PVLD Director's Blog

Tough times for libraries

I just got back from the Public Libraries Association conference in Portland, and while I enjoyed the sessions and came back with some new ideas, I'm definitely less pumped up than I have been by previous PLA conferences.

Upon reflection, I think that the continued and severe budget pressures that all libraries, including PVLD, are facing had a big impact.  I'm usually a "let's try it" kind of person, but it's hard to get enthusiastic about new ideas for library services or programs when you know that your staff is already stretched thin just sustaining what you are already doing.  It's also hard to sustain enthusiasm about the wonderful programs and initiatives highlighted in the formal conference sessions when the informal hallway conversations are about the truly drastic budget cuts many libraries are having to make, the layoff notices that many Directors were going home to issue, or the news that a fellow Southern California Library Director had been laid off along with that library's heads of both Adult Services and Children's Services. 

Here at PVLD we have been, and continue to be, relatively fortunate however the longer the economic downturn drags on the more financial challenges we face. 

When I arrived back at work yesterday one of my first tasks was to review the "first reading" budget that we will be presenting to our Board of Trustees next week. We rely on local property taxes for over 85% of our revenue, and are projecting that there will be NO growth in property tax revenue in either 2010/2011 or 2011/2012.  Combine flat revenues with rising expenses, particularly the "salaries and related" expenses that make up over 70% of our cost structure, and we are facing a projected $83,000 deficit in 2010/2011 and a very scary $500,000 deficit in 2011/2012.

We've faced this situation before, and managed to find ways to survive through cost-cutting and implementing new revenue sources like the Passport Service, but after two years of cutting expenses (including a 40% reduction in our budget for library materials) and stretching staff to generate more revenue through initiative like expanded Passport Service hours and a new exam proctoring service, we have pretty much exhausted the "easier" options.

I'm pretty sure that as we progress through the Second and Third Readings of the budget we will find a way to close next year's $83,000 gap by making some hard choices like freezing all current/future vacant positions, eliminating all external conferences and training, and cutting the budget for library materials even more.

What is keeping me awake at night is thinking about what we will do if there truly is no increase in revenue in 2011/2012.  In many organizations reductions in revenue are the result of, or are accompanied by, reductions in demand for services or products.  The opposite is true of libraries.

Demand for our services grows in tough economic times, even though our revenue doesn't...and our staff has been working hard to sustain, and even improve, our services despite the budget cuts we have made.  It is hard to see a solution that doesn't penalize the community members who need our services now more than ever and/or the staff that is working so hard to meet that need. 

I am pinning my hopes on the amazing work that has been done by our staff and volunteers to help us make it through the last couple of challenging years, my belief that by working together we will find a way through the even more challenging years ahead, and the knowledge that as tough as times might get PVLD will still be in much better shape than almost any other public library in California. 

These are tough times indeed, but I remain hopeful that we will make it through without major damage....

Ideas for the Miraleste Library

I am at the Public Library Association conference and this morning I heard a presentation by the King County Library System that inspired me to think that we could go a long way to addressing the issues at the Miraleste Library with an interior remodel perhaps combined with implementing the driveway and parking solutions of our expansion plan.

King Count built five new libraries all the same size as Miraleste (6000 sq ft) and with a very similar footprint and basic interior layout as the Miraleste Library. They have done a great job of maximizing the available space. They have agreed to send me floor plans and photos to share with PVLD Trustees, staff and voluntters but I thought I would share a few of the concepts here:

Each has an area that can be used as either core library space or meeting room/program space. These areas are basically one end of the building (about where the librarian's office is now, and have flexible furniture (e.g. folding tables, chairs on casters, sturdy but lightweight. The area is totally open to the main library space but can be closed off using sliding or "garage" doors. Many of them also have a 2 ft wide "technology bar" built along one wall with a continuous power strip and high stool so people can use it with their laptops when the space is not being used for meetings or programs.

When the space is used for meetings or programs the furniture can be tucked under the technology counter.

