Harsh realities

Great to see Annie Mauger, CILIP's new Chief Executive, at CILIPS Council in Edinburgh yesterday. Heartening, too, to know that she understands the Scottish scene so well.  She's still only seven or eight weeks into her role and comes to it with little prior knowledge as she was denied any hand-over through Bob McKee's untimely death.

In the circumstances, a fresh pair of eyes and no pre-conceived ideas is probably helpful as she begins the tough task of pruning CILIP's resources to meet the current economic realities. Annie's clear message was that there is a huge task ahead of her to ensure that the organisation is pruned to operate within available resources and yet remains relevant to the membership. The focus will be on meeting priority targets such as advocacy and lobbying, largely determined by the Defining Our Professional Future report. It is clear that many current areas of operation will have to cease to ensure that priorities are met. CILIP will certainly be much leaner and, it is hoped, much fitter for the purpose of representing the profession to government, employers and other stakeholders in the years to come. Annie will need a lot of support from the membership if she is to achieve what is necessary. From what I saw yesterday, from a CEO who is determined to be visible and walk the talk, that support will be forthcoming.

Yesterday was the final Council meeting of my Presidential year.  Having given my Report on my year in office, a kind of 10 minute "state of the nation", I was humbled by Alan Reid's generous vote of thanks which spoke of a Chris Pinder that I barely recognised! As I said in my Report, I owe a great debt of gratitude to all members who have supported me during the year and, in particular, to Elaine, Rhona and Cathy who between them have made sure that I said and did the right things at the right time - those who know me will understand what an achievement this is!

During my year, I have encountered a lively, enthusiastic and committed membership which I know will stand us in good stead for the future and the challenging times that we face. We have taken steps to "Mind the Gap" and we have ably demonstrated that "Yes, we can!" 

What rallying cry Alan Reid commits us to next year remains to be seen but I'm sure it will be a good one!

Dunfermline 1 Aberdeen 1

No, not a recent football result but the locations of my Presidential outings in the last couple of weeks! A somewhat hectic final flourish to my year as the mini-conferences that were the CILIPS Autumn Gathering and Grampian Information had me thinking, and making presentations about, managing in hard times and the role and future of the professional organisation...not at the same time I might add. While on the surface the two topics seem poles apart, they are actually inextricably linked for we need a strong, representative professional body to help us, both individually and collectively, through these hard times.

Advocacy, promotion of the profession and lobbying are some of the tools that will help us through. We need CILIP and, in Scotland, CILIPS to lead the way on these if the library and information profession is to be in good shape when better times arrive. The "Defining our professional future" report certainly picked up on what the "librarian in the street" is thinking and, frankly, there's a lot to be done if many of us working in the profession are to be convinced that our professional body is fit for purpose and that there is any value in continued membership. As I explained in Aberdeen yesterday, I do think CILIPS, for whatever reason, is closer to its membership and has already recognised where it needs to channel its resources to help us, and it, survive.

One of the joys of the Autumn Gathering was the presentation of Honorary awards to individuals who have made a considerable contribution to the profession. Present to receive their awards this year were Sheila Cannell of Edinburgh University; Margaret Forrest, also of Edinburgh University, and CILIPS President 2009; and Alistair Campbell of Moray Council. All three have worked with commitment and dedication in their respective sectors and their awards, Honorary Membership for Sheila and Margaret and Honorary Vice President for Alastair, were richly deserved. Charles Sweeney, formerly JISC regional support centre manager and Chair of the Working Party that reviewed quality standards for FE libraries in Scotland, was also awarded Honorary Membership but was unable to attend.

During my Presidential year I have met many enthusiastic, energetic and dedicated librarians. While we, deservedly, offer awards to individuals I want to close this post by saying that it has been a real privilege to meet so many great people.  Most of these will go through their careers without being "mentioned in despatches" and I want to say a big thank-you to you all. Your contribution is appreciated so much.

Up north!

The Autumn of my Presidency! In a few short months I'll be passing the chain of office onto Alan Reid's capable shoulders.  Where has the time gone?

Up to Aberdeen this week to visit the North East Branch. I was up against the Dons playing Raith at Pittodrie so was very grateful to the hardy souls who made me their first choice.  Being naturally modest by nature it did occur to me that a 3 - 2 game might have been more entertaining but I think everyone got something out of my appearance!  I was especially pleased to involve the Shetland contingent via video-conference link. It wasn't until about half way through my presentation that someone thought to put the lights on in the room we were occupying so the trio from Shetland could see us in our true colours and not forever think we were sitting in a gloomy blue haze.

We spoke a lot about CILIP's "Defining our professional future" and what it hopes to achieve.  We also talked about the relationship between individual members and CILIPS; how it is improving and how much more work still needs to be undertaken. Not for the first time this year I heard how much the Slainte website needs to improve! There is, though, a general positive feeling that CILIPS is on the right lines and that there is a genuine relationship between organisation and member. Of course this can always be improved and communication, both upward and downward, on the range of issues impacting on the profession and on individuals must, and can, get better.

I took the train to Aberdeen. It was pretty full on both legs and I couldn't help noting that most people, young and old, were reading to pass the time.  Me too.  I ignored the bundle of work I'd brought with me! Naturally, in this age of the electronic resource, everyone was reading a printed book or magazine; not a single Kindle to be seen!

