Moving into Management Instructor: Nancy Bolt [email protected] An Infopeople Workshop Winter 2007-2008 This Workshop Is Brought to You by the Infopeople Project Infopeople is a federally-funded grant project supported.
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Transcript Moving into Management Instructor: Nancy Bolt [email protected] An Infopeople Workshop Winter 2007-2008 This Workshop Is Brought to You by the Infopeople Project Infopeople is a federally-funded grant project supported.
Moving into
Management
Instructor:
Nancy Bolt
[email protected]
An Infopeople Workshop
Winter 2007-2008
This Workshop Is Brought to You by the
Infopeople Project
Infopeople is a federally-funded grant project
supported by the California State Library. It
provides a wide variety of training to California
libraries. Infopeople workshops are offered
around the state and are open registration on a
first-come, first-served basis.
For a complete list of workshops, and for other
information about the project, go to the Infopeople
website at infopeople.org.
Introductions
Name
Library
Position
What was the last leadership
position you held in any context:
library, church, community group,
family trip planner, etc?
3
Workshop Overview
What is management?
Six key roles of effective
management
Tips for a successful transition
Personal planning for
management
Myths and Reality
Myth
You can get things
done
People will do what
you tell them
You just have to
know the subject
area
Reality
You are dependent
on others
Compliance is
based on respect
You have to know
the subject and the
people and the
organization and
the policies...
5
Myth
You have to be the
expert
You learn to be a
manager through
formal training
Reality
Your staff and peers
have valuable
knowledge
You learn on the
job from experience
6
What Is Management?
Dichotomy between leadership
and management
management is doing things right
leadership is doing the right thing
Is this true???
7
Why are people
chosen to be
managers?
8
“Apart from the relationships, the hardest thing for me was
learning the business of management. I had to go from taskoriented to concept-oriented work; I wasn't ordering books for
patrons anymore, I was creating policies for how to deliver
services. I wasn't dealing with patrons face-to-face as much as
I was advising staff on how to do customer services. Wise
hiring, effective training, fair and reasonable discipline, wellplanned mentoring and coaching, negotiating between staff and
upper management, planning new services, justifying
expenditures, running good meetings, effective and appropriate
delegation...I didn't learn ANY of this in library school. And the
ongoing needs of a department don't go away just because the
supervisor is learning. I didn't think I would EVER catch up that
first year.”
From a Colorado librarian in an email
9
Move from Individual Contributor to
Manager
You were chosen because you do
your job well
BUT
You don’t do your old job as manager
Need to learn new skills
10
An Effective Manager
Has competence
Has confidence
Takes risks
Makes a commitment
Competence
Competence means you have the
skills and expertise to be successful
in your environment.
Competence comes when you
complete assignments successfully
overcome adversity or failures
learn from past mistakes
continuously learn both formally and
informally
Confidence
Confidence comes from
increased feelings of competence
successfully complete assignments
learn from mistakes
self-reflection
recognition by others
“stretch” yourself
Taking Risks
Builds on
competence
confidence
Happens when you
volunteer for stretch assignments
are willing to make mistakes
reflect on what worked and didn’t
As virtually every leader I talked with said, there can be no growth
without risks and no progress without mistakes.”
Warren Bemis, On Becoming a Leader
14
Why Do People Want to Become
Managers?
Power to accomplish something
Better pay
Bored in current job
Make a difference in the organization
Recognition
15
What Is Expected of a
Manager?
By subordinates
By supervisors
By peers
By library users
16
Subordinates Want Managers to:
Meet their individual needs and take
care of their worries
Deal successfully with outsiders
Bring back resources
Protect them from demands from
above
Provide feedback on their work
Be fair and equitable
17
Supervisors Want Managers to:
Be accountable
Integrate with the larger organization
Handle problems
Follow policies and procedures
Keep the supervisor informed
Provide good customer service
Be a team leader – and a team player
18
Peers Want Other Managers to:
Represent their unit
Cooperate
Share resources
Negotiate conflicts
Be a team player
19
Users Want the Library to:
Provide what they came for
Serve pleasantly
Offer modern services
Be a safe and welcoming place
Be run cost-efficiently
20
Managing
your supervisor
Managing
your staff
Managing
yourself
Managing
your peers
Managing
outside
21
In Summary
“In some ways it’s an impossible job.
