Library leaders and managers face constant change in the workplace, whether it involves technology, personnel, policies, or procedures. While the word “change” does not appear in the title, The Challenge of Library Management: Leading with Emotional Engagement is about how library leaders and managers can effectively manage change in all its forms. Authors Wyoma vanDuinkerken and Pixey Anne Mosley are both widely published in the field of library leadership and management and are highly qualified to write on this topic. The book is well researched with sources from the management, human resources, psychology, and library sciences disciplines.

Beginning with an overview of change in libraries, the authors describe how ubiquitous change is in the field of librarianship and the surprising dearth of research published on this topic. They go on to describe other challenges that exist in libraries, such as library managers who are called on to lead change in areas other than their own and the lack of extensive leadership training received by most library managers. Following this introduction to change in libraries, the authors address what they term “the human factor” with an insightful discussion of the causes of change resistance among employees (11). They caution managers against stereotyping or making assumptions about their employees’ resistance to change. To this point, the authors encourage managers to maintain a level of detachment in the face of employee resistance to change. The impact of organizational culture is addressed in chapter 3 with discussions on its importance, how culture effects change, and how to change organizational culture over time. The authors encourage managers to understand organizational culture before they try to make changes.

The next two chapters address initiating and implementing change effectively. These are thoughtful discussions that consider important issues such as trust, communication, empowerment, and motivation. One of the first steps in initiating change is for managers to communicate the need for change to employees and, to do that effectively, managers must have a vision that they can share. Without that vision, employees are often skeptical of the need for change and will demonstrate resistance to any suggested change. When implementing change, the authors encourage empowerment through the delegation of implementation details and emphasize the need for flexibility, engagement with all levels of the organization, and constant two-way communication. Of course, managers cannot control all details of an organizational change that may affect the success of the initiative. As noted in chapter 6, factors that can cause delays include weather, budget issues, bureaucracy, staff turnover, and personalities. The authors encourage managers to anticipate potential delays and to keep stakeholders informed as the initiative develops.

The ability of managers to be effective given their personal histories with an organization is addressed in a thoughtful discussion of “managerial baggage” (109). Whether a manager is an outsider new to the library or someone with a long tenure at the institution, a manager’s background can affect his or her success in overseeing organizational change. The authors encourage managers to acknowledge their leadership style, adapt it to new circumstances, and address any misconceptions that may exist about their past performance. After an organization change or initiative, assessing the change itself, as well as one’s leadership, is important. The authors encourage managers to incorporate assessment activities throughout the change implementation, not just at its end. They suggest that managers employ a variety of techniques to conduct the assessment, both formal and informal. An honest assessment of a process or of oneself as leader will help managers become more effective over time.

In the final chapter, the authors address specific types of changes and the issues that are particular to those initiatives. These include new organizational structures, changes in space and facilities, and vision changes. The authors provide helpful suggestions about how these changes affect employees, and how to gather information from and communicate with these employees. They stress that “employees are not an easily renewable resource” and that it is critical to consider their needs and emotions in any change initiative (151).

This book is well written and logically organized. The authors use anecdotes to illustrate their arguments, and each chapter is supported with current research on leadership and change management. Each chapter ends with a “Keys to Success” section that outlines the most important points, followed by “Thinking Exercises” that pose challenging situations and questions that will stimulate the reader’s imagination and creativity. This book and these exercises would be excellent tools for use in a leadership training program or workshop. Each chapter also includes a notes section, and the book ends with a substantive list of works cited and index. Its thoughtful exploration of issues related to leadership and change management would be highly valuable to practicing managers and administrators in any library setting.