Organizational Governance

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Organizational Governance Design for a Service
Culture of Continuous Feedback and RenewalOct.
23, 2006

• todays topics
• governance design values, missions, plans,
  structures, service delivery
• service research evaluation for effectiveness,
  innovation, renewal, and accountability from
  outputs to outcomes
• risk management
• governance, structures, and processes in academic
  libraries with Karen Adams

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Leadership in a nutshell

• Know thyself.
• Know others.
• Communicate. Listen!
• Consult.
• Cooperate.
• Collaborate.
• Compromise. Negotiate. Mediate.
• Cultivate.
• Celebrate!

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strategy structure systems and purpose
process people

• Lead people.
• Manage work.
• Understand both.

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four philosophies of organizational design(from
Mintzberg and Heyden 1999)
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(No Transcript)
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ALA organizational structure

• http//www.ala.org/ala/ourassociation/governingdoc
  s/aheadto2010/memorgchart.htm
• http//www.ala.org/ala/ourassociation/governingdoc
  s/aheadto2010/stafforgchart.htm

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organizational model five basic
components(adapted from Mintzberg, 1983)
strategic staff apex

• mid-level managers

technostructure staff
support staff functions
operating core staff
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paying attention to how library/archives work
gets done

• a social system to achieve service goals
• of interdependent tasks processes sequenced
  activities
• performed by people making decisions doing
  things
• organized into lines of authority
  responsibility
• to transform resources (inputs) into results
  (outputs outcomes) for clients
• with formal positional relationships
  informal social influence or power
  relationships
• within a larger environment system of
  politics, economics, society (culture),
  technologies

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Toronto Public Library Participation on City
Initiatives for Services to Children and
Youth http//www.torontopubliclibrary.ca/pdfs/
board/06apr18/13_1.pdf
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conceptualizing the service organization as

• a means to an end providing services adding
  value for individuals groups
• making a difference in peoples lives work
• viewing service outcomes through client eyes
  client input listen hard all the time!
• a sequencing of key processes tasks performed
  by people technologies to produce key results
• key concepts are strategic planning,
  strategic budgeting, resources, workflow,
  division of labour, lines of authority (chain of
  supervisory control), span of control,
  delegation, influence relations, stable
  processes, unpredictable variation, feedback
  systems for continuous monitoring,
  accountability, improvement
• simultaneous, interrelated, collaborative

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organizational design the intellectual task of
structuring key activities for key service
results

• 1. identify key goals activities for key
  service results strategic visioning, planning,
  budgeting
• 2. organize key activities into a feedback system
  of relations, accountabilities, authority
  simple, good enough,
  consultative, collaborative
• poor quality poor design, not a people
  problem
• 3. assign key activities to positions people,
  and coordinate, integrate, monitor
• 4. identify manage key risks to the
  organization
• 5. develop live a culture of curiosity,
  research, application testing, innovation

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Key questions

• In what area or areas is excellence required to
  achieve the organizations objectives? (What
  business are we in?)
• In what areas would lack of performance, i.e.,
  lack of success, endanger the organizations
  results? endanger its very survival?
• How would we know?

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reading images metaphors of
organization(Morgan 1997)

• machines
• organisms open systems
• brains learning, creating, communicating,
  decisioning
• cultures
• political systems of interests, conflict, power
• psychic prisons of thought and action
• ideology power-based reality construction
• flux and transformation chaos, complexity,
  emergence paradox of using small changes to
  create large effects
• instruments of domination, exploitation, and
  control

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North Vancouver Public Library
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team tasks

• mid-term feedback whats working, what needs
  clarification this year, suggestions for next
  year
• take turns being a job interview panel the
  candidate, as they initially meet greet each
  other
• Groups 1 3-01 2 3-17 3 3-22
• 4 carrel rm 2nd 5 117-B 6 117-C

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for next week

• speaker introduction for Della Paradis surnames
  e-h, p
• Making the Business Case by Maggie Weaver,
  sponsored by CASLIS Edmonton Nov. 7, 12.30-2.00
  p.m. students 15 (including lunch!)
• reminders leadership paper due Oct. 31
• video practice in groups of 3 or 4
• daylight time ends Sat. night!