Building and Sustaining a Culture of Assessment: Best ...

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Building and Sustaining a Culture of Assessment: Building and Sustaining a Culture of Assessment:

Best Practices for Change Leadership Best Practices for Change Leadership

Meredith G. Farkas Portland State University, [email protected]

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Citation Details Citation Details Farkas, Meredith G., "Building and Sustaining a Culture of Assessment: Best Practices for Change Leadership" (2013). Library Faculty Publications and Presentations. 78. https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/ulib_fac/78

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BuildingandSustainingaCultureofAssessment:

BestPracticesforChangeLeadership

MeredithFarkas

PortlandStateUniversity

Portland,Oregon

Citation:“BuildingandSustainingaCultureofAssessment:BestPracticesforChange

Leadership”,ReferenceServicesReview,Vol.41,Issue:1,pp.13‐31.Publishedversion

availablefrompublisherwebsiteathttp://dx.doi.org/10.1108/00907321311300857

ThisArticleisbroughttoyouforfreeandopenaccessbythePortlandStateUniversityLibraryatPDXScholar

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1.Introduction Accountabilityhasbeenaguidingforceintheworldofhighereducationforthirty

years(Marrs,2009).Wherecollegesanduniversitieswereoncethoughtofaspublicgoods,

theyarenowbeinghelduptoscrutiny,askedtoshowthattheyarespendingmoneywisely

anddemonstratethevaluetheyprovidetostudents.Insupportofthisfocuson

accountability,regionalanddisciplinaryaccreditationagenciesbeganrequiringthat

assessmentbeconductedinallareasofhighereducation,includingintheclassroom.

Beyondsimplyofferingassignmentsandgivinggrades,facultyareincreasinglyexpectedto

beabletodocumentwhatstudentslearnedandhowthatcontributestoprogram‐leveland

campus‐widelearningoutcomes.

Inspiteofthisgreaterfocusonaccountability,fewinstitutionsofhighereducation

havedevelopedatruecultureofassessment.Manyfacultyhavenotinternalizedthevalueof

assessmentfordiscoveringmoreaboutstudentlearning;insteadtheyviewassessmentas

somethingmechanisticthattheyhavetodobecauseit’srequiredbyadministratorsor

accreditors.Forsome,assessmentmandatedfromabovegoesagainsttheirbeliefsinshared

governance,academicfreedomandindependenceoftheprofessoriate.Itseemsthatthe

well‐intentionedactionsofaccreditingagenciesmayhaveshiftedthefocusformanyaway

fromthetruepurposeofassessment‐‐toimprovestudentlearning(Haviland,2009a).

Atinstitutionswheretheculturehasnotembracedassessment,facultymayconduct

assessments,butthesestand‐aloneeffortsarenotthecornerstonesoffacultyand

institutionaldecision‐making.Atmanyinstitutions,thosewhobelieveinthevalueof

assessmentcometogetherincommitteesandtaskforcestodoprojectsaroundassessment,

butarerarelyabletochangetheculturethroughthisleadershipbyexample(Ennis,2010).

Sometimesentiredepartmentsembraceassessmentandareseenasmodelsatthe

University,butotherdepartmentsdon’tnecessarilyfollowsuit.

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Libraries,likeotheracademicdepartments,areexpectedtoconductassessments

andactontheresults.Andlikemostofhighereducation,fewlibrariescanclaimtohave

developedacultureofassessment.Frequentlyamicrocosmoftheuniversitiesofwhichthey

areapart,thelibraryissubjecttothesamepressuresandlimitationsasteaching

departments.Individualunitsofthelibraryorindividuallibrariansmayembraceevidence‐

baseddecision‐makingandassessmentofstudentlearning,butuntilthatculturepervades

thelibraryassessmentwillnotbecomeaself‐sustainingventure.

Manyarticlesinthelibraryliteraturesuggestthatorganizationalcultureistoblame

forthelackofassessmentculturesinmanylibraries(Castiglione,2006;HillerandSelf,

2004.;Jantti,2005;LakosandPhipps,2004).Whilethisislikelytrueofquiteafew

institutions,changingculturemaynotbethemostefficientwaytobuildacultureof

assessment.Infact,acultureofassessmentcouldinsteadbeusedasalevertochangethe

organizationalculture.Changingattitudesandbehaviortowardsassessment,getting

librarianstointernalizeitsvalueandalteringorganizationalstructurescouldactually

achieveculturechange,asthebenefitsofacultureofassessmentarefar‐reaching.

JohnKotter’seight‐stepmodelforcreatingorganizationalchangeputsbehavioral

changebeforeculturechange,butensuresthatchangeisembeddedintheculturewitha

thoroughconsiderationofculturethroughouttheprocess.Kotter(1996)describesthisas

“graftingthenewpracticeontotheoldrootswhilekillingofftheinconsistentpieces”(p.

151).Kotter’smodelprovidesapragmaticparadigmforchange,especiallyforlibrarians

chargedwithleadingassessmenteffortswhoarenotadministratorsandcannoteffect

system‐widechange.

ThisarticleexplorestheideaofusingKotter’seight‐stepmodelforchange

leadershiptocreateacultureofassessmentthatisembeddedintheorganizationalculture.

Eachstepofthemodelwillbedescribedwithinthecontextofbuildingacultureof

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assessment,supportedbyexamplesandsuggestionsfromtheliteratureoflibraries,higher

education,organizationalbehaviorandchangeleadership.Classicandrecentexamplesof

libraryorinstitutionalsuccesswithassessmentwillillustratethevalueofKotter’smodelto

libraries.Thischangemodelprovidesapragmaticopportunityforleaders,whetherthey

havepositionalauthorityorsimplyinfluence,tomakeatremendouschangeinthe

organizationalculturethroughcreatingacultureofassessment.Thearticlebeginswithan

overviewofwhatismeantby“acultureofassessment.”

2.WhatisaCultureofAssessment?

Despitetheincreasingprevalenceofassessmentbureaucraciesandmandatesin

highereducation,toooften,a“cultureofassessment”isseenbyinstitutionsassomething

mechanistic(Haviland,2009a).Acultureofassessmentmeansmorethansimplydoing

assessment.Alibrarycanconductassessmentsregularlywithoutitbecomingapervasive

partoftheculture.Atsomeinstitutions,assessmentisprimarilydonebecauseit’san

administrativeimperativeforaccreditation(DeardorffandFolger,2008).Thisdoesnot

meanthatassessmentisdoneinameaningfulwayorthatitsresultsareusedtolearnand

influencechange.Inacultureofassessment,assessmentbecomesthenormandavalued

partofplanningandteaching.Newservicesareplannedforwithconsiderationforhowthey

willbeassessed.Thelibrarydoesn’tjustcollectdata;itactsonandlearnsfromthatdata.

Librariansatinstitutionsinwhichacultureofassessmentisthenormdonotwish

tosimplyrelyonassumptionsaboutwhatstudentsneedorhowtheylearn.Theyassess

becausetheywanttoknowhowtheycanimprovetheirteachingandchangelibrary

servicestomaximizestudentlearning.Inherentinthisisacustomerservicefocusanda

willingnesstochangebasedonassessmentresults.Ennis(2010)suggeststhat“‘assessment

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culture’iscodefornotjustdoingassessment,butlikingit.”Thisindicatesthatbuildinga

cultureofassessmentfrequentlyrequireschangingattitudesaswellasbehavior.

