WilsWorld – Big Changes, Big Rewards
UW Oshkosh Polk Library
What is so obvious that we should be doing?
Why do we only concentrate on doing things right?
Don’t just do things right, do the right things.
Big Challenges identified in 2010
Technology services
Electronic resources management
Information Literacy
Distance learning
In 2 Years
2 staff budget lines not funded
Staff shrank from 26 to 24
5 new Position descriptions created
7 existing positions altered
Tried to make the best of large period of change
Big Results in Technology
Library Technology Services Department – not a single person
Time to develop and innovate
Leader on campus and beyond
Big Results in Electronic Resources Management
Better coordination from start to finish with fewer people touching it
Better customer service and response time to issues
Clearer responsibility
ERMS – CORAL : Electronic resources management system
Big Results in Information Literacy
New University Studies program
Dedicated librarian for information literacy on campus
Increase in instructional sessions
ANVIL – information literacy modules for video and assessment modeled on bar games; platform has been open sourced recently
Big Results in Distance Education
Enhanced support for Nursing and Life Long Learning
New emphasis by College of Business with focus on providing majority of course material on Kindles
Big change was inevitable!
Learn from mistakes
All staff and areas are critical to big change
Very easy for people who aren’t part of the flashy new services to feel left out, but they are critical to the success of the changes.
Innovation can happen in a time of reduced funding. You don’t need additional resources.
Where can you reduce your effort. Where do you need to put more effort.
Beloit College
Doing more with less since 2008 with loss of one staff position out of staff of 10
In 2011, doing incremental changes
ILS changes needed to keep functioning
Growth in use of archival program
Tight space issues on campus
New curriculum being launched
Change in use of summers
Staff retirements
Donor funded new position
Surprise staff departure in 2012
Recruited in 2013: Collections coordinator, Digital archivist and Consulting librarian
Accelerated ILS changes
How?
Environmental monitoring
Participation
Communication
Focus on community goals
Balance efforts to match outcomes
Prompts, reminders and accountability
Rewards
Streamlined operations and collection management workflows
New digital archives program
Increased capacity for one-on-one support
Reconnecting with campus on new ways
Created workgroups for core processes
Faster work pace and higher energy, developing higher confidence for team
Madison Public Library
Renovated Central Library at same time as new director
First six months learned about organization and community
Changed policy to allow food and drink in all libraries
If you have 100% buy in, you aren’t making a big enough change.
Brought back All Staff Day
Changed Mission and Vision statements
Building had already been completely designed but added Makerspace to ground floor instead of regular meeting room
Needed to engage all of community on many different levels and that involved staff
Allow staff to explore, try things, and create connections in community
It’s about risk not change which happens anyway. Risk had to be promoted. Challenge staff to fail.
You won’t be successful without a couple of really good failures. If you aren’t risking failure, you aren’t moving the library forward enough.
Opportunities for people in their 20s and 30s – local bands, cocktails, art openings, etc.
They return and see the value in the library
Started doing more private functions at the library with more after hours events
15 weddings, corporate events
Collaborative environment
Libraries in past developed the content but want to offer platform to allow community to create content
44 albums of local music with licensed music
Creating history of music in Madison
