What a Leader Looks Like; Huffington Post, 7/30/15

Fidji Simo, Huffington Post,; What a Leader Looks Like:

"I confided to one of my coworkers that I was worried about people keeping this "weak" image of me in mind even after I returned to full health after seeing me so many times on VC calls lying in bed. I told him how I would try to hide my emergency trips to the hospital, so people didn't think I was unreliable. But to my surprise, he told me that most people in the office were impressed by how strong they thought I was throughout all this  --  both for continuing to care about my team and their efforts, and for my outlook and positivity. It was the last sentiment I would have imagined.

Although I wouldn't wish this experience on anyone, I am grateful for what it's teaching me about myself. While I would still much rather be on my high heels, and in my familiar armor, I've come to appreciate that vulnerability doesn't have to be a weakness. While I focused on my external image of power, I realize now that I wasn't focused enough on my inner strength. An inner strength that, now that I am aware of it, will help me lead in many different ways through life's many different messy situations. An inner strength that is not measured by outward poise, or my appearance. I look forward to the day that can I wear my heels and my make up again, but only because I truly love them, and no longer because I think I need them in order to feel powerful. Leadership is not an image, it's a quality. I hope one day to teach my daughter that lesson."

Leaders and Their Library Message | Leading From the Library; Library Journal, 7/30/15

Steven Bell, Library Journal; Leaders and Their Library Message | Leading From the Library:

"Every leader will face situations when they need to be their most articulate and “leaderly” in delivering a response. Having a well-thought out library message and the ability to quickly and confidently get and stay on message will make the difference. That’s not to say that leaders are know-it-alls who must always have the answer to every question. Good leaders know that on occasion the best answer will come from someone on the library team, perhaps the collection or budget expert. Savvy leaders also know that sometimes the best strategy is to acknowledge the complexity of a question and use it as an opportunity to engage community members in a conversation about a controversial or difficult issue. What matters is thinking ahead about communication situations, having the library message ready, and taking time to practice the delivery. Communication is among the most essential skills that library leaders need for success, whether it’s communicating with staff, community members, or other leaders. Look for every opportunity to learn to get better."

What Pinterest is learning from the Pittsburgh Steelers about diversity; Forbes, 7/30/15

Laura Lorenzetti, Forbes; What Pinterest is learning from the Pittsburgh Steelers about diversity:

"“We think one reason it’s been so hard to get numbers to change is that companies haven’t stated specific goals,” wrote co-founder Evan Sharp in a blog post.

Pinterest laid out its diversity goals for 2016, including boosting hiring rates for full-time engineering roles to 30% women and 8% underrepresented ethnic backgrounds.

Also in the list of goals is implementing a standard that’s similar to something known as the Rooney Rule, named after Dan Rooney, the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers and chairman of the National Football League’s diversity committee. The Rooney Rule requires all NFL teams to interview minority candidates as part of the hiring process for head coaches and senior football operation jobs.

The rule was implemented in 2003 following the firings of head coaches Tony Dungy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dennis Green of the Minnesota Vikings, despite both coaches having impressive winning records. Around that same time, a study came out that revealed that black head coaches, despite winning a higher percentage of games, were less likely to be hired (and more likely fired) than their white counterparts. Only three years after its implementation, the share of black head coaches had grown to 22% from 6% prior to the rule."

While Its Streaming Service Booms, Netflix Streamlines Old Business; New York Times, 7/26/15

Emily Steel, New York Times; While Its Streaming Service Booms, Netflix Streamlines Old Business:

"“Embrace change — that’s what I’ve learned here at Netflix,” Mr. Breeggemann said. “If you don’t like change, this is the wrong place. Something is going to change every single day.”

If anything, the Netflix story is one of perpetual change. The software executives Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph founded Netflix in 1997 to offer online movie rentals by mail. Netflix introduced streaming in 2007 and plans to be fully global by 2017.

Netflix’s transformation has been rocky at times, but its evolution has become an example of how companies can adapt, tapping their legacy businesses to fuel growth in new areas as the ground underneath them shifts.

