Vice Provost and Director of UT Libraries

The University of Texas at Austin (UT), the flagship university of the state of Texas and one of the best universities in the world, seeks a visionary and collaborative leader to serve as its next Vice Provost and Director of the University of Texas Libraries (VP and Director).

The University of Texas Libraries, with nine campus locations, is one of the greatest libraries worldwide. A member of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), UT Libraries’ collections are the 14th largest among ARL institutions, with more than 24 million total library materials, including physical volumes, electronic resources, and other items, and the UT Libraries have been ranked 14th in the ARL Library Investment Index. UT Libraries’ excellence reflects 140 years of dedication by librarians, staff, faculty, students, and donors to build a top academic research library by assembling distinctive and comprehensive collections, offering exceptional services, and creating dynamic spaces to support and inspire students and scholars.

The Role

The University and UT Libraries seek a visionary library leader, a collaborator and partner, a superb strategist and tactician, an advocate for excellence, and a gifted and transparent manager. The ideal candidate will demonstrate a commitment to and passion for research universities, a sophisticated understanding of the current and future states of libraries, nuanced thinking about organizational structures and their evolution, and an orientation to teamwork.

The Vice Provost and Director is responsible for the overall direction and strategic vision of the UT Libraries, ensuring innovation and sustained excellence in the areas of library services, collections, operations and infrastructure, cooperative initiatives and outreach, resource management and fundraising, and workplace culture.

The Vice Provost and Director reports to the Executive Vice President and Provost. The VP and Director’s Executive team includes:

• Director of the Benson Latin American Collection
• Director of Development
• Director of Research and Strategy
• Chief of Staff
• Director of Academic Engagement (responsible for UT Libraries’ role as an essential partner in research, teaching, and scholarly communication)
• Director of Discovery and Access (overseeing access, content management, discovery and stewardship)
• Director of Organizational Effectiveness (overseeing facilities, information technology, budgeting and financial services, human resources, and assessment and communication)

The Directors of Academic Engagement, Discovery and Access, and Organizational Effectiveness make up the Vice Provost and Director’s Council. Detailed information on the organizational structure can be found here.

Qualifications

This position represents an outstanding opportunity for an experienced library leader with a record of innovative and collaborative leadership. The successful candidate will possess credentials appropriate to the leadership of a modern research-intensive library and a record of accomplishment in an academic discipline and/or library/information science. An advanced degree in library science and/or other graduate degree is strongly preferred.

In addition, the successful candidate will have many of the following professional experiences, qualifications, and characteristics:

• Professional experience and knowledge: Deep understanding of the higher education landscape and academic library ecosystem. Significant experience in a setting of similar complexity. A record of library leadership that shows a strong commitment to advancing library information technology and digital initiatives; intellectual capaciousness and sensitivity in supporting different and emerging disciplines, research, and creative activities; and depth of insight about open initiatives and scholarly publishing. A professional record that reflects the ability to view issues from an institution-wide perspective, foster teamwork across departments and divisions, and stimulate cross-unit collaboration.
• Leadership and management experience: Outstanding leadership abilities, including strategic visioning, an understanding of managing in complex and decentralized environments, and the ability to intuit and navigate decision-making paths and to execute. Adeptness in wielding budgetary levers and allocating/reallocating financial resources. Evidence of ability to position organizations to align with strategic priorities and institutional needs. Experience recruiting, developing, and retaining a skilled and dedicated workforce with different perspectives and backgrounds.
• Partnership and advocacy experience: A proven record of developing strong partnerships. The ability to advocate for resources. Experience in case-making and storytelling; direct or analogous experience and success in fundraising. Ability to build and leverage partnerships and collaborations with various units and organizations on campus and beyond. Engagement with leadership in the field.
• Personal characteristics and skills: Outstanding oral and written communication skills. The ability to engage the University community and external stakeholders broadly; a record of courageous decision making; clarity of thought; ability to maintain focus on priorities and how best to advance them. Ability to deepen connections with others. A record that testifies to the valuing of people. Evidence of intellectual flexibility: openness, adaptability, and willingness to countenance and manage change.
• Additional qualities: Collegiality, an orientation to teamwork, an inclination to servant leadership. Institutional ambition, personal humility. Ease with others. Dedication to public service, in keeping with the mission of a public university. Professional and personal integrity and ethics of the highest order.

For Consideration

Confidential inquiries, nominations/referrals, and materials can be submitted electronically to:

Search for the Vice Provost and Director of the University of Texas Libraries
Isaacson, Miller
Anita Tien and Sean Farrell, Partners
Robin Dougherty, Managing Associate
Drew Chang, Senior Search Coordinator

The University of Texas at Austin, as an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, complies with all applicable federal and state laws regarding nondiscrimination and affirmative action. The University is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for all persons and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, disability, religion, or veteran status in employment, educational programs and activities, and admissions.

Consultive Committee