With library staffing levels and services cut to the bone, creating a team that communicates well and functions smoothly is more important than ever. Building on the model of her bestselling book Be A Great Boss, Hakala-Ausperk presents a handy self-guided tool to the dynamic role of team-building.
Organized in 52 modules, designed to cover a year of weekly sessions but easily adaptable for any pace, this workbook will show you how to
- Manage staff across different age groups and skill sets
- Improve communication between team members
- Mentor other staff members
- Keep your team organized in a culture of change
Suitable for all levels of management, from first-line supervisors to library directors, this book lays out a clear path to learning the essentials of building and maintaining a first-rate team. Here are some reviews:
With library staffing levels and services cut to the bone, creating a team that communicates well and functions smoothly is more important than ever. Building on the model of her bestselling book Be A Great Boss, Hakala-Ausperk presents a handy self-guided tool to the dynamic role of team-building. Organized in 52 modules, designed to cover a year of weekly sessions but easily adaptable for any pace, this workbook will show you how to Manage staff across different age groups and skill sets Improve communication between team members Mentor other staff members Keep your team organized in a culture of change Suitable for all levels of management, from first-line supervisors to library directors, this book lays out a clear path to learning the essentials of building and maintaining a first-rate team. Goodreads
In a welcome addition to the growing, must-read Busy Librarian series, this concise book begins with a look at team building from a historical perspective and moves at a brisk pace, providing weekly and monthly guidance and support to carry team leaders confidently through their first year. Each chapter includes suggestions of related titles for follow-up leadership research and concludes with reflective participatory exercises, which both newbie as well as veteran team leaders will find essential when committing the concepts presented into action. This is another helpful and well-written workbook that would make a fine addition to any librarian’s professional collection of career-building tools. Recommended for library managers and managers-to-be, this is a great source for what they didn’t teach you in library school. Booklist
Build A Great Team: One Year To Success provides instructions for creating an effective, productive team in any library. Part of the ALA Guides for the Busy Librarianseries, this book is divided into weekly exercises, designed to take an hour or so to complete. This format allows for positive changes without overwhelming the team leader and members all at once. It is possible, of course, to use the book on any timetable. This is a useful, flexible manual that would help any library team leader. It places a great deal of weight on assessing the individual team members, highlighting the importance of understanding generational disparities and varying personality types, and using the differences within a team in a complementary fashion. Team leaders need to appreciate what the organized, by-the-book folks and the creative, impulsive folks both bring to the table, and they need to share this appreciation, so the team members can see how they all are valued. Open communication, planning time, list-making, hiring practices—all this and much more are thoroughly covered. What makes this book stand out is that it is written in a conversational manner and divided into easy-to-digest bits. It can be used effectively once a week, or taken in all at once. The reader could go in order, or skip around as needed. It is a useful, easy tool that contains a lot of pertinent information that will help any team leader have a more successful and satisfied team. Reviewer: Heather Pittman; Ages adult professional. Voya
