Libraries in the era of Austerity Measures

With companies collapsing, homes foreclosed, massive lay-offs, factories closing, homelessness, divorces, millages failing, tax bases eroding, budget cuts, and so on, the questions now arising are:

(1) how can libraries survive?
(2) how can libraries contribute to the recovery of the economy?
(3) how can libraries help with the retooling, reskilling, and re-education of the society to be able to take advantage of the jobs of the future, especially the green economy?

Libraries will have to rethink how they do business and also, how they raise funds.

First is for libraries to assess their SWOT = strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Second, libraries will have to practise opportunity costs whereby they will forgo some services for another and merging of departments that compliments each other. For example, merge your Business & Finance department with your Science & Technology and patent department as one-stop shop for entrepreneurship utilizing your ideas.

Third make a list of what you want, and see as most important, and have your Friends Foundation or any other foundation go after the funds for them.

Fourth, have an amnesty for outstanding fines. Either total clearing of patron/customer's record or make a bargain of reduction of fines owed. Pay what you can afford or cut in half if you return the material.

Fifth, start an Endowment Fund, which will keep growing long after the economy has picked up. Cut your budget to what is most important and look for grants and partnership with the stakeholders.

Libraries may have to encourage early retirements and/or buy-outs, not fill open positions, freeze hiring new employees, promote from within, and close some branches [if you have many of them]. Pay cuts across the board to forestall having to lay off staff.

Libraries can offer classes for the following: computer applications, resume creations, interview techniques, literacy initiative to help those who cannot read or have problem reading, and how to surf the Internet and search for jobs on it.

Retooling and reskilling of layed off workers will involve the above mentioned initiatives and conducting workshops on options for them that would utilize their current skills and learning of new skills to enable them take advantage of emerging markets/economies. Invite some speakers that have some experiences,especially successful entrepreneurs, to come in and speak. Have experts on home foreclosures come in and give advice on how to afford it and how to come out of it.

Libraries can make use of the homeless to patrol the restrooms after training them . This is already being done in Philadelphia. This is done in collaboration with the Homeless Shelters.

Libraries can organize a bunch of how to start your own business with a kit for it - business plans and so on. This can be done in partnership with local Chamber of Commerce and Community colleges.

What say you?

Delivery of Service in the age of Social Networks

With the advent of social networks, libraries are faced with how to deliver services to its patrons/customers who are using these new technologies. These new networks includes, but not limited to, Facebook; Twitter; MySpace, Crush; Text Messages; iPod, MP3, Blogs, cellphones; Wiki, blackberries, etc.

The question is how can libraries take advantage of these and be able to provide reference service, circulation of materials, ready-reference and so on?

With the digital divide, which makes it impossible for most low-income families to have access to the Internet not to talk to these tech gizmo, can the libraries really deliver? With the budget crunch hitting the libraries is this the way to go for the future? Are these helpful to the libraries or are they harmful to the libraries?

Methinks that libraries should be in the forefront of taking advantage of these social network. Already most of our professional associations are present there. Most of us are on it and have used them to either connect or reconnect with former classmate, ex-lovers, former co-workers, family and so on.

Libraries can dedicate a librarian or two to answers question generated from these social networks if/when the library chooses to invest in delivery of service to those networks. Libraries must be ready to invest some money in upgrading their technology, especially bandwidths in order to handle the huge flow of information over the networks.

Libraries can start with wiki and text messages and migrate from there. I know that there would the problem of security but that can be taken care of by the IT Department.

If libraries engage in these service deliveries,would that reduce the amount of traffic to the library itself? To some extent. YES! But to another it is a NO for people will still need to come in to actually check out the books, unless, of course, it is an eBook or eJournal.

What say you?

Programs at the libraries

My department at the library has been doing many programs geared towards the public utilizing our collection. These programs are used as vehicles to advertize what is in our collection and how library patrons/customers can take advantage of them.

