Week 1: Thursday, June 5
Course & Workshop Introduction | 11:00-11:20 am ET
An introduction to the weekly assignments, an overview of what to expect from the online workshop in this course, and a chance to complete the course pre-assessment.
Session 1 | 11:20-12:20 pm ET
Foundations of People Management: Becoming a Leader
What kind of manager do you want to be? How do you gain the self-awareness to ensure you can manage yourself as well as your team? And how can you show up authentically without putting on a costume of power? This introduction to the course will showcase different management styles, detail qualities of good leaders, share the foundations of managing a team, and teach you how to foster a culture of relationship building between your staff and yourself.
Speaker
To be announced
Session 2 | 12:20-1:20 pm ET
Foundations of Equity-Centered Leadership
How can your leadership style better serve and support BIPOC, disabled, LGBTQIA+, and neurodivergent staff? What is cultural competence, and what does this mean for staff management, recruitment, and reaching diverse communities? Learn how to create a workplace culture that invites all employees to feel respected and included. You will learn the characteristics of white supremacist and hetero-patriarchal work cultures and tangible ways to avoid them in your management practices. Leave this session with a toolkit for engaging with staff, establishing policies, and reaching diverse communities in ways that center intersectionality, vulnerability, and relationships.
Speaker:
Christina Fuller-Gregory, (she, her) Assistant Director of Libraries at the South Carolina Governor's School for the Arts and Humanities
Lunch Break | 1:20-2:00 pm ET
Session 3 | 2:00-3:00 pm ET
How to Manage People: Team Meetings, Check-ins, Reviews, and Change
How do you run an effective and efficient team meeting? What should - and should not - go into your annual reviews? How often should you have staff meetings and one-on-one check ins, and how should you structure them? And how do you communicate clearly, transparently, and directly with staff, especially regarding changes or challenging situations that might impact their work lives? This week will focus on these questions and provide tangible strategies and templates for streamlining your processes and making the most out of time and communications with your team.
Speaker:
Kate Hall, Executive Director, Northbrook Public Library
Session 4 | 3:00-4:00 pm ET
How to Manage People: Difficult Conversations, Feedback, Conflict, and Resistance
How do you give negative feedback to staff? How do you know when to escalate to writing a disciplinary report, and how do you write one? How do you manage interpersonal conflicts on your team, especially in cross-generational teams? And how do you manage and create buy-in with resistant staff? This week will teach you practical skills for managing difficult conversations, diffusing tension on your team, and redirecting, coaching, and building relationships with resistant staff. We’ll also discuss how to create and enforce “people first” policies to help set and manage staff behavior expectations.
Speaker:
Catherine B Soehner, Associate Dean and Executive Director, Eccles Health Sciences Library
Optional Interactive Working Session | 4:00-4:30 pm ET
This live, interactive working session will give you an immediate opportunity to process and apply the skills you’ve learned this week. You will be divided into smaller working groups and presented with a prompt, role play, or activity related to this week’s sessions.
Please note: This session is completely optional, and it’s meant to be interactive, so if you can’t or don’t want to be in breakout rooms, you’re welcome to log off. If you stay, we ask that you please join on camera and audio to discuss ideas, ask questions, and hear from other participants in class.
Week 2: Thursday, June 12
Workshop Explanation | 11:00-11:15 am ET
An introduction to this week’s assignment and an overview of what to expect from the online workshop in this course.
Session 1 | 11:15-12:15 pm ET
Managing through Burnout and Advocating for Staff
Staff burnout is at an all-time high, and many systemic and stackable issues contribute to staff burnout. How do you support your staff even and especially when the cause of their burnout is out of your direct control? How can you identify what’s causing burnout and advocate for the resources your team needs to help build resilience? And what are ways you can create positive impact within your sphere of influence? This week will focus on these questions and discuss ways to advocate for your staff, including how to “manage up” when needed. We will also cover ways to reduce burnout and create resilience by ensuring your management practices are equitable and inclusive.
Speaker:
Kaetrena Davis Kendrick, MSLS, Researcher, Leader, Consultant and Coach
Session 2 | 12:15-1:15 pm ET
Crisis Management and Communications: Showing Up for Your Team and Yourself
Safety and security are top of mind for librarians across the country. How do you manage your team through crises? And how do you communicate clearly and effectively about crises, both internally with your staff and externally with your community and the media? This week will focus on creating safer libraries by ensuring your emergency policies and procedures are up to date and work for you. We will discuss strategies for iterating on and implementing your crisis plans; how to mandate and respond to incident reports; and how to debrief with your team after an event in a trauma-informed way. We will also discuss how to achieve effective internal and external crisis communication.
Speaker:
Michelle Hamiel, Director of Racial Equity and Community Impact at Urban Libraries Council (ULC)
Lunch Break | 1:15-2:00 pm ET
Session 3 | 2:00-3:00 pm ET
Foundations of Data-Informed Management
How can you collect and analyze data to make informed decisions? What are techniques for data analysis to help streamline the administrative parts of your work? And how can you use data fluency to lead your team more effectively? This week will focus on data fluency and how to manage your branch or department in a way that is aligned with data-driven metrics. You will learn practical tips to recognize your data weak spots and empower you and your team to become more data literate.
Speaker:
Lisa Fraser, (she,her) Organizational Strategy Manager, King County Library System
Session 4 | 3:00-4:00 pm ET
Promoting Career Development in Your Staff and Yourself
Studies show that career development is one of the key indicators for staff retention. So how do you promote career development in your staff? And how do you advocate for your own goals and trajectory? In this final week, we will discuss how to mentor and coach your teams to help them build the skills and self-sufficiency they need to move forward in their careers. We will also discuss how to find mentors of your own, as well as career path opportunities for managers and strategies for stretching into a new role whenever you’re ready.
Speaker:
Sonia Alcantara-Antoine, CEO, Baltimore County Public Library
Optional Interactive Working Session | 4:00-4:30 pm ET
This live, interactive working session will give you an immediate opportunity to process and apply the skills you’ve learned this week. You will be divided into smaller working groups and presented with a prompt, role play, or activity related to this week’s sessions.
Please note: This session is completely optional, and it’s meant to be interactive, so if you can’t or don’t want to be in breakout rooms, you’re welcome to log off. If you stay, we ask that you please join on camera and audio to discuss ideas, ask questions, and hear from other participants in class.
