What We Need

Each year, Library Journal recognizes 50 or so emerging leaders in the profession as Movers & Shakers. These library professionals are passionate about the work they do and are moving the profession forward, often in creative and innovative ways. Movers & Shakers ourselves, we each had different experiences following our recognition, which confirmed what we'd heard from our Mover & Shaker (M&S) colleagues. Some enjoyed and were encouraged by amazing institutional support and acknowledgement, while others received minimum internal support for their innovative work. This made us wonder how the entire cohort has been shaped, encouraged, or discouraged by our institutions. While we tend to be highly self-motivated on the whole, all of us are affected by organizational culture and management that can either spur us on or deter us. Do Movers & Shakers have supportive relationships within our institutions? What can organizations do to foster and encourage creativity and innovation in library service?

In January 2008, we set out to answer these questions with a survey of the 300 Movers & Shakers recognized between 2002 and 2007. Out of this group, 122 (41%) completed the survey, and between 30% and 48% of each M&S class was represented, providing a fairly accurate representation. We wanted to explore how they perceive their work within the profession, how they are bolstered by their institutions, and what they want from their careers. We found out that while, in general, Movers & Shakers have high job satisfaction, they also, too often, struggle to get the backing and time they need to keep creating positive change.

Not surprisingly, most Movers & Shakers have a very positive attitude about their work and their careers. An impressive 94.8% consider themselves innovators in their own organizations, and 84.5% consider themselves to be innovators within the profession. Virtually all respondents (97.5%) believe that their work creates positive outcomes for patrons. Career and job satisfaction are also high among Movers & Shakers: 85.4% report that they are satisfied with their career, and 81% agree that they love their jobs.

We all want to do work that speaks to our passions. For Movers & Shakers, having a job that is directly related to what they are passionate about has a marked effect on their outlook. We asked if the work they had been recognized for was part of their job description. The 56.5% who answered yes expressed a higher rate of career and job satisfaction (89% for each) than those who answered no. Also, a higher percentage of them agreed that they felt supported by their colleagues and supervisors. This indicates a need for open communication between supervisors and staff as well as some flexibility for employees in defining their jobs.

As we analyzed the survey data, we noticed two elements in the work environment that tend to have a greater impact on job and career satisfaction: supportive colleagues and time to explore. Perceived support from colleagues—as opposed to supervisors or directors—had the greatest impact. Those who feel supported by their colleagues have the highest levels of career satisfaction (93% report being satisfied) and job satisfaction (88%). Those who don't express the lowest levels, with only 58% feeling satisfied in their careers and 52% reporting that they love their jobs. Clearly, the support of the individuals we work with day to day means a lot.

Time to think beyond daily tasks was also a major contributor to job satisfaction. We asked the Movers if they were given time at work to do tasks related to innovation. Of those who answered no, 36% felt dissatisfied with their jobs versus 16% of those who said yes. When asked what their organization could do better to help them, the most common answers were more staff to distribute the workload better and more time to investigate ideas and do research. “We are woefully understaffed and are becoming more and more so,” one respondent wrote. “I simply don't have time to do all the work—the interesting work—I'd like.”

Movers want more time to learn and not just about technology. In fact, “new technology” came up only once in response to this question. More often, respondents asked specifically for time to “think,” “explore,” be “creative,” and “experiment” with “new ideas.” They asked for “independence to pursue” those ideas. Several Movers asked for devoted research or project time, all related to their role and the profession at large.

Struggling with multiple projects, communications, and rapid change, Movers & Shakers long to retain the sense of accomplishment and achievement for which they were originally honored. “Balancing job responsibilities (is my most significant challenge),” noted one Mover. “I keep having more responsibilities piled on me, with none taken away. It means that I can devote less mental energy to any tasks, which is incredibly frustrating.“

Respondents yearned to get past “working in crisis mode” so they could explore innovative services, marketing, and creative problem-solving, while completing “the regular stuff.”

Some directly asked for help. “Acknowledge the need for both innovation and the everyday in the workplace,” said one M&S, “and support the time for it. Make research and development a part of the job for all of us.”

The inability to find balance left some Movers & Shakers feeling defeated. “[My greatest challenge is] maintaining a positive attitude,” said one, “recognizing and accepting my institution for what it is.” Worse, some were alienated from their institutions because of the chasm between innovation and business as usual. “We speak different languages, think in different terms, and are headed in different directions,” said one respondent. “[My challenge is to] change what I can, lead people as far as I can, do what I can, without wasting the emotional time, focus, and energy I need to bring to other projects outside of work.”

