Innovation in libraries

Having recently read over the Art Council England report about innovation in libraries, I thought I would blog about it. Even though the project is based on public libraries, and I work in an academic one, I feel that the innovative projects could be transferred from one area to another. This is of particular interest to me and I feel there is a lot that can be learnt from different libraries as well as my current library is moving location.

This, I think would be an ideal time to alter processes, make them more effective and provide new services. It seems that all libraries at the moment are either having funding reviewed and maybe because of this or due to this there is an increased need for local communities to help with libraries.

One of the libraries that the report highlights is Delft Concept Library, DOK, in the Netherlands, which is basically a world leader on the types of services, facilities and design that it offers its users. Using mobile technology and gaming to help people use the library.

Some of the other services mentioned in the report and offered by UK and overseas libraries, are more main stream but done either in a more personalised manner or found innovative funding. Other innovative services which have been highlighted in the report include:

·         Digital Bazaar, run by volunteers for people who want to learn more about their technology device. Providing hands on experience for people to learn how to sell on eBay, how to make an online phone call to a member of family and how to download an eBook.

·         More technologically advanced projects have been the reading glove, fitted with RFID, where the wearer can choose the direction that there story takes. 

·         Door step library, building on the notion of mobile library service, but instead it is specifically aimed to low income families, who can borrow children’s from someone working at the library.

Joining ARLIS committee

This year has been a great year, professionally speaking. I have now been asked to join one of the ARLIS committee's- ARLIS is the art libraries society and I have become a member of the publication committee. I have to say I am really happy about this, I have wanted to branch out in to new areas of work and this is a great opportunity to be right at the middle of my subject specialism. Also it is starting to be expected of people where I work to have a large network of people you can ask for help etc. So this will be great for that too.

Not sure what I am more excited about- trips to London, living in Plymouth it is a bit of a trek to get over to London on a regular basis. Or the challenge of working on a publishing committee. Visiting the V and A!

Not 100 % sure what is expected of me at the moment, but I also think that in itself is exciting. I would be happy to work in any area of publication.  I have started thinking about projects I would like to work on, but I know I must not get carried away, as I haven't even been to a meeting yet and I have to be realist about what I can achieve in a short space of time.

I think it would be good for me to blog about what is happening during my ARLIS days. 

New CILIP regulations

With CILIP having changed there regulations, on obtaining chartership, I thought I would spend a few minutes to explain the changes. Firstly for MCLIP, they are going from 4 (or was it 5) down to 3. Plus making a clearer definition between each of the criterion.

The first Criteria deals with identifying there learning needs and reflect on the learning. This is made much easier with the introduction of Professional Knowledge and Skills Base.

The second criteria needs to show that they have examined their organization and shown an ability to improve the service. 

The third and final criteria needs to show an understanding of their wider professional context.

It sounds much easier but maybe because I have just had someone calmly explain this to me for near 6 hours and I don't need to put any of this in to practice.

There are loads of simple things that can be added in to tick off parts of the criteria. for each there needs to be 5-6 piece of evidence. 

Chartership and beyond

Tuesday I was able to attend the CILIP qualification session on the new regulations. Which first of all is a little confusing because as the trainer said achieving chartership is not a qualification. Which I thought it was, however it turns out it is actually demonstrating a level of achievement and commitment. But the day was good, I met some people I think who could be useful contact for the future. This is one of the reasons why I really enjoy these sessions, you mean people who are connected to your role or right on the edge of your role and they can be really useful in a certain situation as they have experience in a field that is not connected to your own.

The pace of the session was slow enough to write up notes but contained enough information for the session to hold the attention of people thinking about becoming ACLIP, MCLIP and the odd person like me who is thinking about becoming a mentor. 

Having completed my MCLIP, I now would like to give something back, if that makes sense and pay on the favor to another generation of librarians. My mentor was great with me, she was very supportive and everything that she made me do (which in the end I did do) was on the list of things that needed to be completed. Maybe I wasn't paying enough attention at the last session which I attended. 

My next step is to register as a mentor and get trained, I have already have 4 people say they would like to have me as a mentor, which is pretty amazing.

One thing that did positively annoy me was if someone with experience in a library now wants to go an get a chartership they need no previous qualifications, I am not saying I only want people with Masters to be librarians. I am not elitist and part of the first generation of my family to obtain a degree. Actually I am the highest qualified person in my family. Getting more people in to librarianship is a good idea, but I don't think making everyone a chartered librarian is the right way forward. Personally I think there sound be different awards depending on your qualifications and experience.

Chartership completion

Having completed my chartership about a month ago, after two years of struggling and battling with word counts. I have hand it in and last Friday I was contacted rather unspectacularly and told I have passed, or being successful in completing your chartership. So I am now Donna Gundry MCLIP. 

But working in education and post chartership manner of thinking, I am now wondering so what and what next. In terms of so what, I will now, fingers crossed, when I need to, be a more appealing candidate for another job position. As for what next, I want to move on to being a mentorfor for someone else. Hopefully more than one person. 

When I started working in a library 7 years ago, my manager was great at helping other people, so this would be my way of me continuing her ethos. Plus I want to see what it's like on the other side. My first library manager was a great woman who I a proud to say I worked alongside her. Sadly she passed away, 6 years ago. Paying a good deed forward was something she would have not only approved of but welcomed.

One thing my chartership has told me, is stopping every now and again and reflecting on what you have done is a good idea. Not just at new year and your annual performance appraisal. 

UKlibchat

Last night for the first time in ages I managed to catch #uklibchat, usually I join #chartershipchat, as I have just submitted my chartership, but I fancied a change. Uklibchat is a twitter conversation between library professionals, we met roughly once a month. Last nights session was really good. We discussed the definition of users, who are the users. For me it's a closed group, the staff and students that are at the college. An easy one to start with.

Customer service and barriers to delivering this. Coming from a retail background customer service is back ending a shift exhausted having helping everyone else. Maybe that is a bit extreme, but customer service is about putting the customer first, stopping that conversation and dealing with the customer. Personally I hate to ask where something else in a shop and if I then get a rude person telling me I am likely not to bother buying the product. Good customer care is shared, you normally tell someone about it. Working in education where students have to pay a massive amount to attend, someone recently told me students are paying £35 per day to attend, so give them what they deserve.

Barriers to providing good customer care- staff personality, work load and not being able to give students what they want due to budget or conflicting strategy plans of the department. I have to say reading success at the enquiry desk by Tim Owen, dated by very good for training sessions.  I must have used this book twice, maybe three sessions.

Online users experience, a decent website needs to have the content written by the librarian, a web designer to make everything pretty and a web developer to make it actually work. Technology not working, due to IT issues is one of my biggest problems when teaching students. Luckily I have a decent relationship with the IT department and they are use to no body ever saying something works well.

Article update

Having spent time researching my topic for my article of information literacy, and read far and wide on the topic, I have started with a bang.

At the moment my article is still in the draft stage, but I have early results from my third years. All I need to do now is write the questionnaire for my first and second years. Then I should be pretty much there.

I have to say I am feeling pretty happy about my article, I think it is too long, but I could write a book on information literacy. I've researched, created the FE and HE programme for the college and shared it as best practice to another institution.