Problem Statement

Assigned Leaders in Unionized Environments:Coping with the Economic Recession and Its Aftermath in Academic Libraries Adriene Lim, Ph.D.Dean of Libraries, Oakland University June 30, 2013LRRT Research Forum, ALA Annual 2013

Problem Statement • Economic recession and aftermath having a major impact on many academic institutions, even as libraries faced accelerating changes in technology and scholarly communication, and heightened external competition. • Unclear if and how unionization has helped or hindered library administrators as they try to transform libraries. • Gaps in the literature about changes occurring in unionized libraries and in assigned leaders’ abilities to transform their organizations. • Purpose of study was to provide insights about changes occurring in unionized libraries; and to explore if (and how) assigned leaders try to ensure that strategic changes still occur.

Primary Research Objectives • Institutional and Library Context • To identify changes occurring in unionized academic libraries as a result of the economic crisis • To identify perceptions that university administrators have about these changes and effects of unionization on their attempts to address the crisis • Union Context • To identify benefits and constraints that administrators encounter as a result of working within unionized contexts during economic recessions • Leadership Context • To identify assigned leaders’ strategies for handling changes in unionized, financially stressed environments

Methodology • Multi-case study of four, large, public academic libraries with the same Carnegie classification rank and similar economic indicators. • Online survey conducted to determine libraries’ unionization status and other characteristics. • Cases selected through purposive/criteria sampling. Eight libraries in subject population, but only four agreed to participate. • Data gathered through qualitative, semi-structured interviews with 21 university and library administrators (provosts, vice provosts, library directors, associate / assistant directors), three focus group interviews with unionized librarians and staff, and content analysis of various documents.

Findings: Changes Occurring • Chronic/extreme fiscal stress, pessimistic budget outlook • Retrenchment and cutback management; severity depended upon stimulus finding, size of institution, region • Loss of acquisitions buying power and librarian/staff positions • Broad adjustments to organizational structures, functions, and to individual positions • No substantial focus on external fundraising or entrepreneurship • No perceived change in libraries’ performance levels (but this was not based on real data in most cases) • No perceived differences in interactions between library administrators and unionized librarians/staff members • Threat or actuality of organizational decline apparent

Causes of Public-Sector Decline

Findings: Upper-Admin Views • Aware of staffing and budgeting challenges, but none seemed optimistic re: increasing libraries’ allocations • Aware of heavier workload on remaining employees, challenges in keeping morale/commitment levels high • Agreed that libraries’ performance levels remained high (but again seemingly not based on data) • Believed unions brought negative and positive effects • Lamented less managerial flexibility, more bureaucracy • Perceived negative effects were amplified in times of economic crisis • Said that shared governance was both improved and damaged - adversarial relations at two sites and not others

Findings: Union Benefits/Constraints • Agreements largely negotiated, administrated by others • Administrative decision-making about budgets perceived to be mostly intact • Delays in planning/implementing of changes • Less flexibility in regard to HR issues, more bureaucracy • Did not think fiscal adversity would damage relationships with unionized personnel or affect libraries’ performance • Unions not contesting technological changes • Use of shared, participatory leadership approaches • Organizational values shifted - tended more toward internal focus, stability, and control, than toward adaptability and flexibility

Human Relations Model Open Systems Model Flexibility Means: Flexibility; readiness Ends: Growth; resource acquisitions Means: Cohesion; morale Ends: Human resource development Output Quality Internal (People) External (Organization) Means: Information management; communication Ends: Stability; control Means: Planning; goal setting Ends: Productivity; efficiency Internal Process Model Rational Goal Model Control Competing Values Framework

Findings: Change Strategies Used • Strategic visioning/planning used; some leaders adjusting vision and plans due to economic troubles • Communication and transparency emphasized • Innovative thinking and resourcefulness seen as key to thriving in lean times – restructuring, redesigning work and implementing new services • Leaders used shared, participatory, and team leadership approaches at each site to different degrees • Institutional accountability/assessment weakly presented at two sites, a bit stronger at other two sites • Protecting existing positions was a high priority at all sites

Findings: Other Themes • Content of collective bargaining agreements did not seem to predict shared governance levels, assertion of management rights, etc. • Organizational cultures, relationships, and identities were affected by unionization. • Argument made that unionized environments needed even more effective managerial leadership functions than non-unionized. • Assigned leaders focused more on people and personal values at two of the sites, whereas stronger stewardship and strategic thinking were evident at the other two sites. • Attributes of honesty, fairness, courage, and credibility were named by unionized employees as crucial for good leadership.

Implications of the Study • Seemingly inconsistent responses? Explanations proposed: • Unionization as controversial, sensitive topic • Perceived levels of control and instrumentality • Unionized environments as inherited legacies • Lack of research on unionization in libraries • Need for comparative, longitudinal, & single-case studies • Need to study leadership attributes and strategies • Need to study effectiveness of leadership strategies • More study on intersection of leadership, unionization, and economic stress • Education of academic library leaders • Examination of position classifications

More Implications • Organizational cultures, identities, values, and effectiveness • Organizational decline and cutback management tactics • External fundraising and entrepreneurship • Politically intelligent leadership, application of model • Administrative strength, accountability, & evaluation/assessment • Union-management cooperation – best practices? • Organizational dysfunctions and employee morale • Resiliency in leadership, application of model • More research needed using theories/models in literatures of organizational sciences, management, & public administration

Thank you! Adriene Lim, Ph.D. e-mail address: ailim@oakland.edu

Problem Statement