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Succession Management

There have been many predictions of an imminent mass retirement of Baby Boomers and of the leadership gap that will follow. In Canada, the so-called "8Rs Study" (Ingles et al, 2005) was undertaken to generate some data regarding the predictions, and to identify some strategies to help libraries manage this leadership gap. Ingles et al (2005) reported that since two in five current librarians and over 3 in 10 current paraprofessionals [are] predicted to retire by 2014, the library community is well-advised to begin examining their own institutional demographics and planning for the future (by, for example, restructuring staff positions and/or grooming current staff to assume the managerial and leadership roles of departing senior staff) (195).

In libraries, this type of “planning for the future”, or succession planning, is undertaken by human resource departments (in large library systems), or by the library’s management team or an appointed task force (in smaller libraries). Succession planning should not be a “one shot” reaction every time a key staff member leaves (Topper, 2008). Rather, as Kieserman (2008) notes, succession planning is “a strategic exercise that should be an important ongoing part of any library human resources management department” (emphasis added, 135).

Singer et al (2004) suggest that succession planning is “assessing…the number of key positions (not just top management positions but all variety of specialties and areas of expertise) that could become vacant in the near future” (38). They also provide a Toolkit as a useful checklist for libraries undertaking succession planning (Singer et al, 40):

• Commitment from top management
• Ownership
• Vision of what the organization will need
• Openness to non-traditional sources of talent
• A well-documented training and development program
• Determine the organization’s strategic direction
• Identify critical management and technical positions
• Project future vacancies
• Determine executive descriptors (i.e., competencies) for future leaders
• Identify holes in staffing
• Diagnose developmental needs
• Create a deliberate development plan
• Review progress and provide new assignments

Communication with current staff is a vital part of succession planning. “Asking workers about their jobs, skill sets, and competencies can make some of them nervous and prompt thoughts like ‘Are they trying to run me out of here?’ or ‘Am I not performing my job adequately?’” (McMahon & Masias, 31). It is important to emphasize to staff that succession planning is long-term planning designed to ensure strong and efficient continuity when the time comes, and that “there is certainly no intention to push anyone out of their current job prematurely” (Kieserman, 136).

References

Ingles, E., De Long, K., Humphrey, C., and Sivak, A. (2005). The future of human resources in Canadian libraries [8Rs]. Retrieved 12 March 2010 from http://www.ls.ualberta.ca/8rs/home.html.

Kieserman, R. H. (2008). Issues in library human resources management. The Bottom Line: Managing Library Finances, 21(4),135-137.

McMahan, J., & Masias, M. (2009). Developing a Succession Plan for a Library. Information Outlook, 13(7), 28-32.

Singer, P., Goodrich, J., & Goldberg, L. (2004). Your library’s future. Library Journal, 129(17), 38-40.

Topper, E. F. (2008). Succession planning in libraries. New Library World, 109(9/10), 480-482.

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