Pivot, and Pivot Again: Ever-Nimble Library Leadership

Pressures continue to build for academic library leaders. Leaders face re-purposing of library spaces, staffing shortages, and increasing expectations to respond to a widening variety of library needs. Leaders must not only manage day-to-day library operations, but also successfully guide and lead within a sea of unpredictable, evolving institutional forces and activities, frequently at a late stage in the journey. How do leaders stay on course while constantly recalculating the route? What competencies are needed to stay afloat during turbulent times in higher education? This poster will offer real-world examples of “pivoting” in response to space repurposing, new and changing academic programs, and unexpected opportunities for collaboration. Enrollment has grown almost 50% in the last five years at this institution, and the library director has reported to 8 different administrators in that same period. This poster will highlight how this library’s experimental mindset and pivoting keeps this library positioned for success and growth. Attendees will be encouraged to weigh in and share their own stories of “pivoting” or leading through challenges that they didn\u27t anticipate. Attendees will consider that some of the best opportunities in their library may come as the result of circumstances that they cannot plan for or predict