Director of Library Services
- GENERAL DESCRIPTION
Performs complex professional and administrative work directing the activities of the County Library System. Provides executive leadership and management over a six branch public Library System in accordance with strategic direction established by County Administration and the Board of Supervisors. Work involves significant community engagement and public involvement with patrons, volunteers, educators, students and other diverse members of the public to ensure that the library system is an integral part of achieving the community value of life-long learning. Does related work as required.
- ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS
- Establishes and achieves strategic and operational goals for the library system in alignment with the Community and Organizational Strategic plans of the County
- Encourages a culture of excellent customer service
- Plans, organizes, directs, controls and evaluates the day to day work of the library system, its branches, employees and volunteers in order to achieve established goals
- Prepares and utilizes budgets, policies and procedures to ensure accountability for use of public resources
- Establishes and maintains an inclusive public engagement/public relations effort to ensure the library system is well promoted, understood and utilized by the members of the community
- Researches, adopts and utilizes changing information technology to provide connectivity to the community in a wide variety of formats
- Oversees ongoing library services, including collection development and management, acquisition, cataloging, youth and reference services, circulation, as well as electronic resources and technology development
- Works in conjunction with regional partners in the Roanoke Valley Libraries system (RVL) to ensure fair and appropriate shared use of the regional library catalogue and circulation system
- Attends and contributes to meetings of the Library Board of Trustees and files monthly reports on system activities and status, as required by the state code
- Attends meetings and acts as liaison to the Friends of the Library to ensure effective community input and cooperation in service delivery
- Attends state and regional library professional meetings and conferences in order to be informed and engaged in library trends, regulations and opportunities
- Leads the development of the five year plan as required by the Library of Virginia, as well as ensuring that all other standards required by the Library of Virginia are met
- REQUIREMENTS/PREFERENCES
Education
Required: Master's Degree in Library Science/Information Science from an American Library Association accredited library school.
Experience
Required: Considerable experience and demonstrated success in managing diverse and forward looking public library services. A minimum of seven (7) years of increasingly responsible management experience in public or university libraries.
Preferred: Direct experience managing library services for a local government utilizing heavy community involvement, state of the art technology and alignment of programs, staff and facilities to meet citizen needs.
Certifications
Required: Must be certified or eligible for certification by the Board of the Library of Virginia. Valid Virginia Drivers' License with a good driving record
Knowledge, Skills and Abilities- Comprehensive knowledge of professional Library Science and administration
- Demonstrated ability to develop work programs and plans and supervise the work of others
- Ability to coordinate library operations with other County and community activities
- Ability to organize and conduct training programs for professional librarians
- Ability to represent the library system and the County at professional meetings and conferences
- Excellent writing and speaking skills are necessary
- Must be able to understand and communicate the most up to date trends and technologies utilized by state of the art library systems
Subject to a complete criminal history background search with acceptable results. May be subject to DMV driving record review as required by amount of work related driving, specified by support responsibilities. Must also be able to perform the job as described in the Physical and Environmental Demands section of this job description.
Supervisory Responsibilities
Supervises a large professional and technical full and part time staff
- OTHER INFORMATION
Full-time employees are eligible for a comprehensive benefit package that includes:
• Progressive Flexible Leave Plan with cash-in option
• Twelve paid holidays
• Short Term Disability Insurance
• Long Term Disability Insurance
• Health, Vision and Dental Insurance
• Life Insurance
• Flexible Spending Accounts - Medical and Dependent Care
• Virginia Retirement System - Membership in VRS is automatic upon hire into a covered position. County contributes and employees pay their membership contribution.
• Deferred Compensation Plan with County Match
• Employee Assistance Program
• Credit Union Membership