The Academic Library Director: Management Activities and Effectiveness

(Hardback)

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The analysis of the management activities and effectiveness of the academic library director in Joanne Euster's The Academic Library Director is a fine companion to Rook's work on motivation. Indeed Euster even identifies several key leadership types that characterize certain library directors. Her analyses of those types, and in particular her witty mottoes for each, are a delight. . . . Euster's work is, though, a serious one that is worth serious attention. It is a solid analytical study of how academic library directors operate and what impact they may have on the operation and effectiveness of a library. . . . Her short concluding chapter on the implications of her study offers some extremely valuable insights for university administrators and faculty, library staff, library educators, professional associations, and even directors. Wilson Library Bulletin Although working within a framework largely predetermined by institutional requirements and standardized procedures, the academic library director confronts opportunities and challenges that offer a wide scope for individual creativity. Joanne Euster's new book analyzes the contribution of the director's personal leadership style and management skills to the successful operation of college, university, or research library. Based on the author's award-winning study of the activities and effectiveness of academic library directors, it is the first full-length examination of the subject.

Reviews

Euster, university librarian at Rutgers University as well as past-president of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), bases this book on her PhD dissertation, which she completed in 1986 at the University of California- Berkeley. She begins with a description of the role and function of the academic library director. An analysis of the research literature on leadership, organizational functions, and the external environment served by the library follows. Based on these investigations, she develops a model of leaders as agents of social influence and relates this to their perceived effectiveness and their ability to manage organizational domains both in the internal operation and external control environment of an organization. She then designs and conducts a survey of the leadership style and management characteristics of a sample of directors of ACRL institutions who are acknowledged to be effective administrators. . . . Based on the survey results, Euster proposes and describes four basic types of library leaders: the Energizer, ' the Sustainer, ' the Politician, ' and the Retiree.' Copies of the surveys and an extensive bibliography close off the book. This book provides a useful measure of leadership in university libraries. Readers may compare their leadership styles to those of the four types of leaders presented and make appropriate adjustments. For library administrators desiring to improve their leadership styles, for librarians wanting to become leaders, and for administrators involved in recruiting, hiring, and evaluating library directors and staff, this book is worthwhile reading.-Canadian Library Journal
"Euster, university librarian at Rutgers University as well as past-president of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL), bases this book on her PhD dissertation, which she completed in 1986 at the University of California- Berkeley. She begins with a description of the role and function of the academic library director. An analysis of the research literature on leadership, organizational functions, and the external environment served by the library follows. Based on these investigations, she develops a model of leaders as agents of social influence and relates this to their perceived effectiveness and their ability to manage organizational domains both in the internal operation and external control environment of an organization. She then designs and conducts a survey of the leadership style and management characteristics of a sample of directors of ACRL institutions who are acknowledged to be effective administrators. . . . Based on the survey results, Euster proposes and describes four basic types of library leaders: the Energizer, ' the Sustainer, ' the Politician, ' and the Retiree.' Copies of the surveys and an extensive bibliography close off the book. This book provides a useful measure of leadership in university libraries. Readers may compare their leadership styles to those of the four types of leaders presented and make appropriate adjustments. For library administrators desiring to improve their leadership styles, for librarians wanting to become leaders, and for administrators involved in recruiting, hiring, and evaluating library directors and staff, this book is worthwhile reading."-Canadian Library Journal

Author Bio

JOANNE R. EUSTER is University Librarian at Rutgers University.