Many of these libraries have laptop loan programs to minimize the need for fixed workstations, which consume a lot of floor space. Where they do have fixed public computers they also use the technology bar concept (like what we've done at the Annex) to minimize space consumed.

There are essentially no interior walks in the main public area. They used carpet, furniture/shelves and paint/color schemes to delineate adult vs kids vs teen space and strategically placed clusters of wing-backed armchairs to creat quiet reading area (so the chair itself and it's position relative to the outside wall create a reading nook).

Public catalog computers have a flat screen and keyboard but a hidden CPU to minimze space requirements.

The Circulation and Reference desks are located in the same place near the library entrance and have a very small footprint ("what the staff needs but no more"). Each desk is height adjustable to meet ergonomic needs.

All furniture is movable and they try to minimize shelf height. Collections are very focused and they really promote inter-library delivery of materials on request via holds.

I also attended another program on innovative service models that gave me some ideas for extending our services throughout the community at lower costs including small satellite locations with a heavy emphasis on self service (self checkout, hold pickup, etc.) and book and movie dispensing machines...see the photo!

One idea we really should look at is a laptop dispensing machine that allows people to rent laptops using their credit card. The machine charges by the hour (as little as $3.95/hr( and when each laptop is returned it wipes the hard drive and automatically preps it for the next rental with no staff intervention.

Lots of food for thought!

Deformation Professionelle

Last week I was introduced to the term "deformation professionelle" in a post by Hilary Davis on the always thought-provoking blog In the Library With The Lead Pipe.  The post quotes the Wikipedia definition of the term -

Déformation professionnelle is a French phrase, meaning a tendency to look at things from the point of view of one’s own profession and forget a broader perspective. It is a pun on the expression “formation professionnelle,” meaning “professional training.” The implication is that all (or most) professional training results to some extent in a distortion of the way the professional views the world.

Now I can't get the term or the idea out of my mind! This past Sunday I read this opinion piece about the value of school libraries in the Los Angeles Times, and while one part of my brain was saying "right on!" another part of my brain was wondering "How much of this argument is grounded in objective fact, and how much in what we librarians want to be true? At a time when public schools are under intense budget pressure, is funding for school libraries more important than class size or access to textbooks?" 

This internal debate brought to mind Seth Godin's terrific post on What every mass marketer needs to learn from Groucho Marx, where he writes about what happens when people no longer value your product or service the way they once did.  I encourage your to read the whole post, but what really struck me was his description of how the response to a changing market is often to want to educate the market - to try to convince them of the value of what you are offering.  His conclusion -

Fixing this is almost always a losing battle. Just because you're good at something doesn't mean the market cares any longer.

Ouch! What if that is the reality of the situation for school librarians today?  If Seth Godin is right, they need to "find a market that will respect and pay for the work you can do".

Not an easy challenge....and one that will require them to step outside their deformation professionelle.  

And I'm not picking on school librarians.  The world of information and reading is changing rapidly, and public librarians also face the challenge of identifying what we can offer that our communities will value and support with their funding, and then doing it again and again as the environment and the "market" change. 

Maybe, as was posited by StephenB of Deisgning Better Libraries in his post reflecting on the Seth Godin "Groucho Marx" post, the future is one of serving niche markets -

"Want to get help finding information from a skilled human – that’s the library’s niche. Want to get access to highly specialized information products – that’s the library’s niche. Want to build a relationship with someone who can recommend books and movies – that’s the library’s niche. Want to have a caring person read a story to your children – that’s the library’s niche."

...although I have to confess that when I went back and read Seth Godin's description of niche markets, which included the markets for bespoke laptop PCs and for vaudeville entertainment, I have to wonder how many niches we would have to fill to create a large enough total market to sustain our funding needs.

I don't know what the answer is, but I do know that the world around us and the expectations of the people we serve continue to change...and that we can't afford to let our vision be limited by our deformation professionelle. 

And with that I'm off to the semi-annual Public Library Association conference in Portland, OR where despite the deformation professionelle (can you tell that I love that term?) that is sure to be omnipresent, I hope to get many ideas to help move our PVLD libraries into the future.