The time crunch can have a significant impact on the employee's ability to come up with creative solutions to problems in the library. A 2002 study from the Center for Gender in Organizations found that “workload pressure undermines employee creativity.” Conversely, employees who had time for reflection and learning new things were more capable of being creative and innovative in their work. Here's another place where libraries can be inspired by Google. There, 20 percent of each employee's time can be spent on pet projects. Out of this pet project time came major Google innovations, such as Gmail, Google News, and Adsense.

What do organizations need to do to help innovation happen? We asked these Movers directly, and their answer was clear: continue to make time and resources available for professional development, thinking, and experimentation. They asked explicitly for listening, leadership, and collaboration from their institutions. They also wanted room and allowances for failure. “Some ideas die, and some don't,” they said. “Identify resources for innovative test bed projects and let's see 'What if?'”

Most of this group longed for leadership, particularly in the area of risk. They saw encouraging “risk-taking” as part of their organization's leadership role and called for an organizational culture that rewarded risk-takers “among all staff members.” “Model creativity and risk-taking as leaders,” said one, “reward risk-taking,” “provide admin support for risk-taking,” and “create a better sense of unity and vision,” said others. “Specifically address innovation and practices for producing innovation...make innovative work an organizational effort,” said another. “Show us how to handle failure.”

Other points of leadership came around clarity and communication. Movers & Shakers want to know what their organizations encourage and what they don't. “Often it's guesswork..,” said one. Several respondents wished for more trust, more conversation, and “just listening.”

And, finally, very simply, “make decisions faster.”

Interestingly, the support of colleagues had a negligible effect on length of tenure. The factor that had the greatest impact on whether the M&S was working in the same organization where they were recognized was the level of perceived support from the director. In all, 68.5% of the respondents were still in the same organization where they received the LJ nod. Of those who felt supported by the director they worked under at that time, 75% remain in the same organization. In any agency, the director sets the tone and strategic direction. Employees whose goals mesh well with those of their director are more likely to accomplish the things they want to do and feel satisfied enough to stay.

No matter how self-motivated employees are, they still crave recognition. Many libraries have no formal employee recognition program, and major professional successes go unnoticed or at best are acknowledged in an impersonal emailfrom the director. Nearly half of all respondents (48.6%) stated that their organization did not celebrate their being named as an LJ Mover. Many of the total respondents commented that internal recognition was limited to a librarywide email from the director or a brief comment at a staff meeting.

The impact of such lack of recognition is apparent. Of those whose organizations did not celebrate this accomplishment, only 70% agreed that they love their job, and their perceptions of being supported by their colleagues, supervisor, and director were significantly lower than any other group. Conversely, 91% of those who were lauded by their institutions agreed that they love their job.

Some respondents noted that the recognition from outside of the library actually hurt their work life. When asked if and how their being named a Mover was celebrated, one respondent answered “not at all, created a lot of problems.” Another noted “friends and colleagues celebrated; administration ignored the award.”

One colleague from New Zealand explained this type of negative response as “tall poppy syndrome,” or the tendency to cut down someone who is doing well and, thus, sticks out. Those who do so ignore the honor for the individual as an honor for the entire organization. As one respondent whose accomplishment was celebrated wrote, “My organization looks for any and all opportunities to recognize my accomplishments outside of the organization. Recognitions like the M&S award boost the library's reputation, so it is highly valued.”

If such factors mean so much to Movers & Shakers, imagine how they must work against people in the profession who are less motivated. Managers need to focus on ways to make staff feel appreciated, to create a more supportive culture, and to give staff time for work about which they are passionate.

When asked their most significant job challenge in the coming year, Movers focused primarily on budget, services, and staffing. Budget cuts were either imminent or feared to be. Most often, these losses were related to library staff either being cut entirely or new hiring being frozen or scrutinized. Reductions related to materials, technology services, and training for staff were also reported, as well as an increase in workloads and even more impact on time.