Thebenefitsofbuildingacultureofassessmentgowellbeyondgettingagood

reportfromtheaccreditationteam.Inthecurrenteconomicclimate,librariesneedtobe

nimbleandprovideservicesthatofferthegreatestreturnoninvestmentforstudentsand

faculty(LakosandPhipps,2004).It’sdifficulttoknowwhichservicesareprovidingthe

greatestvaluefortheeffortwithoutassessingthem.Whenlibraryadministrationuses

assessmentresultsintheirdecision‐making,itmakesthosedecisionsmoretransparent,

bothtopatronsandlibrarystaff.Inusingevidence,libraryadministrationcanmakebetter‐

informeddecisionsthatappearfairtobothstaffandpatrons.

Mostlibrariescannolongertakeforgrantedtheirstatusasapublicgoodorthe

heartofthecampus.Librarieshaveseensignificantbudgetcuts,shrinkingstaff,branch

librariesclosed,andotherunitsmovedintothelibrary.Inanenvironmentwhereit’sno

longergoodenoughtobe“thelibrary”,librariesneedtodemonstratehowtheycontribute

totheprimarygoalsoftheinstitution,includingstudentsuccess.Bybuildingacultureof

evidence,librarieswillbeabletoshowadministratorshowtheirworkpositivelyimpacts

studentsandfacultyandcontributestothosethingsacademicadministratorsaremost

concernedabout(Oakleaf,2010).Forlibrariesarguingformorefundingornewpositions,

havingevidenceofthatneedorthevalueitwillprovideiscritical.

Fortheindividualinstructor,assessmentprovidesinformationthatcanhelp

improveteachingandstudentsuccess.Certainly,whenteachingaclass,aninstructorcan

seehowengagedstudentaresimplybylookingatthem,butwithoutassessment,theydon’t

knowwhetherandwhatstudentsareactuallylearning.Assessmentcanprovideinsights

aboutwhataspectsofone’steachingareworkingwellandwhatarenot.Librarians

providingone‐shotinstructionsessionsfrequentlydon’tknowhowmuchstudentsinthe

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classesalreadyknowaboutresearch.Formativeassessmentcanhelplibrarianstailortheir

instructiontotheneedsandexperiencelevelsofthestudentsinaclass.

Assessmentresultscanalsobeusedtoadvocateforbetterintegrationof

informationliteracyinstructionintoaparticularcourseorcurriculum.Atthisauthor’s

previousinstitution,theresultsofastudentlearningassessmentwereusedtodemonstrate

theinadequacyofaone‐shotmodelforteachinginformationliteracyinEnglish101.At

WartburgCollege,aninstitutionknownforitsworkwithassessment,“thecultureof

assessment…reassurestheconvertedwhilepersuadingthereluctantwithdata,not

anecdotes”(SchroederandMashek,2007,p.92).Byprovidingfacultywithevidenceofthe

efficacyoflibraryinstruction,librarianscanmakesignificantprogresstowardsthegoalof

curricularintegrationofinformationliteracyinstruction.

Finally,atinstitutionswherelibrarianswanttobeseenaspartnersinteachingand

learning,it’simportantthatweholdourselvestothesamestandardsasotheracademic

departments.Atmanyinstitutions,librariesarenotrequiredtoprovidethesame

assessmentdataasotheracademicunits.However,librariesshouldnotseethisasapass,

butasanopportunitytodemonstratetheircommitmenttoassessment.Theinformation

literacyprogramatWartburgisnotonlyassessedbythelibrary,butundergoesexternal

assessmentbytheGeneralEducationCommittee(SchroederandMashek,2007).In

providingthatdataandparticipatingincampus‐wideassessment,librariansdemonstrate

thattheyarepartnersinpromotingstudentlearning.

3.TheRoleofOrganizationalCulture

Buildingacultureofassessmentisadelicateandcomplexprocess;indeed,building

apropercultureofassessment,requiresthecooperationoftheentireorganization.Faculty

andstaffmustfeelempoweredtodeveloptheirownassessmentprogramandmeasures,

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andadministratorsneedtoleadbyexampleandsupporttheirefforts.Throughitall,the

focusmustbeonstudentlearning,ratherthanaccreditationorotherexternalpressures.

Organizationalcultureisamajordeterminantofthesuccessorfailureofanychange

initiative.Changeinitiativesdevelopedwithoutconsideringcultureoftenleadtonegative

outcomes(LakosandPhipps,2004).Organizationalculturereferstotheartifactsand

behaviors,espousedvaluesandassumptionsofanorganization(Schein,1992).Tothose

insidetheorganization,theculturemaybeinvisible,butitexertsapowerfulforceonhow

theyrespondtochange(LakosandPhipps,2004).Thecultureisinfluencedbytheattitudes

oftheindividualswithintheorganization,normsinoperationsandcommunicationaswell

assharedhistory,andit,inturn,influenceshowthingsgetdoneandhowtheorganization

respondstochangeorperceivedthreats.

Anorganizationalculturethatcanfacilitatethecreationofacultureofassessmentis

onethattrustsitsmembers,wheremembersaremotivatedtolearn,andwheremembers

arecustomerservice‐focused.Librariansmustbecuriousaboutstudentlearningand

unafraidofwhattheymightdiscover.Theymustalsobewillingtochangebasedonwhat

theylearnfromdoingassessment.Thisrequiressignificantemotionalriskandcomfortwith

ambiguity(ShepstoneandCurrie,2008).Inanenvironmentinwhichindividualsdon’ttrust

eachotherordon’ttrusttheirleaders,suchriskswouldbeunthinkable.Inanenvironment

inwhichlibrariansdon’tfeelsupportedtoexperimentandmakechanges,theassessment

loopwillnotlikelybeclosed.

Organizationalcultureisfairlystaticandnotoriouslydifficulttochange(Lakosand

Phipps,2004).Whenthelibrarycultureisnotconducivetocreatingacultureofassessment,

leadingchangecanseemadauntingtask.LakosandPhipps(2004),whowrotetheseminal

workonorganizationalcultureandassessment,describetheprerequisitecultureand

conditionsforbuildingacultureofassessment,butdonotsuggestconcretestepstowards

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creatingthatculture.Whilethesuggestionstomovetowardssystemsandstrategicthinking

arevaluable,theyseemmorefocusedontheadministratorthantheassessmentcoordinator

orheadofinstruction.Phippshaswrittenelsewhereaboutthetremendousandpositive

organizationalculturechangethattookplaceatherinstitution,theUniversityofArizona,

butthischangecameinitiallyfromthetopandinvolvedtheentiretyoflibraryoperations

andculture(Phipps,2004).Atmanyinstitutions,thosetaskedwithbuildingacultureof

assessmentarenotadministratorsanddon’thavetheabilitytoinitiatesuchasystem‐wide

change.Thelibraryadministrator(s)maybesupportiveofbuildingacultureofassessment,

butthetaskofcreatingitisfrequentlydelegated.