Unplugging

For the past year or so I've been trying to stay away from communications technology (phone, cell phone, email, Facebook) for at least a few hours each Sunday with variable success.  I generally manage to spend at least a few hours walking the beach, working in the yard, or just taking a siesta untethered from modern communications, but I rarely make it through a full day.

I know that I am not alone in my addiction to my Iphone, or in my quest for some unconnected time, but I didn't realize it was a national movement until several of the blogs I follow had posts about a National Day of Unplugging being promoted by a very cool online movement called The Sabbath Manifesto.  Essentially they are encouraging everyone to "Put down the cell phone, stop the status updates on Facebook, shut down Twitter, sign out of e-mail and relax" for 24 hours starting at sundown tonight.

My plans for tomorrow will make it difficult for me to participate, so I intend to defer my participation by 24 hours and give it a go on Sunday.  Who knows, maybe this will kick-start me into a weekly day of unplugging...and maybe some of you will join me.

In that spirit I offer two quotes to inspire all of us  -

The first, from Annie Dillard via the Blisstree blog -

    “Spend the afternoon. You can’t take it with you.”

And from Nicholas Bate via the Execupundit blog -

Sometimes it is remarkably productive to NOT "be productive."

Here's to an unproductive weekend for all!

Slow Librarian - A New Movement?

Last week my colleague Derek Wolfgram had several posts on Facebook about the potential for a "slow librarian" movement along the lines of the Slow Food movement.  He even posted a link to this great blog  from the International Institute of Not Doing Much.

I've long been someone with good intentions about slowing down and simplifiying my life but whose  multitaksing and jam-packed schedule reflect little success in this endeavor, so Derek's post really resonated with me and has been in the back of my mind all week.

I know I am not alone in finding it difficult to slow down enough to  get quality time to think (you just have to look at the variable quality of my blog posts to see that) or spend time with my husband, family and friends.  This is born out by the big response from other colleagues to Derek's post, by reading the monthly reports from our PVLD department managers who seem to cram more activity and accomplishment into every month, and by other colleagues such as Huntington Beach Library Director Stephanie Beverage who this morning posted a Facebook status report listing all of the library and community meetings and events she has scheduled this week. 

Every life change, and every big movement, starts with a single action so today I am actually trying to practice being a Slow Librarian (or maybe it is a Slow Library Director).  With two appointments scheduled near my home at opposite ends of the day, I grabbed the opportunity to work from home in between.  Right now I am sitting on my patio working on paperwork while enjoying the view of my yard, the scent of the blossoms on the Valencia orange tree next to the patio, and the sound of the birds.

I'm getting plenty of work done, but it has been punctuated by a trip out to the garden to pick snow peas for dinner tonight and frequent visits from a hummingbird who likes to swoop through the patio en route to fthe bird bath and peach blossoms in the garden.  Later I'm looking forward to some thinking time while I ride my bike to my afternoon dentist's appointment, and then being home to cook a nice dinner for Don instead of our usual mad dash to put something passably healthy together after we both get home.

A day like this isn't possible very often, but is amazingly reinvigorating when I can make it happen.  That's why I encourage the PVLD Managers to work from home once in a while, and why I think we need a Slow Librarian movement like the one Derek proposes. 

I'd love to hear from you.  What does it mean to be a Slow Librarian?  How do you slow down?  What needs to change in our libraries to make them more conducive to slowing down?  Any other thoughts?

Getting Motivated

The past few weeks its been harder than usual to get motivated, so I appreciated seeing this post from my friend Genesis Hansen.  Genesis is currently reading Drive by Daniel Pink and shared this quote from Dr. J that she found in the book -

"Being a professional is doing the things you love to do, on the days you don’t feel like doing them."

What a great reminder!

This week Stephen Abram posted this great video by Dan Pink - two simple questions, but a great motivational boost - 

 

Two questions that can change your life from Daniel Pink on Vimeo.

