“Boulder library board: Director's job posting should have required library experience” |
| Boulder library board: Director's job posting should have required library experience Posted: 08 Dec 2010 04:57 PM PST  Click here to view the city's brochure advertising the library director's position. About the job Title: Boulder library director Salary: $91,600 to $121,500 annually Minimum qualifications: Proven leadership in the public or nonprofit sector; a master's degree in business administration, public administration, library and information sciences or a related field; at least eight years of management experience in a complex organization; and a clean background check, among others. More info: For more information about the position, visit http://boulderlibrary.org/about/director/. **************************** Boulder library, by the numbers Library budget: $7 million Arts budget: $512,000 Full-time-equivalent positions: 78.5 In-person visits each year: 991,600 Annual electronic visits: More than two million Annual circulation: 1.4 million Source: City of Boulder Boulder has finally embarked on a national search for a new library director, but some officials are raising concerns that the city isn't requiring candidates to have previous experience working with libraries. The city is working to get the word out about the position, vacated in July when former director Tony Tallent resigned unexpectedly after less than two years on the job. A city Web page has been dedicated to providing information about the director's position -- which pays between $91,600 and $121,500 a year -- and the city has developed a brochure that outlines the job responsibilities, benefits and reasons why Boulder is such a great place to work. But members of the Boulder Library Commission, a five-person volunteer board appointed by the City Council to advise it on library affairs, are expressing concern that nowhere in the search materials does the city require a candidate to have previous experience working in a library. "I just don't think that a library director, the person who is supposed to be at the head of the library, steering the direction of where the library is going, can do that effectively if they don't understand the library," said Nadia Haddad, chairwoman of the commission. The city's brochure states that qualified candidates should have a master's degree in business administration, public administration, library and information sciences or a related field. It also asks for at least eight years of management or CEO experience in a "complex organization." The official job posting at bouldercolorado.gov contains a laundry list of qualifications, including the need for a candidate to be politically savvy and have "managerial courage," but the required minimum qualifications do not list previous library experience. Prior work experience in a municipal public or university library system is listed under "desired qualifications." City Manager Jane Brautigam, who wrote the job description, said Wednesday that she intentionally is trying to "cast the net widely" for candidates with relevant management skills, but she will favor candidates who have previous library experience. "It's very much focused on a person that's going to be able to run an organization that's pretty complex," she said of the search. The library, Brautigam said, is also an art gallery, a community center and a performing arts center. The diversity of the job requires someone who can manage all of its aspects, she said. "I'm trying to hire the best library director for the city of Boulder," she said. "We are going to get the very best person." "We just wanted to give our input" The city has retained a California-based consultant to help recruit candidates and review initial applications, Brautigam said. The consultant will cost the city $6,500. But Haddad, the library commissioner, said the basic requirements to be considered for the job don't go far enough to express the importance of past library work. The commission is also frustrated that the city manager's office didn't ask it for input or a final review of the job posting, she said. "We just wanted to give our input and have our input heard," she said. The city manager said it's her responsibility to hire people, but she's taken the unusual step of asking the commission to help draft questions to ask candidates during interviews. She also said the commissioners, as well as the public, will get the chance to participate in the hiring process. Haddad said her vision for a new director includes someone who has "a vision for libraries -- including an understanding of where the library fits." She said that person must also possess the ability to "stand firmly on the crossroads between advocating for the library and being able to navigate the political environment of Boulder." Sam Fuqua, vice chairman of the commission, agreed that the initial job description falls short. "I think the next leader of the library needs to be someone with substantial background in libraries," he said. While skills in business and nonprofit work are applicable to the job, he said, "there are some unique things about libraries that I don't think you know about until you work in them." Boulder City Councilwoman Lisa Morzel also expressed concern over the job posting. "This was the problem with our previous library director, is that he never directed a library," she said. "I certainly don't want to repeat the mistake." Morzel said she hopes the city manager looks for candidates who have experience. "I hope that we put our bar high," she said. "This community expects a lot out of their libraries." Morzel said the city should rely on the minimum qualification for a library director as suggested by the American Library Association. According to the association, most directors have at least 10 years of experience as a librarian, five years of managerial or administrative experience and a master's degree in library science. Ongoing changes When a new director is hired, that person will step into a library system that has struggled recently. The library's financial future is almost always in question, and the recent loss of several top positions at the library has caused fears of "brain drain" within the system. The library's information technology manager recently resigned, and three other top officials -- interim director Donna Gartenmann, longtime assistant director Lynn Reed, and Jim Marshall, the library's business and finance manager -- plan to retire before the end of the year. A member of the library commission also recently resigned. The city's current goal for hiring a library director is to have someone in place by March 2011. Contact Camera staff writer Heath Urie at 303-473-1328, or urieh@dailycamera.com. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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