Thursday, May 1, 2003
A Good Leader Also Knows When to be a Good Follower
I belong to a discussion list for association executives. This week one of my colleagues put a call out for material on followership, an odd sounding term, but an important concept. The query immediately brought to mind an excellent paper by Kathryn Deiss and Maureen Sullivan, written for the Association for Research Libraries. Titled The Shared Leadership Principle: Creating Leaders Throughout the Organization, the authors explore this much neglected side of organizational development.
Since last week I gave you key characteristics of effective leaders, this week I share with you key characteristics of effective followers as cited in the Deiss and Sullivan paper, and identified by Robert Kelley, Professor at Carnegie Mellon University. Good followers are individuals who:
- are committed to the organization and to a purpose, principle, or person outside themselves
- build their competence and focus their efforts for maximum impact; and
- are courageous, honest, and credible.
Deiss and Sullivan explore these ideas and offer a number of resources to those who wish to delve into these concepts more deeply. We are all at various times leaders and followers. Gaining an understanding of both sides of the equation helps strengthen ourselves and our institutions.
Educational Needs Assessment Survey About to Launch
We are very close to launching our Educational Needs Assessment Survey! Watch your email boxes for a communiqu from President Carol Avery Nicholson. You will have the option of completing the survey either on-line or on paper, although we hope you will do so on-line so that we may save AALL the cost of printing and postage.
Whichever way you find most comfortable, however, is what is most important we need your opinion, we value it highly, and we will use it as the basis of some very important decisions about educational programming in the years to come.
We are deeply grateful to BNA, Inc. for their unwavering support of AALL's professional development programming and for their generous support in producing this survey.
Update on George A. Strait Minority Scholarship Fundraising Campaign
Thanks to your generosity and a spirited competition among our Chapters, Special Interest Sections, and other groups, we are over a third of the way toward our goal of raising $100,000 to support the George A. Strait Minority Scholarship. As of today, we have raised $34,046!
To date we have received contributions from the Online Bibliographic Services SIS, the Research Instruction & Patron Services SIS, and the Academic Law Librarians SIS.
The Law Librarians of New England offered to match contributions of their membership, up to $500. Stephanie J. Burke, Chair of the LLNE Service Committee, said in her letter to membership, It is particularly important for LLNE, which includes two of the law schools (Northeastern and Harvard) where Mr. Strait practiced law librarianship during his distinguished career, to support this fundraising effort.
Nine Chapters have generously contributed: the Atlanta Law Libraries Association, the Arizona Association of Law Libraries, the Law Librarians Society of Washington, D.C., Inc., Mid-America Association of Law Libraries, the New Jersey Law Librarians Association, the Ohio Regional Association of Law Libraries, the Southern California Association of Law Libraries, the South Florida Association of Law Libraries, and the Virginia Association of Law Libraries.
The Minnesota Association of Law Libraries promises a $2,000 contribution, and they have re-extended the challenge to the Southern California Association of Law Libraries. Karen Westwood, MALL President, says, Given that SCALL has approximately twice the members of MALL, we challenge SCALL to meet or exceed our $2,000 gift!
We owe a big debt of gratitude to Marvin Anderson and Joan Howland for their dedicated good work as Co-Chairs of the George A. Strait Fundraising Committee. They are giving the effort all that they've got in time, money and commitment to a very fine law librarian whose memory is very well served by this scholarship, George A. Strait.
We thank West for generously endowing the George A. Strait Minority Scholarship with a gift of $150,000 in 2001.
AALL Discussion Lists Transitioned to Headquarters
We have rolled out our new look for our web site, AALLNET, and with it we have included new online discussion software created by Lyris Technologies, replacing our old software, Mailman.
We experienced some trouble in making the transition, and for that we apologize to those of you who experienced a few bumps along the way.
In the early stages of the changeover our web site, the Lyris software, and our firewall, refused to cooperate with one another. Fortunately, Reggie Swanigan, our Director of Information Technology, worked long and hard to settle differences among the three systems and everything now is running in tip top shape. If you want to catch up on recent list discussions you can do so via a web interface. It's impressive that we have over 90 discussions forums active, a testament to the richness of discussion with the law library profession!
With the completion of this phase of our technological transition, we now have all aspects of our technology operating in-house.