ManyorganizationsdonotexemplifytheidealculturedescribedbyLakosand

Phipps,butthisdoesn’tmeanthattheyareunabletomovetowardsacultureofassessment.

Kotter’schangemodelrequiresadeepawarenessofthelibrary’scultureinordertodevelop

avision,communicationplan,andstepstowardschange,butitdoesnotrequireaspecific

typeofcultureinwhichchangecanhappen.Certainly,administrationmustbestrongly

supportiveoftheideaofbuildingacultureofassessmentandwillingtowalkthetalk,but

thechangeprocesscanbeledbyindividualsoperatingthroughinfluenceratherthan

positionalauthority.

4.ChangeLeadershipandKotter’sEight‐StepModel

Leadingchangeisadifficultbusiness.Choi(2011)arguesthatthemajorityof

change‐relatedfailuresarecausedbyimplementationfailuresratherthanthefailureofthe

initialidea.Therefore,thestepsthatleaderstaketobuildconsensusandsupportforchange

arecriticallyimportant.Changeleadershipreferstotheapproachaleader(orleadership

team)takeswithregardtoaspecificchangeinitiative.Afterworkingwithandinterviewing

over100diversebusinessesontheirchangeprocesses,JohnKotter(1995)definedaneight‐

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stepprocessfororganizationalchange:1)establishasenseofurgency,2)formaguiding

coalition,3)createavision,4)communicatethevision,5)empowerotherstoactonthe

vision,6)planforandcreatingshort‐termwins,7)consolidateimprovementstocreate

morechange,and8)institutionalizenewapproaches.Originallywrittenasanarticlein

HarvardBusinessReview(Kotter,1995),Kotterwroteseveralfollow‐upbooksthatexpound

onhischangeleadershipmodel(Kotter,1996,2002,2008).Thismodelisfocusedon

embeddingchangeintheorganizationalcultureandisidealforlibrarieswantingtomore

thansimplychangebehavior.

TheliteratureisfullofglowingreviewsofKotter’sworkanditiscitedfrequentlyas

aleadingchangemodel.Oneoftheveryfewcritiques(Kelman,2005)focusesonhis

relianceonanecdotalevidenceratherthanrigorousscholarship.Whileitistruethat

Kotter’smodelreliesonhisownobservations,theseobservationscomefrommorethan

100businessesofvarioussizesandtypesinvarioussituations.

WhileKotter’smodelisquitepopularandwell‐knownbothinsideandoutsideofthe

businessworld,onlyahandfuloflibrarianshavewrittenaboutapplyingittofacilitatea

changeinalibrary(Horn,2008;NussbaumerandMerkley,2010;Sidorko,2008)andeach

ofthemadmitstoonlyutilizingpiecesofthemodel.Reflectingonthemodelafterthe

changeprocess,Sidorkoquestionswhetherasequentially‐orderedmodelispracticalwhen

situationsaresodiverse,andanotherstudyusingKotter’smodelactuallyusedthestepsin

adifferentordertogreatsuccess(Uys,2010).Thisspeakstotheideathatperhapsthesteps

donotnecessarilyhavetobeundertakenintheexactorderrecommended.LikeSidorko,

thisauthorconcedesthatthereisnoone‐size‐fits‐allsolutiontochange,butKotter’smodel

provideshelpful,concretestepstowardchangethathavebeenusedsuccessfullyinmany

organizations.

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Intheworldofeducation,Kotter’smodelhasbeenusedasaframeworkfor

analyzingalreadyexistingcasestudiesfocusedonchange.Nitta,Wrobel,Howard,and

Jimmerson‐Eddings(2009)demonstratefailuresinthechangeinitiativeoftheLittleRock

SchoolBoardinitsadoptionofareorganizationplanbylookingatitthroughthelensof

Kotter’smodel.Inhighereducation,Kotter’smodelhasbeenusedtoimplementanopen

sourcelearningmanagementsystematCharlesSturtUniversity(Uys,2010),putfaculty

developersatthecenterofeducationalchange(Dawson,Mighty,andBritnell,2010),andto

transformtheUniversityofPuertoRicoSchoolofDentalMedicine’sclinicalassessment

system(Guzmánetal.,2011).AllofthesecasestudiesillustratethepotentialofKotter’s

modelforcreatingchangeindiverseareasofhighereducation.

4a.Step1:BuildaSenseofUrgency

EdgarSchein(1979),anotedexpertonorganizationaldevelopmentsuggeststhat

“thereasonsomanychangeeffortsrunintoresistanceoroutrightfailureisusuallydirectly

traceabletotheirnotprovidingforaneffectiveunfreezingprocessbeforeattempting

changeinduction.”(p.144).Sogettingthechangeprocessoffontherightfootisanecessity.

Asenseofurgencyisanimportantfirststepinwhichemployeesdeterminewhetherit’s

worththeefforttochange.Whenemployeesevidenceasenseofurgency,theycometo

workeachdayexcitedaboutcontributingtothechangeeffort.Complacencytendstobea

problemformatureorganizationswithsignificanthistorylikelibraries.Itiseasytodevelop

tunnelvisionandnotseebeyondthelibrary’swalls.Creatingasenseofurgencymay

requireshiftingthelibraryfacultyandstaff’sfocustowardstheexternal:forexample,

towardsstudentlearningasopposedtolibraryinstruction.

Forsomeorganizations,theurgencyiscreatedforthem.Inthe1970s,Northeast

MissouriStateUniversity(nowTrumanStateUniversity)wastransitioningfromateacher’s

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collegetoacomprehensiveuniversity(McClainandKrueger,1985).Thisshiftrequired

tremendouschangeinavarietyofareasandgavethenewPresident,CharlesMcClain,the

opportunitytoturnwhatcouldhavebeenseenacrisisintoanopportunityforpositive

changesinstudentlearning.McClaininsistedthattheUniversityhadanobligationto

preparestudentstobesuccessfulintheirprofessionalemploymentandthatthatthe

Universityshouldbeabletodemonstrateitsimpactonstudentsuccess(Magruder,

McManis,andYoung,1997).Hecreatedchangesimplybyaskingthefacultyhowtheyknow

thattheyarepreparingstudentsadequately.Thisrequiredfacultytolookoutsideofthe

classroomandtothinkabouthowtheirveryindividualinstructioncontributestothelarger

goalsoftheUniversity.Sometimesallittakesisforfacultytoseetheirworkfromadifferent

perspective.

Urgencyisnotdrivenbyfearoranxiety,butbyopportunitiesandasenseof

possibility.Therefore,achangemessagedesignedtocreateasenseofurgencyshouldnotbe

fear‐producing.Feartendstoleadtofightorflightthinkingwhichproduceschaoticand

disorganizedwork(Armenakis,Harris,andMossholder,1993).AtNortheastMissouriState

University,PresidentMcClaincreatedurgencywithaclearvisionfortheinstitution,not

withafearoffailure(McClainandKrueger,1985).DuttonandDuncan(1987)believethata

goodchangemessagemustclearlyconveytheurgencyoftheactionandasenseof

confidencethattheorganizationcanachievethedesiredendstate.Thisrequiresthe

memberstoagreeonwhatthatdesiredendstateshouldbe,toseevisiblesupportforthe

effort,andtoseehowthechangewillbenefitthem.

