Head of Technical Services

Duties & Responsibilities: 

The Harvard Library seeks a creative and forward-thinking professional to serve on the Library's senior leadership team to develop unified Technical Services across Harvard library units in order to address the intellectual access needs of the University's wide range of library patrons.

This position represents a key opportunity to champion an integrated collection philosophy across Harvard University and to lead, shape and oversee the work of staff engaged in acquiring and making accessible research resources in many formats for the Harvard Library community. 

Reporting to the Associate Director for Library Services, this role will provide the day-to-day management of Harvard Library staff engaged in technical services activities, including acquisitions, cataloging and processing and metadata creation.

The role requires the ability to manage and lead staff members engaged in acquiring, describing and ensuring access to materials in all formats in English, in many languages and disciplines.

Promote and facilitate coordinated technical services across the Harvard Library; ensure programmatic integrity and cooperative planning that strengthen access to the collection.

Bring a demonstrated knowledge of and affinity for IT services and play a proactive role in managing and streamlining Harvard's integrated library system (ILS) and anticipate its future development.

Demonstrate accountability and creativity in building strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders and foster an environment of innovation and continuous improvement.

Contribute to Library-wide planning, budget allocation, and to all initiatives that advance the Library's evolution as the preeminent research library of the 21^st century.

Note: For the complete text of this job description please visit:

http://employment.harvard.edu/jobdescriptions/Head_of_Technical_Services.pdf

Job Requirements

Basic Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree required with an ALA-accredited master's degree in library or information science, or a  minimum of ten years' experience with eight years of directly related experience
• Substantive experience in acquisitions, cataloging, processing, and/or descriptive metadata production
• Experience in managing a complex budget and in financial planning and analysis

Additional Qualifications:

• Demonstrable experience leading progressive initiatives with integrated library systems, bibliographic utilities, metadata schema, as well as acquisitions and cataloging technology principles and tools
• Track record in leading high-performing teams and in spear-heading transformational change
• Ability to identify strategic priorities and to lead, preferably with experience from within a large academic research library
• Working knowledge of academic institutions and ability to respond to faculty expectations, academic calendars, and varied planning cycles
• Ability to monitor multiple projects that serve a range of clients
• Strong written, verbal, and interpersonal skills, with the ability to effectively influence, persuade and promote the organization's work internally and externally

Additional Information:

The Harvard Library

By setting a fresh course for the Harvard Library, the University seeks to build a flagship research library that is positioned to excel in the rapidly evolving, 21^st century information environment. On the basis of an extensive, 18-month library review, Harvard will restructure the organization, governance, and funding of its University library system to better serve the changing needs of students, faculty, and researchers. The Harvard Library will support excellence and innovation in teaching, learning, and scholarship by attracting and developing a community of talented professionals who can actively shape the cultivation of knowledge and the development of pedagogy within the University and throughout the broader scholarly community. The new Harvard Library structure will:

• maximize strategic capacity in the library system as a whole;
• harmonize library management and business processes;
• facilitate enhancements in collections and services;
• create a culture of  continuous improvement and innovation; and
• preserve appropriate local autonomy in establishing collecting priorities and patron service levels.

The University

Founded in 1636, Harvard University is preeminent among the world's research universities. Harvard has grown from nine students with a single master to an enrollment of more than 6,600 undergraduate students, over 14,000 graduate students, and an additional 2,000 part-time students. Over 16,000 people work at Harvard, including approximately 2,100 faculty members. An additional 10,000 individuals have faculty appointments in Harvard-affiliated teaching hospitals. 

Designated a university in 1780, Harvard includes 12 colleges and schools. The Faculty of Arts and Sciences-comprising Harvard College, the School for Engineering and Applied Science, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and the Division of Continuing Education-is the oldest and largest of the Harvard faculties. The University's world-renowned graduate and professional schools include Harvard Business School, Harvard Divinity School, Harvard Graduate School of Design, Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard Law School, Harvard Medical School (including the School of Dental Medicine), the Harvard School of Public Health, and the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study.

In the course of 375 years, Harvard's Library has grown from a single collection of 400 volumes to a 73-unit library system whose holdings include nearly 17 million volumes, more than 21 million digital files, 10 million microforms, 8 million photographs, an estimated 400 million manuscript items.

Competencies for Success

Select behaviors and attributes will be critical for the success of the chosen candidate. Competencies for this role and for other leaders in the Harvard Library include a strong strategic sense, a commitment to creativity, innovation and continuous improvement along with a willingness to hold oneself and one's staff accountable for producing results. 

How to Apply:

Qualified candidates may apply online at, http://www.employment.harvard.edu/.  Please refer to req number 23520BR.