The Movers & Shakers also described challenges related to technology, transition, change resistance, “denial,” leadership through change, and general change management. But we weren't surprised by the thoughtful and balanced approach our respondents took to change, as well as their desire to support everyone through the challenges of change. “I empathize with the frustration that 2.0 librarians express because as a profession we are not changing fast enough,” commented one librarian.” “At the same time, I empathize with the more traditional librarians who find rapid change daunting and even scary. I would really like to bridge the gap between these two groups.” One respondent wondered “if the public library is really ready for radical change,” while others looked for ways to cope or “lead through change.” Another Mover described her greatest challenge over the coming year as “convincing librarians that change is inevitable,” along with “teaching (them) how to think differently.”

Movers & Shakers are ambitious as library service professionals and as leaders in the profession. Naturally, “become a library director” came up more often than any other direct response when we asked about career goals. We were surprised, however, by the number of respondents who voiced clear misgivings about traditional leadership, administrator, or library director roles. “I love leadership, but I hate administration and management,” said one Mover. “Becoming a director is not appealing,” said another, “mostly because it would take time away from being able to work on innovative projects.” Some had grave concerns about the ability to retain personal or service integrity while in management or administrative roles. “I just want to be the best [librarian] I can be—for the students I work with, not the people above me, whom I have lost respect for.” Others pushed through any stigma associated with “upper management” and hoped to become a library director in a “library focused on access and service and not politics.”

In fact, Movers & Shakers talked more about keeping up, staying enthusiastic and satisfied in their work, and mentoring others than they did about their own interests in pursuing specific leadership or administrative/management positions. They longed to “stay innovative,” “maintain enthusiasm and innovation,” “stay happy,” “stay interested,” “stay positive,” “continue to learn,” and “stay in touch and on top of things.” They also discussed strategies for reducing stress, coping with change, having fun and finding time to think, and finding contentment “to be happy with what I do.”

If Movers are somewhat disenchanted with traditional leadership roles, they are extremely keen on mentoring and bringing a new generation of library staff behind them. They wrote about creating more librarians, developing others as innovators and practitioners, and helping “to form the future generation of librarians” by sharing work experiences and getting library staff the “resources they need to be excellent, encouraging them to take risks, and be bold.”

“I want to be a good ancestor,” commented one Mover, “making sure that whatever I am contributing today is designed to help build a positive future.”

Our group also wants to find ways to create shared ownership and collaborative leadership. “Allow staff at all levels to participate in designing new services or procedures,” said another. They also want collaboration. They want “thinking” and “idea” time to take place in space where “groups of staff members can collaborate and think about the future of our library.” One hopes to work toward a future where “all local libraries work more cooperatively.” Respondents showed greater responsibility toward their organizations and its individuals when “individuals are responsible for their own learning and for sharing what they know with other[s]...when the chance to do so arises.”

Above all, a penchant for relevant, quality, outcome-based library service surfaced. Whether in terms of “meeting future challenges,” “providing outstanding service,” “continuing advocacy work,” or providing “best possible” library services that “best meet the needs of our community,” the group shares ambitions and dreams for keeping libraries useful, relevant, well funded, essential, and capable of making a difference in people's lives.

While this survey can't tell us whether M&S attitudes and experiences are exceptional among their colleagues or simply representative of the entire profession, their story calls on all of us to reflect on how we approach our work and our working culture in libraries.

First, we'd like to challenge the Movers & Shakers themselves to find their own ways toward creativity, innovation, and path-breaking while tackling the routine. Reengage the innovative spirit at the reference or information desks. Find pockets of transformational possibility at every level of the organization. Help solve the budget, time, and resource crisis in libraries by finding solutions that do more with less. Innovation need not be grand nor entire. Resources are tight. We need to figure out how to be effective, efficient, and collaborative within their limits and how to pass along that knowledge. “We've all got so much to learn from each other and resources to share,” said one Mover. “I love advocating for libraries and librarians. We rock.”

Second, we'd like to challenge library directors and administrators to lead us and our colleagues better in strategic, succession, restructuring, or reorganization planning. When we know the library's mission, vision, and plans to accomplish them, it helps everyone working in the library prioritize and make better use of time and resources. Communicate with library employees more proactively, and encourage us to take risks, find new paths, and even fail. Consider that the overall success and relevance of our libraries and our services require time for creativity as well as for attending to daily work. Find ways to respect, reward, and recognize the successes and contributions of your staff to the community, the library, and the profession at large.

Finally, to the profession, we challenge all of us to acknowledge how much more we are alike than different in our desires to help, serve, and make an impact on our colleagues and in our communities. “I have a great deal of faith,” says one Mover in conclusion, “in our profession continuing to do great things. Here's to more Movers & Shakers!”