Access Services work happens on the front line of the library—where buildings stay open late, service demands shift constantly, and staff carry significant emotional and operational labor. In these environments, effective management is not just about policies, coverage, or workflows. It is about people.
This interactive session explores how inclusive supervision can serve as a powerful framework for staff development, retention, and sustainability in Access Services. Drawing on the presenter’s lived experience returning to leadership after a life‑altering health event, along with research‑informed models from Inclusive Supervision in Student Affairs (Wilson, McCallum, & Shupp), inclusive leadership, and psychological safety, the session reframes supervision as an intentional, relational practice.
Participants will learn how the four tenets of inclusive supervision—creating safe spaces, cultivating holistic development, demonstrating vulnerability, and building capacity in others—translate into daily supervisory practices in public‑facing library work. Emphasis is placed on moving beyond deficit‑based management toward curiosity, clarity, and strengths‑based staff development, even amid staffing shortages and constant change.
Through short reflective exercises and small‑group discussion, attendees will practice reframing common supervisory challenges, identifying underutilized staff strengths, and setting clear, supportive expectations. The session is designed for supervisors at all levels and offers practical strategies that can be implemented immediately.
Participants will leave with concrete tools, shared language, and renewed perspective on how supporting staff growth is essential to keeping people—and services—in circulation.
