I agree wholeheartedly with your bullet items, Cinthyia! Most of them underline the reality that good leadership is based on good relationships. Getting to know people in a sincere and genuine way has always proven useful to me.
I would add that getting on top of budget and finance is critical. Know where you get your funding, understand the rules/regulations which limit/guide its use, and get into the details about how it is expended.
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Erik Nordberg
Dean of Libraries
Indiana University of Pennsylvania
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Original Message:
Sent: Jan 14, 2020 02:01 PM
From: Cinthya Ippoliti
Subject: Priorities as you get started in your role
Thanks to Erik for the idea for this thread. Here are some of the things I've done in this role and please feel free to add others:
- Schedule a meeting with everyone in the library including students and listen to their stories and experiences
- As new employees start, make sure you do the same thing
- Then you can make a list of what themes you hear and items you can address right away vs longer-term issues
- Meet with any external stakeholders and get their feedback and their take on things
- Get to learn everything you can about the organization's people, processes, policies, documentation, etc. so you know the context you are working within
- Listen and watch-don't start making changes just yet!
- Start to map out what you want to work on, what the priorities might be etc. so you can think through these areas
- Be clear and transparent about how you want to communicate, make decisions, share documents, etc. This may need to be a broader discussion with your admin team, department heads, etc.
Thank you!
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Cinthya Ippoliti
University of Colorado, Denver
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