Managing Creativity

How do groups of people come together to produce something not only truly useful but also a breakthrough that propels users to another level of creativity and productivity? Is an innovative library culture essential for the future of the research library and, if so, how is this culture to be realized? In addressing these questions, Managing Creativity: The Innovative Research Library presents a rich and rigorous analysis of the environmental, organizational, and individual characteristics that promote innovation in the library.

The need for library leaders to understand and manage the innovation process cannot be overstated. In this volume, theory, research, and an empirical study of 50 research libraries are all used to inform readers about the complex process of innovation and organizational change. For the research model, Jantz has created a unique dependent variable—innovation performance. He clearly explains the vocabulary of organizational change and demonstrates empirically the effects of the library leadership team, the singular leader, organizational structure, the external environment, and the decision process on the innovativeness of the research library.

Managing Creativity: The Innovative Research Library, #70 in ACRL’s Publication in Librarianship (PIL) series, is written primarily for academic library leaders, future leaders, managers, and administrators who want to create a culture of innovation in their institutions. It also provides an overview of much of the theory and empirical evidence found in the literature of innovation studies and, as such, can serve as additional reading in courses on management in library and information science programs.