Executives said the process was challenging and required juggling two distinct cultures, one with fast-paced growth and the other in long-term decline, as well as managing intense pressure from investors and investing in new initiatives, many of which did not work."

Cooperstown’s Steadiest Hand Isn’t a Hall of Famer’s; New York Times, 7/24/15

Richard Sandomir, New York Times; Cooperstown’s Steadiest Hand Isn’t a Hall of Famer’s:

"Understanding what visitors to the Hall want is critical to her, since as chairwoman she helps ensure the long-term vitality of the museum. Sometimes, she does that research personally.

“I like to stand behind a group and listen to what they say and see how they see the artifacts and see how they tie them together,” she said. “Usually it’s a father and son with a grandfather. I like to hear their perspectives.”

Board members said that Clark was a straightforward executive who sought consensus before decisions were made.

“She has an uncanny ability to measure things, of saying, ‘If we do this, this might happen,’ ” said Harvey Schiller, a longtime sports executive. He added that Clark does not overreact when board members, like Frank Robinson and Joe Morgan, argue.

Bill Gladstone, another board member, said, “She raises issues that need to be raised and listens to people’s opinions, which is what you want to see in a chairman.”

Her tenure as chairwoman, which began in 2000 after eight years as a board member, is identified with changes in the makeup of the veterans’ committees; the reduction of players’ eligibility for induction to 10 years from 15; building an endowment for the museum, which usually reports annual deficits; and the introduction of a successful commemorative coin program with the United States Mint in 2014 that brought $7.9 million in working capital to the Hall’s bottom line."

Boy Scouts Expected to End Ban on Gay Leaders; New York Times, 7/26/15

Erik Eckholm, New York Times; Boy Scouts Expected to End Ban on Gay Leaders:

"The Boy Scouts of America is expected on Monday to end its blanket ban on gay leaders — a turning point for an organization that has been in turmoil over the issue.

But some scouting groups will still be able to limit leadership jobs to heterosexuals.

To gain the acquiescence of conservative religious groups that sponsor many dens and troops, like the Mormon and Roman Catholic Churches, the policy will allow church-run units to pick leaders who agree with their moral precepts.

“There are differences of opinion, and we need to be respectful of them,” said Michael Harrison, a businessman who led the Boy Scouts in Orange County, Calif., and is one of many leaders who lobbied internally for change. “It doesn’t mean the Mormons have to pick a gay scoutmaster, but please don’t tell the Unitarians they can’t.”

Already struggling to reverse a long-term decline in membership, the Boy Scouts have been increasingly consumed over the last two decades by battles over the exclusion of gay people, divisions that threatened to fracture the organization. Conservative partners saw the policy as a bulwark against unwanted social change, but the Boy Scouts’ anti-gay stance was costing it public support and cachet as well as corporate funders, and lately has brought on the threat of costly lawsuits."

The Research We’ve Ignored About Happiness at Work; Harvard Business Review, 7/21/15

Andre Spicer and Carl Cederstrom, Harvard Business Review; The Research We’ve Ignored About Happiness at Work:

"Ever since a group of scientists switched the lights on and off at the Hawthorne factory in the mid-1920s, scholars and executives alike have been obsessed with increasing their employees’ productivity. In particular, happiness as a way to boost productivity seems to have gained increased traction in corporate circles as of late. Firms spend money on happiness coaches, team-building exercises, gameplays, funsultants, and Chief Happiness Officers (yes, you’ll find one of those at Google). These activities and titles may appear jovial, or even bizarre, but companies are taking them extremely seriously. Should they?

When you look closely at the research — which we did after the dancing incident — it’s actually not clear that encouraging happiness at work is always a good idea. Sure, there is evidence to suggest that happy employees are less likely to leave, more likely to satisfy customers, are safer, and more likely to engage in citizenship behavior. However, we also discovered alternate findings, which indicates that some of the taken-for-granted wisdoms about what happiness can achieve in the workplace are mere myths.