Talking of reading, I've just finished "All the colours of the town" by Liam McIlvanney.  A really good novel involving a journalist, a politician and some pretty nasty criminal characters which is based on an incident in the Northern Irish "Troubles". He is clearly destined to keep the literary family's name alive in the public eye. While I'm talking popular culture I'm also enjoying new albums from Vampire Weekend and Robert Plant...but as an "oldie" I still insist on buying the CD versions!

A problem shared ...

The gap since my last post is mostly down to my holiday!  I mention this because, having spent 3 weeks in the USA, California to be precise, I thought I’d say something about the situation that libraries over there are facing. The saying goes that Britain and the USA are separated by 3,000 miles and a common language. We have something else in common…

You probably won’t be surprised to hear that public libraries in the US are facing the exact same problems that we in the UK are facing. Huge budget cuts, restricted opening and closure are the new normal! And like here in the UK, people have been writing articles, signing petitions and holding protest meetings to express their unhappiness with the situation.

An Opinion piece published in the Los Angeles Times in early July stated that in losing libraries “we'll all feel the loss as one of the most effective levelers (sic) of privilege…one of the great engines of democracy begins to disappear.” Comparing libraries (and librarians) to other public services the author reckons that “they represent the best civic value out there.”

Back in May the location normally associated with movies and movie stars, Hollywood, saw a protest rally against cuts in budget that would eliminate 100 library jobs and reduce opening hours.

Also in May, Queens Library in New York faced the prospect of closing 14 branches and reducing hours in 34 more. Around 300 employees faced redundancy. The Queens library system serves around 50,000 people a day and is used for many purposes: the free computer access is used by job hunters, children use the libraries for homework and new immigrants use them for language and citizenship classes. All of which underlines the value of a library to its local community.

Back on this side of the Atlantic there were two interesting pieces on libraries on the Today programme (August 24^th). The first picked up the theme of reshaping library services (in England) to capture lost customers.  Volunteer “librarians” running “libraries” from pubs and supermarkets were discussed but the overall conclusion, thankfully, was that this couldn’t begin to replicate the value of the public library service. There were real fears expressed, however, that what we are witnessing is the destruction of the public library service.

This piece was followed an hour or so later by contributions from Richard Charkin, of Bloomsbury Publishing, and author Marina Lewycka. “Libraries are essential to the kind of country we want to live in” and “closing libraries won’t solve the economic crisis” were two statements that appealed to me. Charkin clearly felt that libraries had forgotten their central purpose and should return to their core business of books. As a publisher he would say that but I think he really meant that they should move away from being the hub for all local council services and concentrate on being libraries! With a slight sting in the tail he did conclude by saying that significant savings could be made through better management and more efficiencies!

Mass protests in Doncaster had been mentioned in the earlier broadcast and a quick bit of googling revealed author Alan Gibbons’ blog which tells of his appearance in that city to join people protesting over the planned closure of 3 branch libraries. He tells of a woman who lives near one of the branch libraries but who had not heard of the impending closure. Her few words say it all really: “But that’s where I borrow my books. What am I supposed to do if it goes?"

Football, libraries and leaders

So the vuvuzelas are silent, the press circus has departed and the TV schedules return to normal.The World Cup is over and Spain is rightly crowned the best football team in the world.

As a football fan I’ve enjoyed the World Cup. Yes it’s had its ups and downs. There were several dull games that were best forgotten but there have been some real thrillers in which individual and team performances have shone through. Argentina looked great until asked to defend; Germany delighted as the counter-attacking team par excellence; Spain’s midfield with their short-passing game was a technical masterclass.

One aspect of the competition that has merited some small attention has had nothing to do with the athletes on the pitch but the managers on the sidelines.These are the guys who always shoulder the blame when things go wrong and, quite rightly, take some of the glory when everything goes to plan.

What caught my attention was the different managerial, or leadership, styles that team managers displayed. France’s Domenech looked haunted as he stood on the sidelines. His leadership skills led, literally, to rebellion which just showed how little team spirit he’d managed to engender! Dunga of Brazil carried a nation’s expectation of winning…and winning in an entertaining way…but his dedication to “efficient” football at the expense of flair produced neither and he was sacked on his return home. Maradona displayed enthusiasm in abundance; he showed quite clearly his love for his Argentine players but he ultimately failed because his heart ruled his head. He was great fun to watch though!

The guy I loved to watch was Vicente del Bosque, the manager of Spain. No histrionics from him whenever Spain scored, no punching the air and leaping around in celebration.He remained impassive throughout every game, quietly confident in his game-plan and the superior ability of his players.His inner conviction of the ultimate success of his players was deep-seated and founded, no doubt, in his work with his highly talented players over several years and the knowledge that his role was to set out the overall direction, not micro-manage. His players could then be left to do their own thing. Supreme mutual confidence and trust!

So, yes, there are parallels here for all of us who manage libraries and lead others in our organisations. As Rosabeth Moss Kanter, a professor at Harvard Business School says in her blog, “the leader’s job is to provide resources and support which build the confidence of players in themselves, each other, the team, and the excellence of the surrounding system. Ethics, fair play, mentoring, smooth transitions, continuity, and collaboration should not be luxuries or lip service; they create the margin of victory.”

A 59 year old former Real Madrid player and manager is now my role model!