NEW PERFORMANCE EVALUATION MANAGEMENT POLICY
PROPOSED JANUARY 1998/UPDATED JANUARY 2002
1.2) NEED FOR THE PROPOSED NEW HUMAN RESOURCES BASED
LEADERSHIP MODEL FOR EVALUATING PROFESSIONAL LIBRARIANS
AND OTHER FULL-TIME LIBRARY EMPLOYEES
1.2.1) The Evolution and Implementation of the Proposed
New Human Resources Based Library Leadership Policy
The evolution of the concept of work performance management as a new "Human Resourses"
based leadership model reflects a change of emphasis in organizations away from
the clerical "Command-and-Control" toward a professional "Facilitation/Coach" form of
leadership. This change has been accompanied by a recognition of the importance to library employees
and to the Los Angeles County Public Library department of relating work performance to the various
strategic or long-term missions of the County Library department as a whole system.
Therefore, the goals and objectives of County Library employees are derived from the County library
department's strategic mission of providing excellent information services to all customers
in a multicultural environment.
The new performance management process provides an opportunity for library employees and building
supervisors to discuss development goals and jointly create a plan for achieving those goals. Therefore,
"employee development" or "career development" plans should contribute both to
organizational goals and to the professional growth of each County Library employee. The planning
process should also involve consideration of the demographic and technological changes occuring in
Los Angeles County and the Southern California geographic areas.
Higher transaction volumes and the higher customer expectations as well as the policies of political
constituents are having a major influence in changing the way County Library administrators and librarians
approach the future. To facilitate the necessity of rapid changes in service functions, it is necessary to
make the transition from a "bureaucratic" to a "Human Resources" based
"network" style library organization.
1.2.2) Need for the New "Facilitator/Coach" Model of Library Leadership
The proposed new "Facilitator/Coach" model of library leadership emphasizes a focus on
"decision-making" and "accountability" at the level where the
most important "customer information services" work is done --- in each of
the 88 community libraries. Also, it emphasizes the development of a service culture that
"rewards" self-directed "teamwork" performance. And, it
depends upon the integration and the decentralization of several County Library department
operations.
Critical to the success of this proposed new "Facilitator/Coach" model of effective library leadership
is the adoption of a customer information service orientation. My proposal cannot work as
effectively IF the old illegal "Command and Control" dictatorial system remains
and the new model is adopted merely as a "public relations" policy (hype) without official discernible action to
further the principles involved to change the library leadership culture.
Implementation of this proposed new policy will require a flexible attitude in the face of constant change.
In addition, it will require streamlining the library business processes required to support the proposed
new network style administrative management policy. For example, this focused written
performance evaluation management policy statement will help ensure that the policy will be systematically
implemented and enforced in compliance with appropriate Civil Service Commission Rules related to
annual performance evaluation and appraisal of promotability rating procedures.
1.2.3) Bureaucratic Lack of Strategic Planning vs. Human Resources
Based Strategic Career Development Planning Process
For library supervisors (Community Library Managers or "CLMs") this changing social environment
offers many new challenges and opportunities. The proposed new professional "Facilitator/Coach"
leadership model must replace the current bureaucratic military style clerical "Command and Control"
leadership model of County library department performance evaluation management policy implementation.
Our County library department supervisors and subordinate library staff must become professional "generalists" who contribute to the transformation of their historically vaguely and
narrowly-defined duty statements (or job descriptions) in order to operate like
"cross-functional self-managed" teams!
This means that the current bureaucratic "Hierarchical" model of library organizational
administrative structure should be replaced with a much flatter "network" style of organizational
structure. This would ensure that "competent" librarians and support staff would receive the proper
opportunities to contribute to essential changes in the library department by being officially "empowered." This equalizing of "administrative authority" or leadership power among
subordinate librarians is essential so modern effective policies and procedures can be implemented
quickly, especially with regard to the implementation of efficient and effective annual performance
evaluation management policy and procedures.
This proposed new "Facilitator/Coach" model of organizational effectiveness is a conceptual
framework (idea) that is an absolutely essential requirement in order for us to upgrade or update the
understanding of County library administrators and supervisors concerning the changes required in
the implementation of a truly new "Human Resources" model performance evaluation management
policy. It underscores the vital role of education, training and staff development in the envisioned
"network" organizational structure of the future. In the proposed new County library
departmental structure, continuous learning will become an essential prerequisite to successful individual
performance and organizational effectiveness.
To achieve this objective, all County library employees must develop more effective skills, both
"technical" and "people" oriented, in order to for them to more efficiently perform their
new responsibilities, and to anticipate and keep pace with the changing nature of public library services.
The new requirements involve providing excellent customer information services to the fast changing
diverse multicultural population in Los Angeles County.
For top library administrators as well as building supervisors (CLMs), and subordinate full-time professional
librarians, responding to the new demands for information services requires the ability to learn, the ability to
adapt to change, the ability to solve problems creatively, and the ability to communicate effectively in diverse
multicultural groups. In addition, professional librarians and support staff must take personal and proactive responsibility for their careers to ensure future employability or advancement within
the County library department.
To see the next proposal section instantly:
(CLICK on the following link: Section 1.3)
NEED FOR THE PROPOSED NEW WRITTEN COUNTY LIBRARY
STRATEGIC CAREER DEVELOPMENT PLANNING PROCESS