Assistant Manager; 's Archive

Job Summary

For the past decade, the District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL) system has been undergoing an aggressive transformation to modernize its facilities and set the strategic direction for 21st century public library services in the District of Columbia. DCPL’s physical campus includes 25 neighborhood libraries and the newly modernized Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial (Central) Library.

DCPL’s goal is for all District residents, regardless of income, educational attainment or geographic area, to have the opportunity to grow, excel and become successful contributors to their communities and society. As such, the Library is committed to introducing new programs and services and customizing its offerings to better serve each neighborhood – particularly in ways that help those who need it the most.

The Assistant Manager will work in The People’s Archive at the central facility of DC Public Library, the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, managing the team providing technical services for digital and physical archival materials. This position will be under the direction of The People’s Archive Manager and will work closely with the Assistant Manager of the reference team. The Assistant Manager will assist in building and implementing procedures that support the department’s overall goals.

The mission of The People’s Archive is: to connect you to unique resources that illustrate the District of Columbia’s local history and culture. We are a home of discovery, where diverse stories - past and present - are preserved and amplified.

The primary responsibility of this position is to provide welcoming services to all customers in an urban public library. Libraries at DCPL are an integral part of dynamic, overlapping communities, which includes both people who live in and travel through our neighborhoods. This can sometimes mean working with customers experiencing different kinds of trauma, including housing and food insecurity, joblessness, inadequate health care, substance use, and mental health challenges.

This has the potential to manifest in challenging, and unfortunately, sometimes intimidating behavior in patrons of all ages. The ideal candidate is passionate about providing equitable public service for all members of the community and will be able to set appropriate boundaries as needed.

• Manage the department’s effort to optimize resource discovery; provide access; and preserve our digital and physical materials.
• Maintain comprehensive manuals for accessioning; processing; metadata creation; and other technical processes.
• Develop project plans to optimize resource discovery, access, and preservation; and ensure the team meets all project milestones.
• Oversee and implement programs and services that support the library’s overall goals.
• Plans, directs, and coordinate, through management level staff, the work plan for assigned functions.
• Coordinate and oversee the day‑to‑day workflow of subordinate staff in the department.
• Oversee caseload for subordinate staff. Provides regular feedback and evaluation to staff.
• Assigns projects and programmatic areas of responsibility; provide direction and supervision on key projects.
• Assess and monitor workload, administrative and support systems, and internal reporting relationships.
• Select, train, motivate, and evaluate assigned personnel; provide or coordinate staff training.
• Work with employees to correct deficiencies; implement discipline and termination procedures. May hire and train new staff or assist supervisors with this process.
• Assist Manager with employment actions, including performance reviews, discipline and termination of employees in accordance with policy.
• Monitor departmental performance, identifying and facilitating opportunities to increase productivity and efficiency.
• Assist with data management and management of community resource information.
• Manage inventory, approving or facilitating purchases as needed; negotiate related pricing contracts and verify costs and receipts.
• Manage conflicts and resolve complaints about or within the department. Liaise between managers, customers and employees; help create and foster…