Working Paper #7: Shared Leadership Development in the UM Libraries

Appendix D: Policy on the Review of Library Administrators and Team Leaders

Working Paper # 7 - Introduction

Appendices:

• Appendix A: Team Leader Roles, Responsibilities and Qualifications
• Appendix B: Roles for Senior Managers
• Appendix C: Core Competencies for Leaders (From Brown University)
• Appendix D: Policy on the Review of Library Administrators and Team Leaders
• Appendix E: Reading List on Leadership

Policy on the Review of Library Administrators and Team Leaders

Approved by Library Faculty Assembly December 9, 2002.
Modified to comply with campus practice September 2003.

I. Purpose of the Review

Library administrators and team leaders may be selected by a UM Libraries search committee or from within the team and appointed by the Dean. The administrative performance of administrators and team leaders is subject to recurrent formal comprehensive review at times that do not exceed five years between reviews.

The purpose of the review is to evaluate how well the administrator or team leader is fulfilling his or her administrative responsibilities and to provide constructive recommendations for improving his or her success. An administrator or team leader whose appointment is expected to be considered for continuation shall be reviewed at the beginning of the last year of his or her current appointment, but no later than the beginning of the fifth year of his or her current appointment to the post of administrator or team leader. A decision about whether the appointment will be continued will be formally considered upon the completion of the review. An administrator or team leader may request a review even if he or she is not contemplating a continuation of the appointment.

II. The Review Committee

The dean or division director shall have primary responsibility for selecting an internal review committee, delivering the formal charge to the committee, and establishing a timeline for the review. Normally, the committee report should be delivered to the dean or division director within two months of the first meeting of the committee. Committee membership should normally consist of 3-5 members and should include representation from within the unit and outside of it, and should encompass the constituencies within the unit. The committee should reflect the diversity goals of the university. The dean or division director should consult appropriately before appointing members to the review committee.

III. Information Provided to the Committee

During the review process, the committee will interview the dean, director or team leader to whom the administrator or team leader reports. In addition, the committee will interview members of the faculty and staff, and representatives from other teams in the Libraries as well as other units and offices on campus, with which the administrator or team leader has a significant liaison. The committee will send questionnaires to faculty members and staff in the division, department or team so that individual attitudes regarding the efficacy of the administrator or team leader may be polled.

The committee should have access to all relevant documents (e.g., the unit's Work Plan, strategic plan of the unit, record of any grievances filed with the Senate against the administrator or team leader). The committee should initially meet with the administrator or team leader to receive a summary of his or her accomplishments, vision for the unit, and plans for its future development.

The committee should solicit information, either orally or in writing, from members of the unit and from other constituencies as appropriate. The committee should ensure the confidentiality of information provided.

IV. Charge to the Committee

The committee is charged with reviewing the administrative performance of the administrator or team leader. The committee must establish specific evaluative criteria in light of the nature of the unit. The committee should identify the relevant problems at the administrative level under review; should evaluate the particular situation that faced the administrator or team leader at the beginning of his or her appointment, the current situation, and the future prospects of the unit; and should consider the administrative style of the administrator or team leader under review.

V. Guidelines for the Review

All proceedings of the administrator or team leader review are to be conducted in strict confidentiality. The following areas are suggested as a useful guide to considering the administrative effectiveness of an administrator or team leader:

1. Leadership

• Demonstrating a strong commitment to advancing the excellence of the unit.
• Developing goals and strategic plans and ensuring their implementation.
• Making difficult decisions to accomplish goals.
• Developing and implementing procedures for the smooth operation of the unit.

2. Campus Citizenship

• Taking a Libraries and university perspective, helping to meet library and university goals, contributing to the activities of the Libraries and the university.
• Complying with Libraries and university policies on, for example, teaching, research, advising, academic freedom, diversity, and academic integrity.

3. Human Resource Management

• Working effectively with constituencies within the unit.
• Serving as a positive role model for the unit.
• Supporting the professional development of members of the unit.

4. Communications

• Communicating information and decisions to members of the unit.
• Communicating the goals of the unit to internal and external constituencies.
• Fostering effective shared governance.
• Keeping lines of communication open among members of the unit.

5. Responding to Work Demands

• Expending the effort to get the job done.
• Completing tasks in a timely manner.
• Responding appropriately to demands from above and below.
• Responding appropriately to changes or crises.

6. Budgeting and Use of Resources

• Making budget decisions consistent with the unit's goals.
• Making effective use of resources.
• Maintaining fiscal responsibility and developing strategies for promoting greater efficiency.

VI. The Report

Normally within two months of its first meeting, the committee shall submit its report to the dean or director, depending on to whom the administrator or team leader directly reports. The dean or director shall provide a copy of the report to the administrator or team leader under review, and shall give the administrator or team leader an opportunity to respond to the report in writing. Should the administrator or team leader choose to respond, that response will be attached to the committee's report as a permanent appendix.

For team leaders or administrators other than directors, the dean and appropriate director/supervisor shall confer and prepare a joint evaluative report, giving consideration to the internal committee's report and the administrator’s or team leader’s response. The dean's and director’s evaluative report shall indicate present strengths and weaknesses and shall endorse specific recommendations pertaining to the administrator or team leader. Financial implications and an agenda for implementation may also be a part of the recommendations.

The dean and director shall then convene a meeting with the administrator or team leader under review to discuss the report and the appropriateness of continuing the administrator’s or team leader’s appointment for another term. The dean shall notify the team leader or administrator in writing of the decision whether to continue the individual’s appointment. All documents related to the administrative review shall be filed in the Libraries Human Resources Office.

For a director, the dean receives the committee report and follows the steps in the first paragraph under VI above. If reappointment is recommended, the dean shall submit to the provost a copy of the report and the administrator’s or team leader’s response along with a request for approval of the reappointment.

The provost's response to the request for reappointment of a director will be transmitted to the dean. Upon notification of the provost's action, the dean shall distribute a summary of the report to the members of the division . A copy of the dean's letter to the provost, the committee report, and the provost's reply will be kept on file in the Office of Faculty Affairs. If reappointment is not recommended by the dean, the review report will be forwarded to the Office of Faculty Affairs where it will be kept on file.

The dean shall publicly announce the outcome of each administrative review.

Working Paper 7 - Appendices:

• Appendix A: Team Leader Roles, Responsibilities and Qualifications
• Appendix B: Roles for Senior Managers
• Appendix C: Core Competencies for Leaders (from Brown University)
• Appendix D: Policy on the Review of Library Administrators and Team Leaders
• Appendix E: Reading List on Leadership

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