To start, we don’t really know what happiness is, or how to measure it. Measuring happiness is about as easy as taking the temperature of the soul or determining the exact color of love. As Darrin M. McMahon shows in his illuminating study Happiness: A History, ever since the 6th Century B.C., when Croseus is said to have quipped “No one who lives is happy,” we have seen this slippery concept being a proxy for all sorts of other concepts, from pleasure and joy to plenitude and contentment."

Case Study: Is a Promotion Worth Hiding Who You Are?; Harvard Business Review, 7/22/15

Karthik Ramanna, Harvard Business Review; Case Study: Is a Promotion Worth Hiding Who You Are? :

"Editor’s note: This fictionalized case study will appear in a forthcoming issue of Harvard Business Review, along with commentary from experts and readers. If you’d like your comment to be considered for publication, please be sure to include your full name, company or university affiliation, and e-mail address."

“That’s great news!” Mark said. “Isn’t it?” He was puzzled by the pensive look on David’s face. Of course it was natural for a boss to have mixed feelings about seeing a valued employee move on, but David was more than Mark’s manager: He was his mentor. He’d always pushed Mark to advance in his career, and this was an internal promotion, on a three-year contract, so they’d still be working for the same company. Mark might even return to San Francisco after his stint at HQ.

“I know this creates a problem for you,” Mark said, “but there are a few people around here who could take my place.”

“I just want to be sure you’re making the right move,” David said carefully.

“If I were certain you were, I’d support you 100%. But I’m not sure Korea is the best place for you — professionally or personally. Besides, your role will involve spending a lot of time in the Middle East.”

Finally it dawned on Mark. “You mean because I’m gay,” he said flatly."

Using Social Media Without Jeopardizing Your Career; Harvard Business Review, 7/20/15

Alexandra Samuel, Harvard Business Review; Using Social Media Without Jeopardizing Your Career:

"Embrace humor…cautiously. Particularly if you’re trying to build any kind of following on a social network, humor has a place in your online business writing. Your best bet is gentle self-deprecation (but nowhere near the uncomfortable line of self-loathing), good-natured cracks about broad topics like sports, parenting, or the weather (or even politics, if you don’t need to worry about alienating people with different views), or funny Internet memes (as long as they’re not offensive). If in doubt, don’t post it, forward it, or share it. (I think I need that engraved on my keyboard.)...

Be nicer online than you are offline. Aim for online communication that makes you sound about 30% nicer than you actually are. Why? Because we’re notoriously bad at judging how what we write—or rather, what we intend to write—will sound to the person reading it (and they’ll probably assume it’s worse than you intended). A good rule of thumb is to read anything you write out loud before you post or send it, particularly if it’s a challenging or controversial communication (ideally, you’ll set those aside for 24 hours, show them to another person first, and/or take the conversation offline). If you aim to be nicer online than you are face to face, you’ll probably avoid the accidental lapses in tone that can cause real relationship and business problems."

Donald Trump's Arrogance Is Outdated In Corporate America; Huffington Post, 7/20/15

Emily Peck, Huffington Post; Donald Trump's Arrogance Is Outdated In Corporate America:

"Apple CEO Tim Cook also embodies the new leadership style. Cook’s been outspoken in his support for gay rights, first coming out as gay in an October 2014 essay for Bloomberg Businessweek, then becoming a high-profile advocate for the LGBT community. He even chastised his home state of Alabama over its treatment of poor people and minorities.

“Here’s a guy who seems to stand up for what he thinks is right,” said Kiel. “He’s also open to admitting mistakes.”

Cook’s 2012 apology for a botched rollout of mapping software stood in sharp contrast to the non-apology offered by his predecessor, Steve Jobs, over an iPhone glitch in 2010.

Under Cook, Apple’s financials have soared.

CEOs who display character run companies that perform better financially, according to Kiel’s research -- an exhaustive seven-year study of 84 CEOs across multiple industries.

