Leadership

Libraries return to the ballot box following a COVID-impacted pause.

Library budgets continued to rebound in 2022, with the largest upticks in a decade—and a continued focus on pandemic-era community needs.

Debates over what libraries should fund can get heated, but don't let that stop you from having them. All stakeholders need to not only prepare but discuss the budget, and to understand what new services will meet user demand. Good negotiators need to know when to stick to their guns, even if it means risking an argument. Good leaders also know when to concede and join with the team to ensure progress. Collegiality, civility, and good working relationships are important, but we can’t let the desire to get along prevent us from fully tackling the tough questions

Linda Hofschire, PhD, director of the Library Research Service at the Colorado State Library, and a 2017 LJ Mover & Shaker, is chair of the newly created Measurement, Evaluation, and Assessment Committee of the Public Library Association.