes her have to do fund-raising. Is that what you're asking?

Dir 1: Yes. Let's try to think of some ways what you're doing in the library could support what the Dean is working on. How can you help your dean achieve her goals? That would build your relationship and maybe change how you relate to your dean.

Dir 2: Well, there's faculty scholarship. We could do stuff to help the faculty be more productive. That's a library kind of thing.

Dir 1: Great! What kinds of things could you do?

Dir 2: Well, some faculty had been asking for research support. I could see if the reference librarians could do research projects for faculty. Like that, you mean?

Dir 1: Yes. Are there other things?

Dir 2: Well, we could do a survey of faculty publications for the dean, so she has it in one place. That would also tell us who is publishing and what they are working on.

Dir 1: That's a great idea. Are there other ways you can support the dean? I always like my dean to feel that he can count on me to be looking for ways to support him, that we're on the same team. I try to anticipate the information he'll need, and make it available just before he wants it. I also try to make it easy to communicate with me. If he likes short reports, that's what I do. If he prefers informal oral reports, or e-mail, or whatever, that's how I would give the information. I also try to be available to get information from him. So, just after he comes back from a meeting of the Dean's Council, I try to be around his office. I get a lot of information as he sort of goes over the meeting out loud. That's something you kind of have to feel out whether your dean would be comfortable with, but try to make it easy to keep you informed, however the dean wants to do it. Also, if the Dean is doing research or needs information for a meeting, you be the Reference Librarian to the Dean. Just be sure it's timely, complete and correct, but make her count on you for good information she can rely on!

Break to discuss why the new dean is not responding to Dir 2, ways Dir 2 could improve communication with the Dean.

SKIT 2: Interactive Theater

LIBRARY DIRECTOR 2 AND DEAN

Dean is walking down the hallway, and Director catches up from behind.

Dir 2: Dean! Dean! I was hoping I might be able to talk to you. The central library director is making a play to centralize the acquisitions and cataloging of all the libraries!! I need you to get in there and talk to the Provost and the President and......

Dean: Can you send me an e-mail detailing the major issues? It needs to be brief and concise, but fill me in on the politics and history here as well as the arguments the central library makes and your counter-arguments. I am on my way right now to a meeting of all the deans across the University, and can't talk now.

Break to advise Director 2 on how to deal better with the dean. This is actually a good opportunity to see if the Dean needs info for the meeting.

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