Modern-day library managers face new challenges

Imagine yourself in charge of an institution that's changing fast. Your staff needs to learn new skills. They also need to be able to teach and use the new skills creatively for the institution.

This is a situation many library managers face today. Libraries used to be about books and other items printed on paper. The books and paper are still there, but now there are CDs, DVDs, Web sites, online databases, downloadable audio books, electronic games and more. Add to the mix the Internet and the fact that libraries are now in the content generation business. In days of yore, libraries managed material written by others. Now, libraries are reaching out to their communities with content written by library staffers and community members. Libraries aspire to be hubs of community conversations and dialogues in person and online.

But I digress. Back to the library where you are in charge and staffers need help in bringing their skills up to date. Some staff members love computers and are comfortable with Internet 2.0 features including blogging, tagging, and managing photos. Others are not interested, and frankly, not very good at learning about these new ways to work.

In 2006, Helene Blowers, then public services technology director for the Public Library of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County in Charlotte, N.C., found herself in just this position. Building on her belief that the "Big L" in library work was not about "library" but about "learning," Blowers created a program that makes learning fun. Called "Learning 2.0: 23 Things," it's an online discovery program designed to encourage library staff to explore new technologies. Since 2006, the program has been copied and used as a model for similar programs in hundreds of libraries worldwide.

Twenty-three Things is a nine week, web-based tutorial allowing learners to proceed at their own pace. Each of the "things" is a new computer application or tool. Libraries adopting this program establish a deadline for completing the program usually a little longer than the nine weeks of the program. Staffers completing the program get prizes.

You can have a look at the original 23 Things from the PLCMC Web site at plcmcl2-things.blogspot.com. Each week features a group of web tools to master. For example, week two is blogging, week three is photos and images, and week four is RSS and Newsreaders. Tagging, wikis, podcasts and other Web tools are covered in subsequent weeks. Play weeks are mixed in for fun and for practice.

I quizzed Blowers about giving staffers prizes for learning a skill essential for job security.

"It's a carrot" she said. "It's a motivator and it gets a little buzz going about the whole project. At PLCMC each person completing the program received an MP3 player. All the names were entered into a drawing for a laptop at the end of the program. We also encouraged our learners to blog about their experience as they learned. We wanted to change the culture of the organization. Together these efforts helped achieve that."

Staff at the Skokie Public Library adopted a version of the program as have staff at the Park Ridge Public Library and the Schaumburg Township District Library. All report good results. In a Skokie Public Library staff survey at the program's conclusion, 95 percent indicated the experience "encouraged communication among co-workers." Additionally, 72. percent responded that they enjoyed their experience, and 91.7 percent said they would "do more online learning on a voluntary basis" if given the opportunity.

For more about the "23 Things" listen to my podcast interview with Helene Blowers at www.librarybeat.org.

ˆ Sarah Long is director of the North Suburban Library System. Send an e-mail to slong@nsls.info.