What Every Library Director Should Know

In this unconventional management book, author Susan Carol Curzon presents a different take on traditional library management tools. Through personal narrative and anecdotes from other working professionals, Curzon presents the many everyday challenges one meets as a library manager:

• The unwritten rules, strategies, and bits of wisdom only learned on-the-job
• Behavioral nuances
• Political strategies
• Mentor-like advice
• Subtle communication codes

Regardless of the professional setting, management is management and wisdom is wisdom. What Every Library Director Should Know is the insider’s view of vital actions, behaviors, and strategies needed to succeed in every type of library.
This second edition has been significantly revised to emphasize diversity, inclusion, remote work, and virtual services.

Dr. Susan Carol Curzon is the dean emeritus of the University Library of California State University, Northridge. Before becoming an academic library dean, her previous positions included director of libraries for the City of Glendale, California, and regional administrator for the County of Los Angeles Public Library. She started out in a small corporate library, then moved to public libraries, where she held various positions including reference, branch management, adult services, and children’s services. In the second half of her career, she moved to academic libraries.
Her Ph.D. is in public administration from the University of Southern California and her M.Libr. is from the University of Washington.
Awards include Library Journal’s “Librarian of the Year”, “Distinguished Alumna” from the University of California, Riverside, “Librarian of the Year” from the County of Los Angeles Public Library and “Administrator of the Year” from Associated Students, California State University, Northridge.
Library management, disaster management and information literacy have been the primary topics of her many speeches and articles. She is the author of Managing the Interview and Managing Change and the co-editor and commentator of Proven Strategies for Building an Information Literacy Program. The first edition of this book, What Every Library Director Should Know, was published in 2014.
Dr. Curzon continues to provide consulting services for libraries, for universities and for municipalities on strategic management, planning and disaster recovery.