This document discusses leading change in libraries through shared leadership. It covers shifting from a heroic to shared model of leadership, building problem-solving skills and leadership capacity throughout organizations, and supporting colleagues through uncertainty and change. The presenter's research focuses on personal and organizational experiences with transition and learning to lead through uncertainty. Shared leadership requires empowering others rather than assuming followers are recipients of expertise. Tools discussed for embracing shared leadership include open communication, action learning to build peer networks, and using play to allow exploring new ideas without pressure.

1. Leading Change in
Libraries Together
Professor Beverley Hawkins
B.C.Hawkins@exeter.ac.uk
Associate Dean Education, University of
Exeter Business School.

2. Today we’ll cover:
• The shift from a ‘heroic’ to a ‘shared’ model of leadership.
• Their implications for libraries in their current context.
• How can library and information services professionals
• Build problem-solving skills
• Build leadership capacity throughout the organization.
• Support colleagues through stressful periods of
uncertainty and change.

3. • My research: personal and organizational experiences of transition.
• How do people learn to lead themselves and others through an experience of
uncertainty and flux?
• VUCA – volatility, uncertainty, complexity and ambiguity
• Unlimited Value (ACE 2016-19) – participatory action research on building the
capacity of libraries to innovate and lead evidence-based approaches to ‘social
value’.
• Other research: Leadership Development in the Royal Norwegian Air Force, Higher
Education, transitions to university.
My background

4. A quick exercise
"Simon Says with Village Students" by ToGa
Wanderings is licensed under CC BY 2.0

5. What does this game teach us?
"Harry Potter and the
Chamber of Secrets" by Colin
ZHU is licensed under CC BY-
SA 2.0
"Superhero
wall" by marymactavish is
licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0
"UNCHARTED 3: Drake's
Deception" by naughty_
dog is licensed under CC
BY-NC-SA 2.0

6. A new, collaborative perspective
The capacity of a human
community to shape its
future,
and specifically to sustain
the significant processes of
change required to do
so….’ (Senge et al 1999)
"Shaping the Future of Education - Ministerial
Breakfast Roundtable" by US Mission Geneva is
licensed under CC BY-ND 2.0

7. Shared Leadership
• Requires us to empower others
rather than assume followers are
recipients of the leader’s expertise.
• Characteristics:
• Expertise is distributed across
the many, not the few
• Open boundaries – letting go of
‘ego’
• Can be ‘planned’ or
‘spontaneous’
"Working together..." by Lollyman is
licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

8. The key question?
• How to embrace this in the context of uncertainty?
"uncertainty
principle" by Math
ieu Bertrand
Struck is licensed
under CC BY-NC-
ND 2.0

9. Context: Challenges and Opportunities
Challenges: The information
services sector is changing
• Covid-19:
• Managing remote working
• digital service provision
• Changing service user needs
• Challenging LA context
• Need to diversify routes to
financial sustainability
• Challenge to identity at an
individual and organizational level
Opportunities: Identity work and
leadership are creative processes
• Where next?
• What is our role and how can
we sustain it?
• How can we learn to lead
this change together?

10. A mindset shift: the ‘art’ (and social science)
of thinking entrepreneurially
• Puzzle: clear ‘vision’, pre-defined resources, defined path to success
(corners first?), parameters e.g. size is fixed in advance
Dealing with the ambiguity and confusion of innovative
practice
• Quilting: many different ‘patterns/routes’, resources are repurposed
from different activities, indeterminate size

11. What tools can we use? 1: Talk!
• You’ve heard of the learning
organization...how can we become a
‘quilting’ organization?
Tim Smit: ‘we talk...and we talk...and we
talk’.
Tools such as Action Learning can build
confidence and capacity
Importance of the role of line managers.
"Team Building & Leadership w
LawNY...Rochester, NY. Canandaigua,
NY (16)" by Mike Cardus
Organization Development is
licensed under CC BY 2.0

12. Action Learning helps us navigate
LEADERSHIP challenges in real time
Builds peer networks
that build collective, as
well as individual
capacity, to solve
problems and progress
new ideas.
"Session 2 – Stigma & Peer Support" by ChimpLearnGood is
licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

13. Staff Development and Action Learning
Developing Leadership
Practice:
Harness ‘tacit’
understandings of social
value amongst frontline
staff
Build capacity to
champion social value
through new projects and
initiatives
Building confidence in the
capacity to lead.

14. What tools can we use? 2: ‘Play’!
• An entrepreneurial mindset is
about ‘trying things out’.
• Allowing colleagues to ‘play’ with
new ideas, explore...and fail.
• Many organisations use e.g. Lego
to workshop new ideas, and give
voice to different perspectives
• ‘Serious play’ is important in
‘serious work’
Images taken from a University of
Exeter ‘Lego Serious Play’ event

15. Tackling Challenges – things to
remember
• Shared leadership does not do away with status
differentials and inequalities – needs careful input
and support to empower many voies.
• How to manage the ‘too many cooks’ challenge?
• Culture change takes time and commitment – but
it doesn’t have to be expensive.

16. Thank you..
QUESTIONS?