Sometimes when I look at my past work, I am beside myself in awe at what I created. It’s amazing how quickly I can forget what I’ve done, and this brought back a fond memory of my LIS-S555: Digital Services Management course I took in the Fall of 2023. This was before I took SPCN-N522: Human Resource Management in Nonprofit Organizations the following summer. I quite enjoyed the subtle overlap between the O’Neill and Luddy schools’ offerings.

The scenario:

Your Digital Preservation Librarian was a star graduate student and for the first couple years was highly effective. She played a key role in rejuvenating your department. However, lately her performance has been lack luster. Her output has slowed and she seems to lack enthusiasm. During her performance review, you ask how things are going. She states that she’s bored and not feeling challenged.

My response:

First I must say that this discussion regarding a lack of enthusiasm, and acknowledgement of the poor performance could have happened sooner, instead of waiting for evaluations. A lack of motivation, or feeling bored is likely due to a lack of adequate management. Law (2017) states, “…most of the conditions for motivation are based on individual perceptions.” This suggests that there may be a dearth of communication between the manager and the employee regarding expectations, which supports the idea of inadequate management.

The staff member sounds like a very capable, intelligent member of the library, and perhaps the tasks simply became too easy and mundane. This could cloud the importance and value of these tasks, simply because the worker is so skilled. With this in mind, it would be unfair to try and make the tasks more challenging or complex.

The tasks are what they are, and they will probably never change in difficulty. The tasks themselves are most likely not “boring”. In fact, hearing the word “boring” should raise a red flag — suggesting that the employee doesn’t feel the task is important enough to the organization. It’s important to communicate the value of the tasks that employees undertake. It’s important to make sure the employee feels they are in control of their projects, and they have significant autonomy. Ultimately the employee should feel valued in the organization, and also understand the value they create for the organization by completing these tasks in a timely manner. Law (2017) states that research has repeatedly found that motivation is stronger with the opportunity to complete entire pieces of work, the opportunity to use a broader selection of skills on a variety of tasks, working on impactful projects, having significant autonomy with task planning, and adequate levels of feedback.

A manager should be able to provide an environment for all employees that reflects those issues mentioned by Margaret Law. That being said, it may be prudent to double-check with HR to make sure the employee doesn’t have any conditions, neurodivergance or otherwise, that would make particular requirements inappropriate for this individual. It’s important to make sure management’s expectations and the individuals’ performance are weighed against this to avoid any potential accusations of discrimination.

O’Bryan & Casey (2017) explain that managers need to practice effective performance management, and also budgeting for staff development programs, and Lawler (2011) suggests, “The first step to tough employee talks is preparedness. Take a deep breath. Call a mentor. Call your human resources department. Make notes on advice given and use them to plan ahead. Have your library’s policies on hand and be familiar with them.“

In light of O’Bryan, Casey and Lawler’s suggestions, some steps to take toward improving engagement and motivation would be:

1. Talk to HR and ask if there’s any neurodivergent issues, or special considerations to make before talking to the employee.
2. Obtain a copy of the library’s policies.
3. Talk to the employee and try to understand what project they felt were exciting, and enjoyed doing.
4. Make a point in communicating that the current responsibilities can’t be eliminated from the role, but reiterate how important those tasks are, and how it has helped the library staff and the patrons. (Ask around and see if any of the Info Desk staff has had customers accessing the digital assets curated by this librarian.) “We can’t do this without you.” — suggested by Tracy (2020)
5. Reiterate how disappointing it is to see this happening, and how both management and the employee must work together to improve performance, and explain the consequences that must occur if this course isn’t diverted.
6. Allude to the days where the librarian was highly effective and how appreciative management was with their accomplishments.
7. Promise to keep more open, and regular communication with the employee and to keep an “open door” policy to address any further issues before it’s time for evaluations again.
8. Ask if there are any aspects to the job where they would like more training, or to learn more about.
9. “We are glad you’re here, and we want to make sure you have everything you need to succeed.”

Lawler (2011) also suggests setting up a meeting in the future to allow the employee to formally report about the strategy’s implementation. Discussion can include what changes were made, whether those changes are working while allowing both the employee and management to provide feedback, and tweak anything if needed.

A lot of these strategies are echoed by Tracy (2020) in his video, but also adds “…giving your team praise, when they have earned it, is by far one of the easiest and most effective ways to keep them motivated through the day.” I’m personally a big fan of positive reinforcement, which any parent can tell you, can be a terrific motivator.

References

Law, M. Z. (2017). Cultivating engaged staff: Better management for better libraries. Libraries Unlimited. https://lccn.loc.gov/2017004832

Lawler, Terry Ann (2011). Obtaining compliance from underperforming employees: Talking it through. Library Management Tips hat Work, 162-164.

O’Bryan, Chuck & Casey, Ann Marie (2017). Talent management: hiring and developing engaged employees. Library Leadership & Management, 32(1), 1–16

Tracy, B. (2020, February 20). 6 ways to motivate your team [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_z7AC8yJxRU