Change Management for Leaders

Libraries today operate in an environment of continuous transformation. Shifting community needs, evolving technologies, funding pressures, and changing workforce dynamics demand that library leaders navigate change with strategic clarity and human sensitivity. This 90-minute webinar equips participants with a research-grounded framework for understanding, planning, and leading organizational change.
Key Topics Covered:

• Change leadership vs. change management
• Stakeholder engagement and how to identify and work with champions, resistors, and the “moveable middle”
• Introduction to change models and frameworks applicable in library settings
• Human responses to change: resistance, ambiguity, and the covert forces that shape outcomes

What Participants will Learn:

• How to apply a practical change leadership framework to their specific context
• Anticipate and address human and cultural resistance to change
• Communicate change in ways that build trust and reduce anxiety
• Identify levers for sustaining change over time

Speaker Bio: Vanessa Hills, PhD is a faculty member at Western Michigan University teaching courses in Organizational Change Leadership within the Department of Educational Leadership, Research and Technology. Dr. Hills received her MA in Communication and PhD in Organizational Change Leadership from Western Michigan University. Her research focuses on how psychosocial dynamics shape organizational life, organizational change, groups, and leadership. She is a Co-Editor of the Research in Management Consulting book series published by Emerald and has published in leading journals, including the Journal of Organizational Change Management, Employee Responsibilities and Rights Journal, and the Journal of Managerial Issues. Dr. Hills is also a practicing change consultant and a board member of the Midwest
Academy of Management and the Management Consulting Division of the Academy
of Management.

This project is made possible by grant funds from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) administered by the State of Michigan through the Library of Michigan.