Confessions of New Library Directors

Four new library directors spoke about their new jobs (the process to get there, the first week, the first issue, etc.)

Jefferson County Director - he outlined his decision making process that lead to applying for the director job (and to be honest, I have thought about several of these myself).
-- wasn't sure if he wanted to be a library director
-- wasn't sure if he was good enough to do the job
-- wasn't sure if he had a strong enough vision for the future
-- if he had a vision, would he be able to get people to follow him?
-- since he was in the organization and he was the only one who had a shot at the position, should he apply to protect the other staff from some new director coming in and changing everything (that didn't need to be changed)?
-- was he willing to give up the cool projects he was working on?
-- will he get the job???
He ended up applying and getting the job and realized it wasn't what he thought - much harder! He realized he had to be able to do everything, he never had enough time for this staff, his staff really wanted him to succeed, very hard to find great managers to support him, and since he was the boss - he could still work on those projects he wanted.

Salt Lake City Director - when she realized he got the job (in another state), she started making a list of what she wanted to do when she started. She began by identifying all the people in the city she wanted to meet. Her list grew to 100 people (city officials, boards, commissions, fire chief, police chief, superintendents, rotary president, etc.) When she started, she called all these people up and asked for a meeting (they all agreed). She asked them all the same three questions - 1. tell me about the city, 2. tell me about your experience with the library and 3. if I'm ever in trouble (some kind of controversy), will you help me?

A few months later a major controversial issue came up and she needed help - they all came to her side. She was pleased she established those relationships.

(former) Butte County Library Director - shortly after he started, he had to deal with severe budget cuts. First 23% cut in service, then a jump to 50% (even though all other county departments remained at the 23%). He went to the budget hearing and asked that all departments be cut equally and not just single out the library (which would mean shutting down, layoffs, etc.) His comments landed him (misquoted) on the front page of the paper ("Library Director wants to cut police and fire...") He was freaked out but it really sparked an interest from the community who loved the library. The Friends mobilized and started a support and awareness campaign. They set up tables outside the libraries and handed out postcards for patrons to sign and right notes to the Board of Supervisors. They even had crayons and asked each storytime kid to fill one out. They also rented buses and arranged to transport the public from wherever they were to the next County budget hearing and they all got up and spoke in favor of the library. In the end, the Board of Supervisors asked the director to call off his people and that the library would not face anything more than other departments!

Director of Boulder Library (formerly manager of Imaginon Library) - Tony talked about his first week on the job and basically said it was nothing he expected or wanted. His entire first week was controlled by others. He suggested that new directors take a hold of their first week so they can get to know their people, the libraries, the community, etc. (especially if they are new to the city). His first week included 2 days of new employee training, walking into his office and finding no computer, and an all-day exec team team-building session.

His three main comments were:
1. You can't always have all the answers (and that's OK)
2. Own your first week the way you want it
3. Document the stories of your library, not just the statistics.

All in all, this was a great program. Definitely something worthwhile for those thinking of being a library director one day.

MP