Competency M: Introduction
M. Demonstrate professional leadership and communication skills.
Library operation is a team effort that requires intense cooperation amongst many different individuals. If working in an academic or school library, one must be able to coordinate with faculty, administration, and students. If working in a special library, then one may be required to communicate with inexperienced clients and shareholders. And in all scenarios as an information professional, there is always a chance of being placed into a supervisory or leadership role. Ultimately, I believe this competency boils down to three things: being able to lead oneself, being able to guide the actions of others, and to be able to express oneself clearly and professionally.
Working with others requires a specific set of skills in order to be effective, especially when working within a leadership role. The purpose of this essay was to research and describe emotional intelligence, and explain how emotional intelligence acts as a vital component in leadership by encouraging creativity, collaboration and confidence. It can also moderate a leader’s behavior by causing them to act empathically and view their actions from their subordinate’s point of view. This was one of the first essays that I wrote in the MLIS program, and I have found it foundational in how I perceive the actions of my superiors and how I communicate with others in the workplace.
In our Graphic Design course, we learned how to create attractive advertisements for the library environment using easily-accessible services such as Canva. However, the purpose of this blog post was to discuss a series of articles about library leadership’s various attitudes around graphic design and creative endeavors in general. What became immediately clear was the persistent conflict between the positions of lead designer and that of project manager, which is often exacerbated by the expectation of library leadership to be both at the same time. While solutions to this issue are quite varied, both the articles and my own personal experience indicate a similar trend: that the key to good leadership in such situations are the abilities to communicate clearly and respectfully, and to be accepting of change.
Application and Conclusion
My position at Salt Lake Community College’s Library department is unusual for the organization: I work as a direct assistant to the Assistant Director in charge of Public Services, the patron-facing branch of the library. My boss is incredibly busy on any given day tending to the four library branches that are a part of SLCC’s library network, and so it is my job to produce reports and materials that she needs while also communicating on her behalf. As such, I work with all levels of the library department- from training new staff to coordinating with supervisors to taking meeting minutes for various committees. Being able to work amicably and efficiently with multiple levels of library employees is vital to my job performance, and as I gain more independence and responsibilities from my supervisor, I anticipate that being able to lead both myself and others will become similarly valuable.