Kotter(2008)arguesthatgettingbuy‐inisnotenoughbecauseitonlyengagesthe

head,nottheheart.Mostlibrarianshaveprobablybeeninameetingwhereeveryone

agreedtoacourseofaction,butwhenitcametimetoformataskforcetodothework,no

onevolunteered.Peoplecanlogicallyagreetosomethingwithoutwantingtopersonallyput

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anyefforttowardsit.Thechangemessagemustspeaktopeople’spassions,andthus,must

bebasedonanunderstandingofwhatdrivespeopleintheirwork.Tocreateasenseof

urgency,thepersonconveyingthemessageshouldlettheirpassionshowandtryto

humanizethemessagewithhumorandafocusonthehumanimpacts.Kottersuggestsusing

datasparinglyandonlythosethatmightshiftpeople’sperspectives.Beyondtheverbally

communicatedmessage,it’spossiblethatthechangeleaderscanprovideexperiencesthat

communicatethesamemessage.Thiscouldinvolveoutsidespeakersandlearning

opportunities,oreventasksthatillustratethenecessityofthechange(Armenakisand

Harris,2002).Themoretimestheneedisemphasizedtothelibraryfacultyandstaff,

especiallybydifferentsources,thebetter.

4b.Step2:FormaGuidingCoalition

Hill(2005)conceivesoftheleaderasa“fixer”whoworksoutsideofexisting

hierarchiestodecreasebarrierstoandencourageparticipationinassessment.Thisrole

canbeexceedinglydifficultandleadersorfixerscanbepronetoburnout.Strategiesto

preventburnoutincludehavingtwoormoreleadersinvolvedatanyonetime(Anagnoset

al.,2008)orhavingtherolerotateperiodically(Hill,2005).Kotter(1996)suggeststhata

guidingcoalitionisamoreeffectiveunitthananindividualpushingchangeforwardalone.

Thekeyingredientsforbecominganeffectiveleaderaretrustandpoliticalcapital

(Hiller,Kyrillidou,andSelf,2006).Bothcantakesignificanttimetobuild(Galfordand

Drapeau,2003),whichiswhyit’srarelyagoodideatotaskanewemployeewithleading

change.Tobuildtrustandpoliticalcapital,leadersmustbeconsistentinwordanddeed,

leadbyexample,communicateopenlyanddealwithconflictstransparently.Leadersneed

tobuildpeople’sfaithintheircompetenceandloyaltybeforeotherswillbewillingto

extendthemselvesinsupportofthatleader’schangeinitiative.Trustisalsoincredibly

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delicateandonemisstepcannegateyearsofgoodwork(GalfordandDrapeau,2003;Hill

andLineback,2012).

Whilesomelibrarieshaveassessmentcoordinators,manyhavechosentoform

assessmentcommitteessothattheresponsibilityforspearheadingassessmenteffortsis

betterdistributed(HillerandSelf,2004).Librariesfrequentlyformtaskforcesbasedonthe

goalofrepresentativeness;theyworktowardshavingmembersfromeachunitinvolvedin

thechange.Whilediversityisimportant,inmostcasesitshouldbesecondarytochoosing

therightpeople.Kotter(2002)suggeststhatanidealgroupwouldcontainpeoplewith

visionandasenseofwhat’shappeningoutsideoftheorganization,credibilitywithinthe

organization,politicalknowledge,formalpositionalauthority,andgoodcommunication

skills.Somepeoplemayexemplifymorethanoneofthosequalities,buteachofthose

qualitiesisessentialfordevelopingastrongvisionandcommunicatingitpersuasivelyto

therestofthelibrary.Themembersalsoneedtobeabletoworkcollaborativelytogether

andcommitfullytothechangevision.

4c.Step3:Createavision

Thetaskforceshoulddevelopavisionthatreflectsastrongunderstandingof

organizationalcultureandwhatitsmembersvalue(Kotter,1996).Accordingto(Awbrey,

2005),employeesascribemeaningtotheorganizationinwhichtheywork,andthekeyto

creatingsuccessfulchangeistounderstandthatmeaningandincorporatingitintothe

changevision.Thevisionneedstobeclearenoughthatitcouldbedescribedinjustone

minute(Kotter,2002).Whenthevisionisunclear,librarianscanquicklybecomefatigued

byambiguityandinitiativesthatseemunconnected.Thevisionshouldprovideaclear

pictureofwhatthechangewilllooklike,whileatthesametimespeakingtothethingsthat

makelibrariansvaluetheirwork.

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4d.Step4:Communicatethevision

ThenextstepinKotterschangemodelasksthetaskforcetoengagewith

stakeholdersindialogueaboutthepotentialimpactofthechangevisionandwhatskills

librariansneedtofeeleffectiveinthesenewroles(MoranandBrightman,2000).They

shouldspeaktransparentlytoanypotentialorstatedconcerns;ifeverythingisn’tputonthe

tableatthispoint,lingeringskepticismcouldpoisonthewholeendeavor(Kotter,2002).

Thevisioncanbecommunicatedinavarietyofways–inreports,lectures,group

discussionsandone‐on‐onechats.Thisisapointwhenhavingataskforceismorevaluable

thanasingleindividual,becausepeoplewillrespondpositivelytodifferentmembersofthe

taskforce.Differentcommunicationmethodscanbeemployedbasedontheresponsesof

librarians.Ifgroupcommunicationbreaksdown,itmightbewisetomeetindividuallywith

librarianswho’dbeenvocalintheircriticism.Sometimes,thoseresistingchangesimply

needtofeelthattheirconcernshavebeenheardbythechangeleader(s).

Resistanceisacommonforceinanychangeinitiative.Whilemanyearly

managementresearcherssawresistanceasthecauseoffailures,morerecentstudies

suggestthatresistanceisusuallyasymptomofproblemswiththechangevisionorits

communication,andhowchangeleadersrespondtoresistancedeterminesthefateofthe

initiative.Infact,manyscholarsnowarguethatresistancecanbeausefullearningtoolfor

leaders(FordandFord,2009,2010;Gandz,2008).Itisimportantfirsttodecodethe

resistance‐‐tounderstandtherealreasonwhytheindividualisfightingtheproposed

change.Peoplemayresistanideathatisnotcompletelycleartothembecauseoftheanxiety

createdbyambiguity.Thesimplefixforthisisbetterarticulationofthevision.

Alternatively,theresistorcouldbecommunicatingimportantinformationaboutthe

institutionalcultureorstructuresthatmustbeaddressedbeforetheinitiativemoves

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forward.Also,peoplemayresistbecausetheyhavelegitimateconcernsofwhichmembers

ofthecoalitionwereunaware.It’sverypossiblethatthevisionwillneedtobealteredbased

ontheresistanceencountered.

