Recently I had the privilege of hearing Dr. Ken Haycock of the San Jose State University School of Library and Information Science (slisweb@sjsu.edu) speak on the topic of leadership. He is an amazing communicator whose subtle humor delivers some zingy truths, including some I found relevant for librarians and other professionals who work in environments requiring political finesse:
- Don't confuse consultation and collaboration (seeking input does not imply future adherence to the input)
- Don't confuse congeniality and collegiality (we can have differences yet still work together to achieve the team's goals)
- With all the attention to ROI, don't forget ROTI (return on time invested)
- and, for all who prepare business cases: "The budget is the plan." What is in the budget is what senior management supports ... period. We need not take it personally if our proposals are not approved ... we just need them to match the overall strategic goals.
Many thanks Dr. Haycock!
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