A manager is a jack of all trades, a
chameleon, who has to please
everybody.”
Anonymous quote from Hill, page 41
22
Six Key Roles of a Library Manager
Supervisor
Direction setter
Team builder
Networker
Team player
Administrator
23
Manager as Supervisor
What challenges will you face as a
supervisor of other people?
24
A New Role and Responsibility
New role in relation to past peers
Dealing with the new and older staff
Individual vs. team supervision
Dealing with diversity
Delegation
25
“My biggest pitfalls: Trying to be friends
with everyone. Since I had been one of
them I wanted to prove that I wouldn't
"turn into management." Big mistake. I
undermined my own authority. I didn't
have to turn into a stuck-up tyrant, but I
also couldn't be the same person I was
when I was shelving or working the front
desk. I had different and more
responsibilities.”
From a Colorado librarian in a personal email
26
Dependency
As in individual contributor you could
do your job
As a manager, you do your job
through others
Formal authority is rarely productive
and successful over time
27
Manager as Direction Setter
Set direction for your unit
Develop goals and objectives for
projects
Participate in setting direction for the
library
Involve staff
Accountability
28
Manager as Team Builder
Show value of team
Make a team assignment
Select a team… and it’s leader
Coach a team
Evaluate a team
“And oddly enough, the more willing you seem to be to
let people participate, the less need they have to
force participation. It’s the threat of being left out
that exacerbates their ego problems and creates
clashes.”
Bennis on Becoming a Leader, p 134
29
Successful Teams Have
A leader
An innovator
A detail person
A people person
How much of each are you?
30
Manager as Networker
Networking: a major key to success
Must be purposeful and constant
Network with people:
you can learn from
you need
who need you
who would oppose you
31
Manager as Team Player
Look at the big picture
Find “A Place at the Table”
“If you want to be part of the decision-making process, you have to
have a place at the table.” Kathleen de la Peña McCook, A Place at the
Table
Never miss an opportunity
Volunteer
Seek recognition and visibility
32
Communicating with Your
Supervisor
Emphasize
impact on larger unit
networking
never present a problem without a
proposed solution
33
Hold Regular Meetings with Your
Supervisor
I just wanted to bring you up to date on
what the library (department, unit) has
been doing
Our plans for the last six months were…
We accomplished most (all) of this (give
data)
Our plans for the next six months are…
Major issues we are facing…
We need…
34
Manager as Administrator
(Enforcing Library Policy)
Expected by subordinates,
supervisors, and peers
Eats up time
Must know policies and procedures –
and when you can ignore them
Often frustrates
35
What Kind of Manager Might These
People Be?
Cataloger?
Reference librarian?
Children’s Librarian?
IT ?
36
Tips for a Successful Transition
Listening skills
Decision-making
Art of asking questions
Meeting management
Mentoring
37
Why Listen?
Listen to learn
Listen to care
Listen to impress
Listen to communicate
38
Five decision-making options
1.
2.
3.
4.
Decide and announce
Gather input from individuals and decide
Gather input from group and decide
Consensus between you and a group
be sure you are willing to compromise
5. Delegate with parameters
Make sure the decision-making step is clear to all!
39
When to Use Each Option
Impacted by time available
Input almost always produces better
decisions
Input almost always produces
happier subordinates
40
BUT – Need to Be Adaptable
Never have enough information
“Analysis paralysis”
Ready, Fire, Aim
41
The Art of Asking Questions
Can you give me some examples?
Why do you think that happened?
How do you know that?
What do you think?
Why do you believe that?
What’s next?
42
Can you clarify what you mean? I’m not sure I
understand.
What will you do?
Who is in charge of this project and when is
something due?
Who’s the final decision-maker on this project?
What are we trying to accomplish?
And be prepared to answer
these questions yourself!!
43
Listen to Learn
Find a partner.
The first person picks a topic on which
they have a very strong opinion and
share this with their partner.
