The Reflexive Library Leader: Developing Academic Library Leaders to Meet Modern Library Needs

Abstract

The academic library is an institution in continual flux, with ever-growing demands and challenges for its leadership. Many leadership development texts focus on implementing selected styles or techniques in order to deal with these challenges. However, this article explores how developing reflexivity is an essential component of leadership development for academic library leaders. In order to develop this reflexivity, leaders must become disembedded via relational practices such as engaging within interstitial spaces. Discussion of the topic yields three suggested relational practices for leaders to become disembedded in their quest for reflexivity: (1) participating in regular strategic assessment; (2) cultivating faculty relationships; and (3) engaging in student outreach and embedded librarianship.

Keywords:

• Reflexivity
• gender equity
• leadership style
• embedded agent

Acknowledgements

My deepest gratitude to Dr. Maria Lai-Ling Lam for her encouragement, guidance, and enthusiasm.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).