I've been a Dan Pink fan since I saw him speak at a conference a couple of years ago, and his The Adventures of Johnny Bunko is on my list of best books for graduating college students and young professionals.  Now I can't wait to read Drive when my turn in the hold queue comes up.

Happy Friday!

Libraries Are Good for Business

Late last year PVLD launched the Zerunyan Center for Business, Entrepreneurship and Community Development , intended to be the hub of our services for the business community.  It is also PVLD's first foray into public/private partnerships, in this case between the Library District, local City Council Member Frank Zerunyan, and local corporate and individual sponsors.

The Center is still small, and we have had our share of growing pains as we work through all of the issues associated with bringing new partners with new perspectives (and in some cases a lack of understanding of what we already do) into "our" library world, integrating operation of the center with other library activities and programs, integrating fundraising for the Center with our other fundraising efforts, and identifying which programs and services are most needed by our local business community.

At the same time it has been very rewarding to see how the community, and particularly the business community, has responded.  Apart from enabling the library to expand its services, the Center has also been a means of attracting new library supporters and donors who see (maybe for the first time) that the library is doing something that is directly relevant for them.

I have been wrestling with both how to work through the growing pains and capitalize on the opportunities that the Zerunyan Center presents, so I was excited to come across this Kiplinger article on how "Libraries Are Building Business Buzz" on Friday. 

Apart from great ideas for services for business, it was interesting that the library examples in the article all seemed to be primarily publicly funded, albeit with support from donors.  None of the business centers seemed to be the kind of comprehensive public/private partnership that we have envisioned...no wonder we are having growing pains!

Growing pains aside, I was pleased to see a national publication like Kiplinger's confirm that we are on the right track as we grow our services for business.  In addition to the Zerunyan Center with its dedicated space, collection of business-related materials, and planned outreach programs we offer a variety of business-oreinted online databases; "quiet study" rooms that are used by local business people for small meetings; rent our larger conference and community rooms for use by businesses and business organizations as well as the non-profit community; Notary, scanning, copying and other services of interest to the business community; and are about to launch a new business networking website for our local community.

The article gave me renewed energy for tackling our Business Center issues and continuing to grow our business services...a shot in the arm at just the right time!

Going digital - the world is changing

Going through some saved posts from other blogs I came across a some interesting data about the proliferation of digital technology.  All are courtesy of Stephen Abram at Stephen's Lighthouse -

First, from Forbes Magazine  The Decade in Data by Oliver Chiang:

–Percentage of U.S. households with a broadband connection in 2000: 6.3%
–Percentage of U.S. households with a broadband connection in 2008: 63%
–Number of e-mails sent per day in 2000: 12 billion
–Number of e-mails sent per day in 2009: 247 billion
–Revenues from mobile data services in the first half of 2000: $105 million
–Revenues from mobile data services in the first half of 2009: $19.5 billion
–Number of text messages sent in the U.S. per day in June 2000: 400,000
–Number of text messages sent in the U.S. per day in June 2009: 4.5 billion
–Percentage of U.S. households with at least one digital camera in 2000: 10%
–Percentage of U.S. households with at least one digital camera in 2008: 68.4%
–Percentage of U.S. households with at least one MP3 player in 2000: less than 2%
–Percentage of U.S. households with at least one MP3 player in 2008: almost 43%
–Number of pages indexed by Google in 2000: 1 billion
–Number of pages indexed by Google in 2008: 1 trillion
–Number of Google searches per day in 2001: 10 million
–Number of Google searches in 2009: 300 million, estimated
–Number of total Wikipedia entries in 2001: 20,000
–Number of Wikipedia entries in English in 2009: 3.1 million
–Number of blogs in 2000: less than 100,000
–Number of blogs 2008: 133 million
–Minimum free hard-disk space needed to install Windows 2000: 650 megabytes
–Minimum available hard-disk space needed to install Windows 7: 16,000 megabytes (16 gb)
–Amount of hard-disk space $300 could buy in 2000: 20 to 30 gigabytes
–Amount of hard-disk space $300 could buy in 2009: 2,000 gigabytes (2 terabytes)

And some videos that make the point that the world truly is changing -
 

JESS3 / The State of The Internet from JESS3 on Vimeo.