The partner asks clarifying question to
better understand. Do not share your
own opinion.
Switch roles.
44
Managing Meetings
Why do we hate meetings?
45
How to Make Meetings Successful
Engage in active listening
Look for ways to participate
meaningfully
Follow-up on opportunities
46
Ask clarifying questions
What are the goals of a project?
Who’s working on this?
Who’s in charge (or wants to be)?
Can my unit be involved (who wants to
be involved)?
When is something due?
Have we decided to proceed?
47
Power of the Pen in Meetings
Volunteer to take minutes
on a computer in the meeting
Take notes and study them
Use notes to refresh your memory
and others
Highlight actions and answers
48
And If You Hold Meetings
Make sure you need one
Have an agenda
Ask for input
Make decisions using the options
to proceed
who’s in charge
when is something due
49
Mentoring – For You
New managers often are
afraid to ask for help.
Why?
50
Finding Your Mentors
You don’t need just one mentor
Talk to your boss
Find peers
Find an outsider
Join a professional peer group
51
My biggest pitfalls: Not admitting when I
needed help. I was afraid, especially after I
got my MLS, that people would think I wasn't
qualified to do the job if I asked too many
questions. Even though others did look at me
that way (generally long-time "non-MLS'
employees), I needed to have the confidence
that I was qualified. That truly learning my
job correctly and delegating appropriately
were what I needed to do and that those who
were criticizing me were going to do it no
matter how well I did my job.
From a Colorado librarian in a personal email
52
Mentoring by You
Help staff be their best – even if they
might leave
Increases your network
Improves the unit’s success
Makes for more productive and happy
staff
53
Some Realities of Moving into
Management
Those First Months
must transform from an individual
contributor to a manager
less control over time and work
trivial competes with consequential for
attention
54
Stress
(The Dirty Little Secret)
Almost everyone is terrified at first
There is often emotional upheaval
Find someone to talk to
Don’t take things personally –
everyone fears change
55
“They expect me to hit the ground running.
I want to do the job well, but I’m so afraid
that I’ll fail. It’s the biggest fear I’ve ever
had and I know I won’t be graceful about it
if I do. It is important to me to be good at
what I do. I have to feel that I’m making a
difference. These days sometimes I feel like
I shouldn’t accept my paycheck.
Hill, p 177
56
What to Do in the First 90 Days
Learn
Observe
Interact
Trust
Evaluate
Reflect
57
Factors that Make the Transition
Work. Be Willing to…
Accept the new role and move from
an individual contributor to a
manager point of view
Sort through conflicting demands
from staff, peers, and supervisors
Engage in personal introspection and
learning
58
So,
What are the benefits of being a
manager???
59
Benefits of Being a Manager
Personal growth
Opportunity to contribute to a unit
and thus the library’s success
Opportunity to make a difference
Variety of learning experiences
60
Public recognition for
accomplishments
Ability to train and mentor other
people
See staff develop and improve
because you challenged them to do
more
Thrill of risk taking
61
Your Personal Plan
How can you prepare NOW to be a
manager?
62
Prepare Now for Management
Build a wide and powerful network
Volunteer for more responsibility now
Never miss an opportunity to show
what you can do as a leader/manager
Show interest in the entire library, not
just your job/unit
Offer solutions, not problems
63
Preparing (2)
Find a mentor
Be visible
Observe managers at work
Dress the part
Watch out for “second-in-command”
syndrome
64
Commitment
Commit the time
Commit the energy
Do not be dissuaded
Fire in the belly
Reap the results
“The essence of leadership is the communication of
commitment”
Charlie Robinson, Former Director of the Baltimore County Public Library
65
In Summary
Confidence +
Competence +
Risk Taking +
Commitment =
SELF AWARENESS AND SUCCESS
“The most powerful drive in the ascent of man is his pleasure in his
own skill. He loves to do what he does well, and having done it well,
he loves to do it better.”
Jacob Bronowski in The Ascent of Man quoted in Bennis, On Becoming
a Leader” p. 135
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Thanks for coming.
Be sure and complete the evaluation
form.
Good luck in your management position!
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