Kiel defined character using four moral principles: integrity, responsibility, forgiveness and compassion. He also came up with a list of 25 behaviors and attributes that embody these principles, like “telling the truth,” “forgiveness” and “owning up to your mistakes.”

He and his team asked CEOs to assess themselves on these traits, and asked their employees how they would rank their CEOs on the same metrics. They discovered that the CEOs who were graded as having the strongest character brought in five times more for the bottom line than the low-character CEOs.

The CEOs at the bottom, said Kiel, tended to see the world as a dangerous place where people would take advantage of you. They didn’t always tell the truth. They placed their own financial security over the well-being of their company and their employees. Their workers didn’t trust them."

Ann Thornton: Collaboration, Expansion, and Library Cred; Library Journal, 7/6/15

Lisa Peet, Library Journal; Ann Thornton: Collaboration, Expansion, and Library Cred:

"Ann Thornton was appointed as the new university librarian and vice provost of Columbia University in May, replacing university librarian emeritus James Neal upon his retirement. Thornton has a long history with prominent New York City libraries, having previously served for nearly two decades at the New York Public Library (NYPL). Since starting out at NYPL’s Science, Industry, and Business Library as its first public training coordinator in 1996, Thornton has occupied a number of senior leadership positions. Most recently she served as Andrew W. Mellon director, where she was responsible for collection development, preservation, reference and research services, and exhibitions for the system’s four research libraries and 87 branch libraries. Before coming to New York, she worked at the University of Houston Libraries as a systems librarian.

Thornton had been in office just over two weeks when LJ caught up with her to talk about the differences and overlaps between the two renowned New York institutions, and her plans."

Enticed by a Library, Tourists Browse a Chinese Village; New York Times, 7/6/15

Jane Perlez, New York Times; Enticed by a Library, Tourists Browse a Chinese Village:

"Meeting the reading needs of the roughly 50 households that remain in the village is something of a sideline, though. What the building is mainly meant to be is a magnet for day-trippers from Beijing, eager to escape the city’s perpetual smog and dirt for a bit of beauty and calm.

“The library is a tool to attract people to the village,” said Mr. Li, a professor of architecture at Tsinghua University in Beijing.

When visitors come to see the library, he said, they also spend money at the village’s few restaurants, pay parking fees and donate money for the building’s upkeep...

The library has a presence on social media, and many of the visitors on the weekend are university students or young professionals. They wander around the village, snap photos of themselves and order the local delicacy, stewed chicken with chestnuts, at one of the restaurants.

And some of them actually read. Sun Liyang, 27, an automotive journalist, said a friend in Beijing had donated some books after hearing about the library online, and he decided to come for a look. “I am sitting here reading ‘The Adventures of Tintin,’” he said. “It’s taking me back to my childhood.”"

A New Kind of Leader: Transition time at the Library of Congress; Library Journal, 7/1/15

John N. Berry III, Library Journal; A New Kind of Leader: Transition time at the Library of Congress:

"The Librarian of Congress needs to be a modern library administrator, capable of curating the great collections, leading the exemplary staff of more than 3,000, and keeping LC’s array of vital services current and on technology’s cutting edge.

LC must be led by a person who understands and not only can deal effectively with the huge cultural, economic, and political differences in America but can deliver information services that enlighten our Congress and the people of the nation. The Librarian of Congress must lead us out of the jungle of conflicting claims, rival demands, and legal interpretations that obscure our implementation of the rules and regulations of intellectual property and copyright.

Simultaneously, the Librarian of Congress must be an intellectual inspiration, with an acumen and articulateness that capture the attention of an argumentative society of free people struggling to govern themselves amid the tempests of a world so complex that true cultural understanding is rare and difficult to achieve.

If that formidable job sounds like the one most librarians work at every day, then that suggests an excellent place for our president to begin the search for candidates: in our nation’s libraries.

It is our duty, through ALA and through all of our most effective connections to government, to help the president find the right librarian to lead our national library. We all know she or he is out there ready and waiting to accept the challenge."