The Future is a Moving Goal Post: Change Management in Academic Libraries

• Main Author: CRIBB, Gulcin
• Format: text
• Language: English
• Published: Institutional Knowledge at Singapore Management University 2019
• Subjects: Library and Information Science
• Online Access: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/library_research/140; https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1144&context=library_research
• Institution: Singapore Management University

Libraries and librarians have been going through major changes in recent times. Advocacy, marketing, promotion, communication, outreach, engagement, innovation, creation and demonstration of value for the stakeholders have never been more critical and urgent. What are the reasons and drivers for change? How do libraries approach, plan, implement, and evaluate change and align themselves to their parent institutions? What types of communication with stakeholders (both external and internal) do we plan and use regarding change? What kind of leadership is needed for ‘change’ initiatives? How do we make sure that our talent pool possesses the skills, competencies and the culture to take ownership of these initiatives and implement the changes in a sustainable way? How do we inspire engagement, nurture thought leadership and advocacy, so that continuous change is owned and embedded, alongside agility and relevance to the current priorities of our parent institutions? The presentation will address the above by focusing on what value the Library adds to its parent institution’s strategic vision using Singapore Management University as a case study. Areas of focus will be on learning spaces, the continuum of physical and virtual services/experiences, change management, communication strategies, staff development and strategic alliances.