Courage and co-creation: Cultural transformation in an academic library

University libraries are transforming to be vibrant and distinctive online and physical spaces that, at their heart, continue to foster the connection of people to ideas. Rapid and continuously changing expectations of clients in the range of services that are delivered by libraries, combined with increasingly demanding resourcing environments are challenges for all library leaders. A library staff culture that is energised, focused and resilient is essential to ensure that service expectations are met or exceeded and that the library retains its valued position in the university. The University Librarian at Curtin University in Australia has initiated and led a library staff culture transformation program over an 18-month period. The program has adopted an empowerment mindset to increase commitment, involvement and optimism amongst library staff. The need for such a transformative program was identified following a particularly difficult period of staff disruption. The ‘Appreciative Inquiry’ dialogic method was used to facilitate a whole of library engagement and activity program that commenced with a two day ‘Library Challenge’ event. The event brought together library staff, students and academics to identify the desired culture along with a roadmap to meet that goal. The Your Voice Satisfaction Survey (Your Voice), a research validated employee satisfaction and engagement survey, was used to evaluate the Curtin University Library culture program with the survey being run before, and during the program’s implementation. Results show significant shifts in staff engagement as the culture program has been rolled out, particularly in the areas of commitment, involvement and positive outlook. This paper will outline the staff culture transformation program at Curtin University Library with an emphasis on the skills and attitudes required by library leaders to ensure success in this critical area of leadership