Resistancecanbeexpectedinnearlyanychangeinitiative.Thereisawealthof

literatureonfacultyresistancetoassessment(Bird,2001;DeardorffandFolger,2008;

Ennis,2010;Haviland,2009a,2009b;Marrs,2009;Kramer,2009;Weiner,2009).The

reasonswhyfacultyandstaffresistanassessmentculturearevaried,butregardlessoftheir

basisinreality,allmustbeaddressedbyadministrationtoensurefacultybuy‐in.Library

faculty,particularlythoseonthetenuretrack,frequentlybristleattheideaofwhatthey

perceivetobeoutsideinterferenceintotheirteaching.Academicfreedomisamajortenetof

highereducationandlibrariansmightfearthatdatacouldbeusedbyadministratorstocut

libraryfundingordictatethedirectionofthelibrary’sinstructionprogram.Thisfearof

losingfacultyautonomymaybequiterealisticatsomeinstitutions(Haviland,2009b).

Librariansmayalsofearthattheywillbepunishedforpoorassessmentresults,especiallyif

theresultsconcernoneoftheareasonwhichlibrariansareevaluatedfortenureor

promotion.Libraryadministratorsmustmakeitclearthatit’stheactofdoingassessment,

notindividualresults,uponwhichlibrarianswillbeevaluated(Becker,2009).Theyshould

worktoensurethatthedecisiontoconductassessmentdoesnotfeelriskytolibraryfaculty

andstaff(Hill,2005).Timeisamajorconcernforfacultyandanadministrationthatdoesn’t

helpfacultyfindthetimetodoassessmentwilllikelyseepoorparticipationand/orpoor

assessmentquality.

Feedbackandcriticismofthevisionshouldbeacceptedwithgracebythetaskforce

members;attachmenttothefinerpointsisunproductiveatthisstageandwillleadthe

vision’sdetractorstodigintheirheels(Kotter,1996).Basedonfeedbackfromstakeholders,

thetaskforcewilllikelyneedtomakesignificantrefinements.Itisatthispointinthe

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processthatvisibleadministrativesupportiscritical.Thisisnotuniquetobuildinga

cultureofassessment.Anysortofdisruptivechangewillonlybesuccessfulwiththeactive

supportofadministration.Inordertocreateanatmosphereoftrust,administratorsmust

beconsistentinwordanddeed.Consequently,oneofthemostimportantthingstheycando

tosupportassessmentistoleadbyexample.Libraryplanningcanincludeperformance

metricsandhowthosemetricswillbeassessed.Libraryadministratorscanalsouse

assessmentresultsinmakingfundingdecisions,planningfornewservicesandimproving

existingones.Toengagefacultyandstaff,administratorsshouldkeepthefocusfor

assessmentonimprovinglibraryservicesandteaching.Whenfacultyandstaffperceivethat

theadministratorsareonlymotivatedtocreateacultureofassessmentforaccreditation,

cynicismandlow‐motivationwilllikelyresult(LakosandPhipps,2004).AttheCollegeofSt.

BennedictandSt.John’sUniversity,whilefacultywereentrustedwiththedesignofthe

assessmentprogram,itwastheProvost’sofficethatprovidedthecalltoactionandhelped

motivatefacultybyusingassessmentresultstomakeresourceallocationdecisions

(Kramer,Knuesel,andJones,2011).

Forinstructionlibrariansworkingtowardsacultureofassessmentthisislikelya

goodtimetodeveloplearningoutcomesthatdescribetheinformationskills,dispositions

andabilitiesstudentswithwhichshouldbecompletingtheircourseofstudy.Thelibraryat

PierceCollegeundertookanefforttodesignoutcomesnotonlyfortheirinstruction

program,butforeverydepartmentinthelibrary.Intheend,eachlibrarianhadabetter

senseofthedirection,butaclearsenseofhoweachdepartment’sactivitiesfitintothe

largergoalsofthelibrary(Flynn,Gilchrist,andOlson,2004).Program‐levellearning

outcomesreflectthosethingsthelibrariansvalueandhelptodeterminethefocusof

assessment.Workingasagrouptodefinetheseoutcomescanbeagoodteam‐building

exercise(Bird,2001)that,ifnothingelse,willgivethetaskforceasenseofhowthegroup

17

willworktogetherandwhatculturalissuesneedtobeaddressed.Italsocreatesacommon

roadmapforstudentlearningandassessment.AlvernoCollege,amodelinstitutionfor

assessmentculture,begantheirworkwithassessmentbydefiningeightabilitiesthatthey

wantedtheirstudentstomasterandthatcouldbemeasured(Loacker,1985).These

abilitiesinfluenceeveryaspectoftheireducationalworkfrominstructionaldesignto

assessment.

4e.Step5:Empowerotherstoactonthevision

Onceavisionhasbeendeveloped,refinedandcommunicated,Kotterstatesthatthe

nextstepistoempowertherestofthelibraryfacultyandstafftoactonthevision.This

requiresleadersandadministratorstoremoveanybarrierstolibrariansparticipatingin

assessmentandtoencourageexperimentation.Sometimes,organizationalstructuresinhibit

people’sabilitytoexperiment,sharetheirideasandreflectonassessmentresults.

Administratorsneedtoensurethatorganizationalstructuresreward,ratherthan

discourage,assessment.Sometimespromotionand/ortenuresystemsactually

disincentivizerisk‐takingandinformation‐sharing.Inanenvironmentinwhichpeoplefeel

thattheyhavetochoosebetweentheirjobsecurityandchange,securitywillwinout

(Kotter,1995).Inadditiontoremovingbarrierstoassessment,administratorsmayalso

wishtolookathowtheycanincentivizeassessmentthroughsystemsthatreward

assessmentworkandserviceorteachingimprovementsmadebasedonassessmentdata.At

someinstitutions,facultyarerecognizedfortheirassessmentworkwithawards,grantsor

courserelease(PiascikandBird,2008).Iftheinstitutionvaluesassessment,facultyand

staffshouldbejudgedbytheirparticipationinthisarea(Anagnosetal.,2008).It’salso

criticaltoensurethatfacultyandstaffarejudgedbytheirparticipationinassessment,not

theirassessmentresults.Insuchamodel,individualresultswouldbeusedsolelyforthe

18

facultymember’sprofessionaldevelopment.Forlibrarydecisionmakingtheywouldbe

usedinaggregate.AtNortheastMissouriStateUniversity,PresidentMcClaincreatedan

environmentwherefacultyfeltsafeexperimentingwithassessmentbecausetheyknewthe

resultswouldnotbeusedagainstthem(Magruderetal.,1997).

Anotherimportantroleforadministratorsistoprovidelibraryfacultyandstaffwith

theresourcestheyneedtoconductmeaningfulassessmentandlearnfromandactonthe

results.Whetherintentionalornot,theexistenceorlackofnecessaryresourcesspeaks

volumestofacultyandstaffaboutthelevelofcommitmentlibraryoruniversity

administrationhastobuildingacultureofassessment.Oneofthemostimportantresources

facultyandstaffneedtosupportassessmentworkistime.Ittakestimetodevelop

assessmenttools,conductassessmentsandanalyze,reflectonandmakechangesbasedon

theresults.Studieshaveshownthatthelesstimelibrariansaregivenforassessment,the

lessmeaningfultheprocesswillbe(MoranandBrightman,2000).Cornerswillbecut.

