Our library director does a pretty good job, and though she’s an older generation and works a few extra hours now and again, I think she manages to maintain a decent quality of life and DOESN’T embody the typical dinosaur administrator values. Some people just don’t particularly want to be administrators, and like many of my generation, the word “administrator” usually makes me think of people who are out-of-touch, scheming, very political who endlessly attend meetings while having no actual clue about anything that actually matters to anyone (except for budgets). Our director is an exception to the general rule–much to her credit.

When GenX and GenY think of these people as essentially kiss-up, apple-polishers who don’t have an original thought and are constrained to a stultifying career for a few extra shekels and some prestige, then why would they bother to aspire to that?

We know the older generation because they were our parents and teachers and others like them. The values of extreme “commitment” and “loyalty” might have made sense 50 years ago when the organization gave the same kind of commitment in return to those who worked for them. But that’s not the case, is it? Employees are disposable to many organizations, yet they they don’t want employees to think of their organization as disposable in return. Sorry “leaders,” you don’t get to play it both ways. If you want rock-solid commitment from your employees then you’ve got to give rock-solid commitment to your employees in return. It’s a two way street.

In today’s world the talk about these “values” is often just a way to try more out of workers for free. We understand these euphemisms for what they are. Also, “a few extra hours” that you speak of are not alien to our generation. We’re plenty willing to do it if there is a reason, but we’ve learned from experience, too. We got suckered into all of that in the .com startups and know it’s often a euphemism for 80-hour work weeks with no payoff. Been there, done that. We’re not getting burned on that score again.

To get a little cynical, I bet Enron had some good pep rallies with their workers about loyalty and commitment just before they siphoned off all the hard-earned retirement money. When your generation has set such a spectacular example in its “leadership,” is it any wonder that many of a younger generation aren’t all that interested in following in your footsteps or doing things the same way and accepting all your ready-made answers?

I hope you get a payoff on that stuff and I’m sure on your deathbeds you’ll heartily regret not spending a lot more hours at work.

AND don’t get me started on library ‘directors’ who were put into the position with qualifications in business or another completely unrelated area and then have no idea what it is a library actually does and tries to run it like a business.

During my first position as a resident librarian, I recall my library dean (and other administrators) often dropping by to say a few words. Sometimes these visits were related to my job, but often he would stop to just say hello.

As a new librarian, and a new member of the academy, I was simply honored that he would take a few moments out of his busy day to drop in. Perhaps, in addition to the requisite management skills, library leadership should make a proactive effort to reduce the formalities which can create real (or imagined) barriers between administration and younger faculty.

My last library position was working full-time at a circulation desk at a law school library until MIDNIGHT each weeknight while getting my MLIS. Sacrifices? YES. Work-life balance? No!

I think this is just another stab at Gen X and Y.. which has gotten a lot of press lately. I wrote a response in my blog:

http://ch-ch-chchanginglibrarian.blogspot.com/2008/04/defensive-and-disheartened-about.html

“Here’s my message to those nextgens who diss their director and whose own vision is in conflict with what they see coming out the contemporary’s academic library director’s office: You may be the best person to become a library director; there’s no better way to fulfill your vision of what an academic library can and should be for your community. And if you can do it while creating a better work-life balance for yourself and your next generation of leaders then go out and create some change.”

Change the status quo. Just because directors in my generation can not make a better balance out of does not mean that nextgen shouldn’t at least try.

Barbara’s points are very well taken. Directors need to be visible and engaged and need to be very involved in mentoring in both formal and informal ways.

The other point that I always make in regard to work/life balance is that although I work a lot of hours and that includes some evenings and weekends, the technology we now have at our disposal allows me tremendous freedom as well. I don’t feel that I have to be in the library every day, and when I’m traveling I always try to work in a bit of sightseeing. I am passionate about what I do and I think I do a pretty good job, but I also have a rich and varied non-library life.

And hey, can’t we say Library Deans and Directors? Some of us still think we’re part of academia.