SPEC Kit 331: Changing Role of Senior Administrators (October 2012)

This SPEC Kit focuses on the professional, administrative, and management positions that report directly to the library director (or in some ARL member libraries the position that serves as the representative to the association), positions that have not been examined by a SPEC survey since 1984. It explores the responsibilities of these positions, and the skills, qualifications, and competencies necessary for these administrators to successfully lead a transforming 21st century research library. It looks at whether and how position requirements have changed in the past five years, whether the number of direct reports has changed, whether these administrators have assumed new areas of organizational responsibility, and how they acquire the new skills to fulfill those responsibilities. The SPEC Kit includes documents that compare organization charts and position descriptions from 2007 and 2012. DeLong, Kathleen, Julie Garrison, and Marianne Ryan. Changing Role of Senior Administrators. SPEC Kit 331. Washington, DC: Association of Research Libraries, October 2012.