SPEC Kit 344: Talent Management · 15
training and reading) are considered the most effec-
tive and lasting programs (Lombardo and Eichinger
2001). This section captured the types of professional
development activities, practices, and programs used
within ARL libraries.
Of the nine talent areas explored in the survey,
professional development is represented most in stra-
tegic plans. The survey asked about seven different
types of professional development opportunities:
travel funds, library-wide training offerings, indi-
vidual training funds, experience-based development,
leadership development programs, and customized
development plans. Of the seven choices, travel funds
(48 of 50 responses, or 96%), library-wide training of-
ferings (47 responses, or 94%), and individual training
funds (41 responses, or 82%) are the most prevalent
offerings. Customized development plans are the least
frequently offered (16 responses, or 32%). While funds
for travel and training are consistently offered, the
underutilization of customized development plans
could be interpreted as a signal that ARL libraries
may not be realizing their return on investment in
professional development expenditures.
The survey also asked about the types of profes-
sional development plans offered to different types
of employees. Training plans are the most common
type of plan for library support staff, other profes-
sional staff, librarians, and department/unit man-
agers. Leadership development plans are also com-
mon for librarians, department/unit managers, and
other professional staff. For administrative managers,
competency-based plans were the most frequently
reported, followed closely by training and leadership
development. Leadership development plans are the
most common for library executives. When asked
which plan type has been the most successful, 76%
(25 of 33 responses) selected training plans.
Leadership and Succession Planning
Leadership roles have been increasingly hard to fill
with successful candidates (Charan, Drotter, and
Noel 2001). Leaders are dealing with new work en-
vironments that require greater collaboration, higher
volume of information, and new job responsibilities
with wider scopes and high rates of change (Corporate
Leadership Council 2013). This section of the survey
explored leadership development and succession plan-
ning offerings and practices at ARL libraries.
A fair number of ARL libraries (17 of 49 responses,
or 35%) indicated that they had a leadership develop-
ment program. Qualitative data from some of the
libraries that did not have a leadership program indi-
cated that they participated in other programs offered
by the university, used external programs, or offered
leadership development on an ad hoc basis.
Almost half of the respondents (22 of 47 respons-
es, or 47%) indicated they identify High Potential
Employees (HIPOs) within their libraries. Of those,
most use the designation for prioritizing leadership
development opportunities (17 of 22 responses, or
77%). Seven other libraries indicated they informally
recognize such individuals.
Most of the respondents (39 of 48 responses, or 81%)
indicated that they do not have a succession planning
strategy. Qualitative data suggests that many organi-
zations address succession decisions informally. Half
of the respondents (25 of 50) indicated they typically
hire executive staff from outside the organization and
about a quarter (12 responses) indicated they primar-
ily hire from within the organization. Of those who
primarily hire from outside, 22% indicated the need
for fresh perspective and skills. Of those who mostly
hire from within the organization, 25% indicated that
knowledge of internal practices, history, and culture
is the primary reason. Thirteen respondents selected
“other” and their comments show that most (10 re-
sponses, or 77%) hire equally from outside and within
the organization.
Conclusion
A robust use of a talent management strategy allows
organizations to maximize their talent investment by
attracting, retaining, and developing employees in a
comprehensive way that is aligned to organizational
strategies and goals. Research libraries are currently
facing, and will continue to face, talent-related chal-
lenges as they require an increasingly dynamic and
technology-driven workforce, more senior and expe-
rienced librarians and staff retire, and new librarians
enter the profession requiring career and leadership
development. The results of this survey highlighted
two talent management trends in research libraries.
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