Discussion List to Address Permanent Public Access
AALL members are invited to join the Government Relations Committee in a career development program moderated discussion on permanent public access of government information from May 12-16.
Titled Permanent Public Access to Government Information: Who's Responsible, and Why Should We Care?, the discussion list will explore how to preserve electronic government information that often vanishes in cyberspace. As states and federal government make more and more official information available only electronically, it is time for AALL members to educate policymakers before more electronic government information is lost.
For more information click here
AALLNET Personal Profile: Let People Know Who You Really Are
Help ensure that your listing in the 2003-2004 AALL Directory and Handbook is accurate. Update your personal profile in the AALLNET Members Only section by June 2.
Keep everyone current about your career growth with real-time additions to your personal profile at www.aallnet.org. Enter your own password-protected page at your convenience to update your new e-mail address, title, degree, employer, expanded responsibilities and other key information.
Your employer information will be included in the print edition of the 2003-2004 AALL Directory and Handbook. Please make sure this information is up to date and accurate by June 2. For troubleshooting tips or assistance, please contact Membership Coordinator, Rachel Shaevel at 312-939-4764, extension 10, or membership@aall.org.
Leverage Your Skills! Ways to Maximize Your Annual Meeting Experience
Don't wait too long to register for the Seattle Annual Meeting July 12 - 16, 2003! Here's this week's tip from the Annual Meeting Program Committee, courtesy of Tom French, H. Douglas Barclay Law Library Director and Associate Professor, Syracuse University College of Law:
The chance to attend dozens of programs, rub shoulders with hundreds of colleagues, and visit exhibit after exhibit after exhibit of the latest, best and classic software, books, furniture, machines and services is bound to have some positive effect. How could you not leverage your skills by attending the 2003 AALL Annual Meeting in Seattle? No matter where you go at the meeting, you will have the opportunity to learn, share ideas with colleagues, or hear about what's new or coming in the near future. For a mere few days investment of time and energy, you will reap rewards for months to come. Although the registration fee is a few hundred dollars, the chance to leverage your skills by attending is priceless.
Here is a sampling of programs at the Annual Meeting that will give you an opportunity to leverage your skills:
- Maximize Business Research Skills (C-4)
- Leverage the Web: Implement a Law Firm Portal (J-6)
- Is There a Book Doctor in the House? Assessing Preservation Priorities & Options (F-5)
- Cheap Is Good: Stretching the Library Dollar (I-2)
Register Now to Attend CONELL at the Seattle Annual Meeting
Attention newer law librarians. The AALL Mentoring Committee will host a pre-AALL Annual Meeting program that you really shouldn't miss. The Conference of Newer Law Librarians will be held July 12 in Seattle, prior to the start of the AALL Annual Meeting and Conference.
The annual CONELL program welcomes members of the profession to AALL. Attendees will learn more about the Association, meet some of its leaders, and network with colleagues in a comfortable setting. Experienced law librarians will impart some of their best practice tips to help attendees get the most benefit out of the AALL Annual Meeting and Conference.
This year's program includes lunch at Ivar's Salmon House and a deluxe tour of Seattle. The tour will cover some of Seattle's cultural and natural treasures, such as the Hiram Chittenden Locks, Salmon Ladder and Magnolia Bluff, and will include a driving tour of the waterfront, International District and the famous Pike Place Farmers Market. Click here to learn more about Seattle.
To register for CONELL, complete the registration form on Page 44 in the Preliminary Program for the AALL 96th Annual Meeting or access the registration form online. The registration deadline is June 6. Note there is $100.00 pre-registration fee required.
For additional information about .
TRANSITIONS
Shelley Dowling, formerly Librarian of the Supreme Court, recently retired. While we wish her much happiness in this new chapter in her life, we are sad to see her go. Shelley tells us,
I've been in libraries for 32 years and have loved every minute of it, especially the people, indeed my friends and family in the profession. This is a new phase of my life where I spend more time enjoying my husband, my daughters and granddaughter. I will continue research and writing with another book started. I will return to my first love in art and take water color courses and I will re-emerge sometime to work part-time and maybe teach in a law school. I am very excited and happy with this decision although leaving the court is the most difficult thing I have ever had to do.
Thank you for all you have done for AALL and the profession, Shelley!
Sincerely,
Susan E. Fox, CAE
Executive Director