And last but not least, a tongue in cheek look at one of the effects! (I can't seem to get the cartoon to size properly, so click here for the original)

Have a great weekend!

Netflix Customer Service - what our competition is up to

I've written before about Netflix and whether a Netflix-style service and/or fee structure could be implemented by libraries, but my husband and I only became Netflix customers ourselves about a month ago. 

We both work in public libraries, so it is not as if we don't have access to free/low-cost (PVLD charges a modest rental fee for movies and my husband's library supplements its movie collection with a rental collection purchased by the Friends of the Library) but even library insiders like us found many shortcomings with using the library as our source of movie entertainment.  If we just browsed the shelves often we found that recent titles we wanted to see were checked out, and if we placed items on hold they invariably became available at a time when we could not watch them.  Add to that the difficulty of finding TV series discs in the order in which they should be viewed and we decided to take the plunge and try Netflix.

We signed up for the "one movie at a time" plan (we can have one movie at a time, but unlimited movies in a month) and despite initial concerns about how to manage our "queue" of requested movies so that got titles when we were in the mood to see that particular move so far our expectations have been exceeded.

Netflix' back-end systems and arrangements with the post office mean that it is usually only 2 to 3 days from the time we drop one disc into the mail until we receive the next.  We can drop a movie into a neighborhood mailbox on Saturday, get an email time-stamped on Sunday that it has been received, and have the next movie arrive on Monday!  One time we got an email survey asking us to tell them when a movie had arrived, and it had arrived the day BEFORE the earliest date indicated on the survey!

We also have always been able to get the item at the top of our queue when we wanted it.  I can only assume that Netflix' inventory is both broad and deep.

Finally, we had an experience this week that made me realize that Netflix has paid as much attention to its customer service systems as it has to its inventory and delivery systems.  On Saturday morning I dropped a Netflix envelope containing the last DVD we had watched into our usual neighborhood mailbox.  On Monday morning we received an email from Netflix saying that they had received the envelope and DVD sleeve, but no DVD.  The email gave an online option for reporting a lost DVD, aND also a six-digit code to be used when calling customer service.  I was certain that the DVD had been in the envelope when I dropped it in the mailbox, so I called their customer service number.  The recorded message said the wait time would be up to five minutes, but that if I entered the six digit code it would be shorter.  I entered the code, and a live US-based operator came on the line within a minute.  I told him that I was sure I had mailed the DVD, he responded that it was "no problem, sometimes things go missing in transit" and told me he would report the DVD as missing and then go ahead and send the next item in our queue.

Almost immediately I got an email saying

We're sorry to hear that Herb and Dorothy was lost in the mail. Unfortunately discs do go missing during shipment from time to time, so it is our policy to accommodate for the occasional disc lost during shipment. According to our records, you have reported the following disc(s) as lost in the mail:

Date Reported  Title

03/01/10   Herb and Dorothy

If we receive any of these movie(s) from the post office, we'll let you know as soon as they arrive.

If you've requested a replacement copy, it will be shipped to you as soon as possible, otherwise, your next movie should be on its way soon. We apologize for the inconvenience.

-The Netflix Team

Within five minutes the issue was handled.  No need for lengthy explanations, no delaying our next movie until this issue was resolved, no "lost item" charge, no making me feel like I was the one who had done wrong. 

I think it will be some time before we have library systems that are capable of handling the logistics of a true Netflix-style service, and I question whether the needed investment in technology, inventory and delivery mechanisms will ever make it financially feasible in the public-library environment....BUT I do think we could learn a thing or two about customer service from how Netflix handled my issue.

What if our default position was NOT to charge for a lost item?  What if every time a customer reported a lost item they got a nice email like the one above?  What if instead calling a missing item a "Claims returned" implying the customer is claiming one thing but we don't really believe it we called it "gone missing" or some other term that reflects the likelihood that the problem is ours not the customers?

Food for thought....