INTERVIEW
Election fever adds new priorities to CEO to-do list
Chief Executive Louis Coiffait-Gunn speaks to Rob Green about his first few weeks with CILIP, what he has learned and where he sees CILIP in the future. As with any new role there is a mix of immediate priorities and longer-term goals – including CILIP’s position in a post-election landscape.
WHILE the news of July’s General Election has concentrated minds within CILIP, there is a feeling from new Chief Executive Louis Coiffait-Gunn that it has been important to get the basics right from the start. And part of that process has seen him take on a listening brief in the early days. With the election call coming just two weeks after Louis’ arrival at CILIP, that listening brief has gained even more importance as the CILIP team have rapidly created a response in the form of the CILIP election pledge to ‘trust libraries’(see pp. 11-12). Drawing from CILIP’s expertise – both within the staff and the broad range of experts that make up CILIP’s membership– the pledge sets out the core of what CILIP’s members can offer ahead of the vote. However, as Louis points out, listening is fundamental to building a platform for success that goes beyond just this elec- tion period. He says: “My focus is still on meeting people, listening and learning. I’m working through initial introductions as quickly as I can, while leaving time each day for everything else. I’m trying not to make any big decisions that aren’t either obvious or urgent. Luckily there’s a talented team of experts around me, and lots of wisdom I can draw on.
16 INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL
Rob Green (
rob.green@
cilip.org.uk) is Editor of Information Professional
“The election is obviously a major prior- ity, we’re doing everything we can to help prepare members and build the sector’s profile in the right way with the next government. That’s why we’ve crafted a brutally simple message around the pledge to trust us, to trust libraries. That goes to the heart of what this group of highly trusted professionals offers society, and it’s never been more needed.” The timescales have meant the pledge has been created quickly and collabora- tively with input from key members in CILIP’s different communities. And even before the urgent imperative of prepar- ing an election-ready position, Louis had
June 2024
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