Facultyandstaffmayconductassessmentsasrequestedbyadministration,butwithtimeat

apremium,thoseresultswilllikelygounused.Withlimitedtime,facultywilllooktousing

assessmenttoolsthatrequiretheleastinvestmentoftheirtimeratherthanthosethatwill

providethemostmeaningfuldata.Givendailyoperationalandbusinessneeds,timeisoften

oneofthemostdifficultthingsforadministratorstoprovide,butifbuildingacultureof

assessmentisastrategicpriority,otherresponsibilitiesmightneedtobedeemphasized.

Asimportantastimeistocreatingacultureofassessment,withouteducation,an

assessmentprogramwillneverproducemeaningfulresultsandchange.Facultyandstaffdo

notintuitivelyknowhowtoconductmeaningfulassessmentandmostlibraryand

informationstudiesprogramsdonotrequireanassessmentcourse.Facultyandstaffneed

traininginthebestpractices,aswellasthemethodsandmodes,fordevelopingassessment

tools,analyzingresultsandusingthoseresults.Evenfacultywhoindividuallytakethe

19

initiativetoassesstheircoursesfrequentlyarticulateaneedforfurthertrainingin

assessmentdesign(Ebersole,2009).Jantti(2005)describeshowstaffdevelopmentwasthe

maincatalystforbuildingacultureofassessmentattheUniversityofWollongong.Through

traininginassessmenttools,techniquesandstatisticalanalysis,librariansdevelopeda

senseofself‐efficacyandenthusiasmforassessmentwork.Becker(2009)describeshow

theassessmentteamathisinstitutionspenttwoyearssimplylearningaboutanddiscussing

assessmenttheoriesandtechniques.Hereportsthatitwasnotjustthelearningthatwas

valuable,buttheactofbecoming“acommunityoflearners”thathelpedbuildanassessment

culture(p.2).Learningaboutassessmentasagroupcanhelpfacultyandstaffdevelopa

commonvocabularyandcommonframeofreference,bothofwhichcanhelpbuild

consensusinthedevelopmentofanassessmentprogram.

Atmanyinstitutions,incentivesareneededtoencouragefacultyandstafftobe

activelyinvolvedinassessment.AtOhioStateandBallStateUniversities,fundingis

earmarkedtoincentivizeindividualanddepartment‐wideassessmentwork(Banta,1997).

Ennis(2010)seesthisasthedarkersideofbuildingacultureofassessment;theideathat

“wherecommunityfails,compensationcansucceed,andeffectiveassessmentprogramsand

servicescanandsometimesmustbepurchased,thestateoftheinstitutionalculture

notwithstanding”(p.15).Ontheonehand,itmaynotbewisetopayfacultyandstafftodo

thingsthatthelibrarywilllaterwantthemtodoaspartoftheirjobs.Ontheotherhand,

busylibrariansmaysimplyneedtohavetheexperienceofconductinganassessmenttosee

itsvalue,anexperiencesomewouldnotpursuewithoutincentives.ThefacultyatAlverno

callthis“fund[ing]creativestarts”(Loacker,1988).Offeringincentivesmayalsoindicateto

facultyandstaffthattheadministrationvaluesassessment,whichisalsoapowerful

motivatortoparticipate.

20

IntheirstudyofhowARLlibrariesarepositionedtouseassessmentresults,Hiller,

Kyrillidou,andSelf,(2008)foundthatfewlibrarianswereabletoanalyzeandpresentdata

effectively.Therearemanytechnologiesinexistencethatcanhelpfacultyandstaffto

collectandanalyzeassessmentdata.Purchasingassessmenttechnologiesandtraining

facultyandstaffintheirusewillhelptoensurethatdataactuallygetsused.Inaddition,it’s

vitaltohaveindividualsonstaff(whetherinthelibraryorattheinstitution)whohave

expertiseindataanalysisandcansupportthoseseekingtolearnfromtheirownresultsand

departmentsseekingtolearnabouttheirprogramholistically.Areportontheearlyresults

ofamajorgrant‐fundedprogramforcommunitycollegesfocusedonbuildingacultureof

assessmentfoundthatthegreatestbarriertoparticipatinginstitutionswastheirlackof

abilitytoeasilyretrieveandanalyzeassessmentdata,whichwaslargelyattributedto

inadequateinformationsystems(Brocketal.,2007).Investingintechnologiesandpeopleto

provideusefuldatatoindividualsanddepartmentsiscriticallyimportanttothoseseeking

toclosetheassessmentloopandactuallyactontheresults.

EncouraginglibrarianstoexperimentisalsoacriticalpartofstepfiveofKotter’s

changemodel.Experimentationallowslibrarianstotryoutassessmenttoolsinasafeand

low‐accountabilityenvironment.AttheVirginiaPolytechnicInstituteandStateUniversity,

librariansinvolvedininstructionweregivenseveralassessmenttoolsandaskedtouse

someofthemduringaone‐yearexperimentationperiod.Afterthattime,theymetasa

grouptodiscusswhattheylearnedfromtheassessmentworkandtochoosethosetools

thatweremosteffectiveatmeasuringstudentlearning.Throughtheirefforts,theywere

abletofoster“acreative,collegial,andsupportiveenvironmentthatemphasizes

programmaticsuccessoverindividualperformanceevaluations”(AriewandLener,2005).

4f.Step6:Createshort‐termwins

21

Inthatinitialworktowardsthevisionforchange,Kotter(1995)stressestheneed

for“short‐termwins”toincreasefacultyandstaffmotivation.Planningforvisiblesuccesses

earlyoncankeepupthemomentumtowardsthelargervision.Atthebeginning,itmay

makesensetostartsmallandfocusonthingsthatareeasiertoassess.Kramer(2009)calls

thisideaofsmallexposurestoassessmentovertime“buildingassessmentanti‐venom.”

Whiletheymightnotbethemostrigorousorvaluableassessmentsthatcouldbedone,

theremaybesomevaluetoassessing“well‐lightedsites”atthestartofanassessmentpush

(Allen,2007).Selectingquestionsthatareeasiertoanswerthroughassessmentorusing

toolsthatareeasiertoadministerandanalyzecanbuildtheconfidenceoffacultyandstaff.

Similarly,DeardorffandFolger(2008),suggestthatfacultyfocustheirassessment

workinitiallyonquestionstheyhaveanddevelopassessmenttoolsdesignedtoanswer

thosequestions.Sincethefocusofenquiryemanatesfromlibrarianinterests,assessmentis

non‐threatening,butstillprovidesexperience,whichisvitaltogetfacultyandstaffto

ultimatelyinternalizeitsvalue.Frequently,peoplewillnotrecognizethevalueof

assessmentuntiltheyactuallyuseitintheirclassesandlearnfromit.Evensomethingas

smallasaone‐minutepaper,aclassicclassroomassessmenttechniquecanyieldvaluable

insightsaboutwhatstudentslearned.

