Ohio Library Council 2007 - Report

Some of this comes from my report that was sent to my supervisor. My report to my library is considerably longer. I wanted to at least share what I learned with other people. I picked three workshops that I thought were very valuable.

Look Before You Leap: Why Web 2.0 Alone Can't Save Your Library
This was presented by Laura Solomon from Cleveland Public Library and Glen Horton from SouthWest Ohio and Neighboring Libraries. The presenters discussed various Web/Library 2.0 tools and what not to do. “How to Kill a Blog/Wiki/IM service/etc.” As I took the notes, I changed it to positive as to how you can make xyz item successful. They also mentioned the positives of engaging/using these tools. You can find their PowerPoint presentation here.
The last part of the presentation discussed how to look at these tools critically; asking if this is the right tool, what are your expectations, etc. A closing note to the presentation was that even if an organization does not want to engage in this, it ought to claim the webspace/Internet space so that others do not. I spoke with Laura Solomon afterwards and noted that I did not have my bubble burst and would still like to incorporate these tools. I’m willing to do the work and even train people. I am uncertain as to the reasons for administration’s apprehension and would welcome a discussion.

"You Offer Me Nothing": Serving Next Generation Patrons
This was a very well attended workshop and I anticipated it highly. Don Yarman of Delaware County District Public Library moderated a panel discussion with Karl Jendretzky, OPLIN and Christine, a friend of Don’s. Both of these individuals do not use libraries. Their reasons varied. Karl uses bitTorrent to download videos and audio files. He stated that it’s easier to steal rather than borrow legally and in some ways safer. If a person uses audio CDs on a computer, the DRM programming installs files onto that computer which can cause damage.
Christine does not like to go to libraries because she feels that libraries are intimidating and the shelves make her feel claustrophobic. Both of them do not understand Dewey and don’t like having to go to the reference desk for help. Christine likes to read a book and then keep it. Someone suggested that if libraries were able to allow patrons to check out books and keep them for as long as they want. The counterpoint to that argument is it would potentially throw off the budget. Most people would not tell the library that they plan on keeping the book and if they did, the library would still have to figure out how many books to acquire, etc.
One thing I would like to see is faster ILL. If a person can get an item sent from a company overnight, why can’t libraries do the same thing? I understand that there are costs involved but I still find the ILL turnaround time to be longer than necessary. This is merely an observation. It’s probably not under the Hudson Library’s control based on our CLEVNET membership.
They liked the roving reference idea and had suggestions for ways to get people into the library. For people like Karl, holding a LAN party where people are playing a multi-user game together (example: World of Warcraft, Runescape). Marketing ideas: advertising on pizza boxes (flyers attached to a pizza box noting various events or services.)

You're the Expert – Share It!: On-the-job Training at Your Library
This workshop discussed ways that employees can benefit from micro learning sessions. It is important to maintain institutional knowledge along with creating opportunities for professional development within the organization. The loss of information can be devastating to an organization. Indeed, an organization can bounce back but it’s never quite the same.
Sometimes there is not enough time or funding to allow for employees to attend training workshops. The homegrown approach is definitely applicable within our organization. There are some talents that other might not have. For instance, there are those that have the ability to talk to irritable patrons/customers and to de-escalate a situation; technical proficiency, etc. These talents can be shared in brief 15 minute snippets here and there. However, there needs to be managerial buy-in in order for the employees to utilize their training time together most efficiently. The manager must be willing to allow them uninterrupted time to train.
A particular point that was addressed is whether an organization wants a body or a skills set. Anyone can fill in someone else’s shoes but in order to serve the customers in the best way possible, a certain level of knowledge is essential. Competencies established by various organizations, such as the Ohio Library Council, can provide guidelines in order to lay the groundwork for required skill sets within an organization. (OLC’s core competencies can be found here.)
I have submitted on the Intranet a discussion to see how the Reference/Adult Services department can tackle the issues of institutional knowledge loss and skill set building. It would be optimal for those to take the initiative and seek out those that would be willing to share their knowledge. However, what would stop a co-worker from approaching another colleague in the hopes of establishing a knowledge partnership? Buddying up with another colleague that may be lacking in certain areas not only will provide the worker with an opportunity for growth but it will also increase knowledge share across the board, thereby enabling and empowering employees to provide the best service possible to our patrons/customers.

Overall, I had a great time at my first Convention and Expo. I had been to the previous sectional conferences and found them to be very useful for professional development. The Ohio Library Council is a worthwhile organization for any Ohio library professional and I'm proud to be a member.

Ohio Library Council

I'm heading down to Columbus, Ohio for the Ohio Library Council Convention and Expo. This will be my first Expo since they switched to a biennial format.
I'm pretty excited to be going since I would like to be more active within OLC. I've stepped up my activity level within ALA and would like to act locally as well.
I'm going to be attending a good number of the Library/Web 2.0 workshops as well as "You Offer Me Nothing": Serving Next Generation Patrons. I am still chomping at the bit to try out anything related to Library/Web 2.0. I'd even be willing to train people. Getting institutional buy-in can be difficult in any organization. Is it worse in libraries? I'm not sure. I know that libraries ought to be at the forefront of this movement and yet so many libraries balk at just *trying* something different. If the library is an established center of a community, why not expand and strengthen that "market share" by exploring avenues where other patrons are already investigating? By no means did I wish to turn this into a rant about slow to change libraries and their bullet holes in their feet. An up and coming blog on that is exploring Library 2.0 is Library Alchemy. I've been intrigued by this since this librarian is at a major metropolitan library and it is interesting to see how it's playing out there.
Speaking of playing out, I need to head out. See you in Columbus!

Surveys: Wikipedia at your Library/Technology Access Issues

A number of surveys are being floated around and I would encourage you to participate in them, that is, if you work in libraries.
Surveys help our colleagues better assess our services and allow us to provide supporting statements for services currently used and potential future services.

I received an email earlier today regarding a survey being conducted by Duke University Libraries:

Wikipedia. Love it or hate it? We want to know how librarians are using Wikipedia. Please help us find out.

The Use of Wikipedia by Librarians survey is a research study investigating how librarians are using Wikipedia in their daily work.

Please take 10-15 minutes to participate in the Use of Wikipedia by Librarians survey at this url:
Survey link.

Additionally, the Free Range Librarian posted this to PUBLIB:

A national survey of public library computer and Internet access was mailed to public libraries early September 2007. The study is funded by the American Library Association and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and conducted by researchers from Florida State University's Information Use Management and Policy Institute, and builds on research conducted since 1994. More information on this project is available at http://www.ala.org/plinternetfunding/, including the recently released report based on the 2006 survey many of you completed.

Your participation in the survey provides public libraries, state library agencies, the American Library Association, policymakers, and others with extremely important data regarding public library computer and Internet access issues, the services and resources you make available to users (e.g., e-government, databases, digital reference, etc.), what it takes to sustain public access computer and Internet services in your library, and the impacts of such public access services on the communities that your library serves.

You may access the survey at http://survey.pnmi.com - The survey is web-based and has a total of 21 questions that will take you about 40 minutes to complete. PLEASE COMPLETE THE SURVEY BY NOVEMBER 25, 2007.

You will need your state assigned Library ID code included in the survey announcement letter you received to initiate the survey. If you have lost that ID number, you can look it up on the survey site. If you have any questions, or need further assistance, please e-mail PL2007@ci.fsu.edu.