Best of Core Forum: The First 90 Days; Real Life Tales of Transition
eLearning
Description: Twenty years ago, Michael D. Watkins published a best-selling book on leadership transitions, "The First 90 Days." Later updated in 2013, its guidance has become a touchstone for many stepping into a new role as manager. Watkins advises new managers to follow 10 directives: Prepare Yourself; Accelerate Your Learning; Match Strategy To Situation; Negotiate Success; Secure Early Wins; Achieve Alignment; Build Your Team; Create Alliances; Manager Yourself; and Accelerate Everyone. This panel session will critically examine each of these directives, drawing on the real-life experience of three panelists as they navigated their first three months in a new management or leadership role within a library organization. Attendees will come away with practical insights and tips on making a success of those first 90 (or more) days.
This webinar was previously presented in-person as a session at the 2023 Core Forum. We are hosting this webinar, with the session adapted and presented live as a virtual event, to extend its reach.
Learning Outcomes:
At the end of this webinar, attendees will be able to:
- Summarize the key strategies outlined by Watkins to support a successful transition into a management or leadership role.
- Describe how they might or might not apply in their own work context.
- Outline tips and strategies they can use when transitioning into a new management or leadership role.
Who Should Attend: Those who have recently transitioned into a management or leadership role or who are thinking about doing so.
Presenters:
Helen Kula joined the McMaster University Library in November 2022 as their Associate University Librarian, Teaching and Learning. Previously, she spent over 20 years within the University of Toronto Libraries system in a variety of roles, most recently as the Head of Research and Instruction at the University of Toronto Mississauga library. Helen holds an MISt from the University of Toronto and an MA in English Literature from McGill University. She is an enthusiastic but not particularly talented baker and gardener and wishes she had more time to indulge her love of movies and all things vintage.
Monique Flaccavento (B.A., B.Ed., M.I.St.) is the Head of the User Services Department with the University of Toronto Libraries, where she provides strategic leadership for the Research and Education, Accessibility Services, and Access and Information teams. She was previously the Director of the University of Toronto’s Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE) Library. Before becoming a librarian, Monique worked as an elementary school teacher, and as a pastry chef. This past fall, Monique was awarded a Masters Degree in Industrial Relations and Human Resources.
Heather Dray has been serving libraries and their stakeholders for more than 20 years through her work in consortia, academic publishing, and both public and academic libraries. Prior to joining Coherent Digital, she served in roles including Director of Library and Information Resources at American InterContinental University Atlanta, Director of Educational Services at LYRASIS and Associate Director of Library Relations and Faculty Outreach at SAGE Publishing. In these roles, Heather built dynamic teams of librarians who delivered educational programs designed to empower and delight library staff, faculty and students throughout the US, Canada and Australia. Heather’s academic accomplishments include a BA in Classics from University of Georgia, MLIS from Clark Atlanta University, and the Women in Leadership Certificate from Antioch University Santa Barbara. A perpetual student, Heather is currently enrolled in the Creative Writing Certificate Program at Emory University. Laura Warner Manager, Library Resources
Laura Warner has over 15 years of experience in the public and knowledge sectors. She has held management positions at both the Saskatoon Public Library, where she was the director of Corporate Services and Facilities, and more recently as Manager, Library Resources for the Brantford Public Library. Her strategic leadership facilitated the implementation of advanced digital infrastructures, including a new corporate Intranet and the RFID conversion of extensive library collections, significantly enhancing operational efficiency and user engagement. She has spearheaded major projects, such as the comprehensive renovation of the Rusty Macdonald Branch in Saskatoon and the transition to a new Integrated Library System at Brantford Public Library, demonstrating her capability in overseeing large-scale transformations. In addition to her operational expertise, she is an educator and thought leader in the library sector, consistently contributing to professional discourse through conference presentations and publications.
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