Whateverapproachistaken,administratorsshouldgivefacultyandstaffthe

freedomtodeterminetheirownassessmentgoalssolongastheyareconsistentwiththe

overallvision(Ebersole,2009).Librariansaremorelikelytobuyintoassessmentwhen

theyhavethefreedomtocharttheirowncourseandtheabilitytomakeassessment

meaningfultothem.Especiallyatinstitutionswherelibrarianshavefacultystatus,

initiativesthataretightlycontrolledbyadministratorstendtoresultinstrongresistance

fromthelibrariansexpectedtoimplementthem(NdoyeandParker,2010).

22

4g.Step7:Consolidateimprovements

Thisinitialworkwithassessmentdoesnotsignaltheendofthechangeprocess,but

theopportunitytouseearlysuccessesasalevertokeepupthemomentum.Kotter(1996)

describesmanychangeinitiativesthatfailedbecausetheleadersdeclaredvictorytoosoon.

Assessmentshouldstarttobeseenasacontinuousprocessratherthansomethingdone

beforeanaccreditationcycle,andatthispoint,librariansareprobablyreadytostart

refiningtheirassessmenttoolsandselectingmorechallengingquestionstoanswer.The

taskforcememberscancontinuetoremindpeoplehowwhatthey’redoingfitsintothe

largervision(Kotter,1996).

Whetherandhowthecollectedassessmentdataisusedbythelibrarycan

determinethesuccessorfailureofthechangeinitiativeatthispoint.Institutionsofhigher

educationcollecttremendousquantitiesofdataforvariousreportingagencies.Most

librariesareverygoodatcollectingdata,butmanyarenotquiteasgoodatusingthatdata

tomakedecisionsaboutfunding,servicesandcollections.Whileassessmentshouldideally

informplanning,toooftenthetwoareunconnected(Middaugh,2009).Thiscanbehugely

problematic,bothintermsofmakingsoliddecisionsinlibrariesandbuildingacultureof

assessment.Inasurveyofinstitutionsthathavebuiltacultureofassessment,72%saidthat

theuseofdatawasimportanttocreatinganassessmentculture(NdoyeandParker,2010).

AtQueensUniversityofCharlotte,arecentprojecttotieassessmenttoresourceallocation

ledtoa97.7%returnrateforassessmentplansandreports(Slater,Burson,andMcArthur,

2011).

OakleafandHinchliffe(2008)examinethereasonswhyindividualinstruction

librariansdonotusetheresultsofassessmentsthey’veconducted.Thereasonsidentified

includedalackoftime,lackofknowledgeaboutassessment,lackofsupport,andalackof

clearexpectations.Manyalsodidnotfeelconfidentthattheassessmentstheyconducted

23

adequatelymeasuredstudentlearning.Thisspeaksstronglytotheneedforeducationand

administrativesupport.

Datacanalsobesharedwithstakeholders.Thismayleadtousefulconversations

abouthowtoimprovelibraryservices.Sometimeslibrariansaretooclosetotheresultsto

noticesomethingthatanoutsidermightsee.Whilelibrariansmayinterpretassessment

resultsoneway,otherstakeholdersmayseethemdifferently,whichcouldleadto

alternativestrategiesforimprovement.AtWartburgCollege,theinformationliteracy

coordinatorvisitswithdepartmentchairsannuallytoshareassessmentresults.Thishas

alsogiventhecoordinatortheopportunitytodiscusshowtoimprovestudentinformation

literacyineachdepartmentthroughbetterintegration(SchroederandMashek,2007).

Acultureofassessmentisacultureoflearning,andlibrarianscanbenefit

tremendouslybycomingtogetherwiththeircolleaguestodiscussassessmentdesignand

results.Teachingtendstobeveryindividualwork,butsharingtheirmethodologyand

resultscanbothhelpotherstodesigneffectiveassessmentsandcanoffervaluablefeedback

toguideimprovement.AccordingtoLoacker(1988)“atAlverno,becauseassessmentis

designedtoworkthroughouttheentirecurriculum,facultycollaborationhasbecomea

dramaticoutcomeoftheassessmentprocess.Collaborationinturnhasbecomeagrowing

causeofeffectiveness”(p.29).Universitiesthathavesuccessfulassessmentprograms,such

astheUniversityofMarylandUniversityCollege,haveinvestedheavilyintheircentersfor

teachingandlearningtoprovidefacultywithtrainingandspacesforcollaborativelearning

(McDaniel,Felder,Gordon,Hrutka,andQuinn,2000).Librarianscanlearnfromboth

failuresandsuccesses,butlibrariansneedtofeelcomfortablesharingboth,whichrequires

aculturewhereexperimentationisvaluedandfailureisseenasalearningtool.

Thisstepisalsoagoodtimetoremindlibrarianswhythey’redoingwhatthey’re

doing(Kotter,2002).Ifthetaskforcecanshowfacultyandstaffwhatpositivechangeshave

24

comefromtheassessmentworkdonethusfar,itwillincreasetheirconfidenceinthe

changeprocess.Assessmentresultsoftenresultinpositivechangesnotonlyforstudents,

butforfacultyandstaff.AttheUniversityofTennesseeatKnoxville,knowingthattheyhad

gooddataaboutstudentlearningbuiltfacultyconfidenceaboutmakingchangesto

departmentalgoalsandcurricula(Mentkowski,1991).AtNortheastMissouriState

University,theassessmentprogramremindsfacultyandstafftimeandagainofthe

centralityofstudentlearningtotheirmission,somethingthatcanbeeasytoforgetina

worldofcompetingpriorities(McClainandKrueger,1985).Thevisibilityofassessment

resultsandtheirimpactcontinuallykeepthefocusonstudentsuccess.

4h.Institutionalizenewapproaches

ThefinalstepthatKotterdefinesinvolvesmakingthenewapproachespartofthe

institutionalstructure.Thismeansembeddingassessmentinthelibrary’sculturesoit’sa

regularpartofwhatthelibrarydoes.Foradministration,thismaymeanusingassessment

dataindecision‐makingandrequiringanynewserviceproposaltocomewithpossible

assessmentmetrics.Fortheinstructioncoordinator,thismaymeandetermininghownew

hireswillbetrainedinassessmenttoorientthemtothelibrary’sassessmentculture.For

libraryfacultyandstaff,itmeansseeingassessmentmuchliketheyseeworkingatthe

referencedeskorcollectiondevelopment;anintegralpartoftheirworkaslibrarians.The

communicationstrategythatstartedwithstepfourshouldcontinue,withafocusonthe

positiveimpactsoftheassessmentwork(Kotter,1996).Thisisthepointatwhich

assessmentisingrainedinthecultureanditsvalueforimprovingstudentlearningis

generallyaccepted.

Structuralelementsofthelibrarythatimpactindividualandunitbehaviorcanbe

alteredtoencourageassessmentandstressitsimportance.AtWollongongUniversity,

25

positiondescriptionswererevisedtoplaceemphasisonassessmentandotherstrategic

goals(Jannti,2005).WhenanewdeanarrivedattheUniversityofArizonainthe1990s,

goalsrelatedtoassessmentwerewrittenintothestrategicplanandresourceswere

specificallyallocatedtowardsassessmentactivities(Phipps,2004).Promotionand/or

tenurerequirementscanbeamendedtoincludeparticipationinassessmentworkasan

evaluativecriterion.Buildingassessmentintothestructuresthatgovernthelibraryandthe

workoflibrarianswillhelptomakeitaculturalnorm.