Program titles included, but not limited to, Small Gardening; Patent Your Million Dollar Idea; Quilting 101; How to Enter and Present Your Best Science Fair Project; Weatherization & Energy Conservation; African-American Health Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow; Mathematics; Skywarning; Winter Weather Hazard; Tuskegee Airmen; Investment Club; Small business, etc.

We have always had great attendance and feel proud to be the pacesetter in organizing and executing some of the best programs at our Main library outside of our Special Collections and the Childen's Library departments.

In addition, each month a colleagues set out a table display of books, props and other materials highlighting a particular subject or season such as Tea, Men's Health, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Mathematics, Women's Health, Computer, Black History Month, Winter, Fitness, Gardening, Quilting, Moon, Science Fair and Cooking.

The way we go about choosing our program is for someone to come up with an idea, look for a presenter [mainly someone from outside with good knowledge of the subject - sometimes an honourium is involved], submit a program request to our service director for approval, submit flyer designs and publicity request to our Marketing department, request patrons/customer call in to reserve a seat, request poster advertisement, provide refreshments [they are the stuff that draws the crowd], reserve a room or use the departmental space [we have a large reading room of which we use a section], and reserve all the technical aids.

Anyone who has other topic ideas of programs, improvements or can offer success program stories, please .

Librarian as a Library Security Administrator.

Should a Librarian be appointed a Library Security Administrator? If so, what criteria will be used for that? What value and/or ideas does the Librarian bring to the job had s/she NOT being either a former Law Enforcement Officer or retired Military Personnel? Does it take away the professional growth of the Librarian?

These are pertinent questions that a friend of mine, who is a fellow Librarians, has since my friend'sappointment as the Coordinator of the Library's Security. Personally I think a librarian can contribute to the area of librarian management considering that most of us deal with security everyday at our various locations --- books & periodicals theft, book & periodicals vandalization, assault, child pornography, pedophiles, breaking & entry, computers missing, purses and handbags missing, etc.

I believe whoever is appointed into this position should be sent to some security and/or law enforcement training for familiarization, especially with the new technologies that are prevalent in the society. Also, the fact that libraries are considered safe haven for children, it is good that a librarian can be in this position.

What say you?

The future of Libraries!

I've always wondered what the future of libraries will be with the advent of the new technologies -- the Internet, Podcast, Wikki, MP3, iPod, Cellphones, WiFi, RFID, etc?

Will Librarians still be relevant in this age of wireless information transfer?

Will books still be relevant in this era of online publishing and so on?

Personally I do believe that books are here to stay!

Also, I believe that not everything can be scanned and put online. Some art cannot be scanned no matter the level of technology. Nothing beats having a book at hand to browse. In fact, I've discovered that lots of people still print out what they find online. When I asked most of them, "why?", they claimed that the monitors are bad for their eyes or that it was more convenient for them to read the paper copies.

Flipping through books can be exciting and fulfilling --- the touch, the pictures, the words, etc. I learn more and faster reading books than online.

Librarians are needed to teach people on how to navigate through the new information overload. Librarians are needed to index these new information and structure them for ease of use.

There are many Internet tools resources on the Internet. Librarians can help library patrons in utilizing these resources such as the location of an Internet services provider, browse the Internet to seek information, as well as information on how to cite Internet resources, Web browsers, current Internet trends such as Java script and Applets, and other miscellaneous resources such as Inter-networking ethics and policies, general shareware and public domain software. Also, Librarians can benefit from the Internet as tool for enhancing their profession such as trying to convert materials to Web format such as SGML, TEI, and HTML, Web page tools, etc.

Welcome!

I am a Librarian in one of the inner city libraries in the USA. This blog is an avenue for everyone to share their thoughts, experiences, ideas, travels, and background. I look forward to many contributors with their ideas, thoughts, experiences, travels, and background. Primarily, Librarians can learn from each other to navigate through our dynamic and changing profession, and new technologies. We will discuss how to take advantage of these tools and apply them to our profession while providing best practice customer service.