Acommitmenttoacultureofassessmentrequiresacommitmenttoinculcatingnew

facultyandstaff.Therewillbeturnoveratthelibraryandnewmembersofthecultureneed

tolearnwhattheinstitutionnowvalues.ThefacultyatAlvernoCollegedevelopedapaper

entitled“PartnersinLearning:StaffCollaborationinPromotingStudentLearningAcrossthe

College”thatistobereadbyanddiscussedwitheverynewhireattheinstitution(Wagner,

2009).Newfacultyandstaffarerequiredtogothroughsignificanttrainingregardingtheir

curriculumandassessmentmodel,whichmakesthevaluesoftheinstitutionclearfromthe

start.Sustainingchangeisparticularlydifficultwhenchangeleadersleavetheinstitution,

whichisanotherreasonwhyit’ssovaluabletoputresponsibilityforthechangeprocesson

ataskforceratherthananindividual.Thisisalsoareasonwhyit’svaluabletogivefaculty

thereinswhenitcomestoassessmentprogramdesign.Losinganindividuallargely

responsiblefortheassessmentprogramcanhavedrasticconsequences,butwhenthe

programispoweredbyfacultyinitiative,itislessvulnerabletoleadershipchanges.The

goaloftheeighthstepofKotter’schangemodelistoensurethattheprojectisnolonger

heldtogethersolelybythetaskforce–inotherwords,thatitcanhavealifeand

sustainabilitybeyondthechangeleaders.

5.Discussion

26

ThispaperprovidesaproposedapplicationofKotter’schangemodelforbuildinga

cultureofassessment.Giventhatresponsibilityforleadingassessmentisfrequently

delegatedtotaskforcesand/orcoordinators,thismodelseemsideallysuitedtoleadership

withoutpositionalauthority.InKotter’smodel,whiletheadministrationhastosupportthe

changeinitiative,theydonotnecessarilyhavetoleadthechange.Giventhenumberof

middle‐managersandfront‐linelibrarianstaskedwithcreatingchangeinourprofession,

thismodelmayworkwellforavarietyofchangeinitiatives.Manyauthorswriteaboutthe

impactoforganizationalcultureontheabilitytoeffectchangeorbeinnovative(Bair,Hu

andReeve,2011;CameronandQuinn,2011,;Naranjo‐Valencia,2011).Librariansin

culturesthatdonotmatchthedescribedidealculturemightfeelthattheycan’tleadchange

untiltheculturehasbeentransformedbyadministration.Kotter’smodelcouldallow

librarianstochangeculturebychangingbehavior,ratherthantheotherwayaround,

providingamodelthatcouldworkforlibrariesinlessthanidealorganizationalcultures.

ThisauthorquestionswhetherKotter’smodelwouldtrulyworkinanyculture,assome

organizationalcultureswouldlikelyblockmanyofhissteps,butitcertainlyprovidesmore

flexibilityforchangeleaders.

Kotter(1996)addressesthefactthathisideasaboutculturechangecominglastfly

inthefaceofdecadesofresearch,buthearguesthathe’sseeninhundredsofbusiness

changeeffortsthatchangingculturefirstdoesn’twork.Changingbehaviorfirst,witha

strongunderstandingoftheculture,allowsemployeestoseethebenefitsofanew

approach,whichhelpstofacilitateculturechange.WhileKotter’sargumentsarelogical,

decidingwhethertotrusthisextensiveobservationsoversignificantscholarlyresearchisa

questioneachchangeleaderwillhavetoanswerforhisorherself.

Kotter’smodelhasbeensuccessfullyfield‐testedinacademia,butithasnotbeen

showntobeeffectiveinanylibrarycasestudiestodate.ThecaseforKotter’schangemodel

27

inbuildingacultureofassessmentwouldbestrengthenedbycasestudiesfromlibraries

thathavesuccessfullyimplementedKotter’smodel,especiallyintermsofbuildingan

assessmentculture.NussbaumerandMerkley(2010)developedtheirownchangemodelat

theUniversityofLethbridgethatwasinspiredbyKotter,butborelittleresemblancetohis

modelasitfocusedonchangingcultureearlyintheprocess.Horn(2007)ledamajor

reorganizationprocessusingKotter’smodel,butskippedcriticalstepssuchascreating

short‐termwinsandempoweringthoseoutsideoftheguidingcoalition.Whilethisauthor

believesthatthereshouldbemoreflexibilityinhowthemodelisimplemented,thesetwo

casestudiesignoredsuchcriticalaspectsthat,whilethechangeswereultimatelysuccessful,

itwouldnonethelessbeastretchtogivecredittoKotter’smodel.Whilethispaperdoesnot

lookatthemodelthroughtheexperienceofusingitinalibrarychangecase,theauthor

suggeststhatcasestudiesarenotnecessarilyasilverbulletforprovingefficacy.What

workswellatoneinstitutionmaynotnecessarilyworkatanother.Still,casestudiesinthe

libraryliteraturewouldcertainlystrengthenthecaseforusingKotter’smodel.

Changemodelsingeneraltendtobeveryprescriptiveandnomodelcouldpossibly

beaone‐size‐fits‐allsolutionforeverylibrary.EvenifKotter’smodelisagoodfit,itmight

notalwaysbepossibletofollowitexactly.WhileKottersuggeststhatthestepsmustbe

undertakensequentially,thisauthorarguesthatagoodleaderrespondscreativelyto

changesintheenvironmentratherthanmindlesslyfollowingaprescription.Onecouldstill

embracetheessentialelementsofKotter’svisionwithoutbeinginlockstepwithhismodel.

6.Conclusion

Theliteraturefromlibrariesandhighereducationclearlyindicatesthatdoing

assessmentandbuildingacultureofassessmentaretwoverydifferentthings,though

certainlythelatterrequirestheformer.Acultureofassessmentpervadeseveryaspectof

28

practiceandplanningandisfocusedonusingassessmentforimprovement.Itrequiresa

significantinvestmentofresourcesandadministrativesupport.Mostofall,itneedsleaders

whounderstandhowtoshepherdassessment;fromcreatingasenseofurgencyanda

guidingvisiontoanchoringchangeintheculture.

AsKotter’smodelillustrates,achangeprocessthatendswithchangesinfacultyand

staffbehaviorwillnotcreatelastingeffects.Peoplewilleventuallyresumetheiroldhabits

oncetheurgencyhassubsided.Forachangeprocesstobesuccessfulovertime,the

organizationmustalsochangestructuresandpoliciestobothaccommodatethechangeand

embeditintheculture.Buildingacultureofassessmentrequiressignificantinvestments

fromeveryareaofthelibrary,but,inthecurrentclimateofaccountabilityalongwith

limitedresources,mostlibrariescanhardlyaffordnottomakethatinvestment.

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