Innovative Libraries: Tales from the Stacks

1. Innovative Libraries:Tales from the Stacks Jill Hurst-Wahl Christina K. Pikas Hurst Associates, Ltd. The Johns Hopkins Univ. Applied Physics Laboratory www.hurstassociates.com/ppt/cil2007_d203.ppt

2. Agenda • Why is This Study Important? • Research Methods • What Our Participants Told Us • Conclusions • Advice From Participants • Q&A

3. Background • 2006: Failing to Innovate: Not an Option • Need to innovative to remain relevant • Could be driven by community needs • Formal processes exist, but… • 2007: Pikas & Hurst-Wahl • What could be learned from library leaders? • Are there useful tales from the stacks?

4. What is Innovation? The creation of a new process or product resulting from study and experimentation.  The successful implementation of creativity.  It combines free thinking and brainstorming with careful planning, execution, and evaluation of results.

5. Why is this study Important? • The need for real-world analysis on library mgmt. support for innovation • Pressure from all sides to innovate • Seemingly insurmountable barriers • The desire to know how successful library managers understand • The role of staff, structure and funding in library innovation • The role of the “user” in innovation

6. Methods • Why Qualitative Research? • We wanted to know best practices • Lack of data to compile useful survey • We wanted in-depth information • Make the invisible, visible:  librarians frequently don't take credit and brag about themselves!

7. Methods • Purposeful sample • Semi-structured interview, flexible • Most by phone, one on-site • Not recorded • Coded & analyzed by C & J

8. Limitations • Time! (Work, school, CIL) • Types of organizations • Note-taking vs. taped interviews • Analysis is a work in progress • Limited member checks

9.  Managers From… • One special library, 26 FTE employees • Two academic libraries • 30K students • 3,000 FTE students, two campus • Two school library systems • 1 district, 67 schools, 53K students • 22 districts, 63 school libraries, 26K student • Three public libraries • Inner-city central public library • Mid-size public library with 56 FTE • County library system, 250 FTE

10. Manager Personality • All were amazing, enthusiastic, and smart people.  Other traits: • Persistent in dealing with “non-goal oriented, non-team oriented, non-leadership people” (ckp-3) • Able to see the “big picture” or view the “box” from a different angle What would best serve the organization? (ckp-3)

11. Manager Personality • Proud of staff, system, accomplishments • Willing to ask for permission as well as ask for forgiveness • Model (the verb) behavior

12. Lucky? • Supportive bosses Technology advanced leadership – supportive of getting new tools, even ones that are expensive (jhw-3) Leadership is open to anything (jhw-1) • Wonderful staff I'm lucky I have an incredible staff (ckp-4) • Pre-existing innovative culture • Healthy budgets

13. Some create their own “luck” • Hire amazing people • Work with people who are willing to try new things • Work around uncooperative people It's all out there but let more interested people find things - they become very positive voices - focusing on early adopters (ckp-4)

14. Money: Plenty vs. Lack • While some were well funded, others found the motivation to be innovative out of their limited funding. “expensive is not equal to innovative!” (ckp-2)

15. Formal vs. Informal • Our participants reported using both formal and informal brainstorming, submission/approval, planning, and evaluation processes “Explore, read reviews, pilot back off or expand” (jhw-3)

16. Formal Processes • Item on staff evaluations • An innovation goal / Expectation to serve… • Written into the strategic plan • Recognition for innovative ideas • Formal Submission & Approval Processes • But...delegated to the lowest level possible • Task forces to identify needs, innovations (jhw-2)

17. Informal Processes: Freedom to Play • Innovative library managers do not micromanage their staff.  Instead, they allow them time and resources to play.

18. Informal Processes: Freedom to Play “They try things that they don't know how to do or that are outside of their experience.  Put people in that position and it feeds on itself.. increases confidence” (ckp-1) “One branch tried it and now others have picked it up...they all have permission to try” (ckp-2) “Experiment, show it to everyone else, then get permission to put it in production” (jhw-1)

19. Informal Processes:Innovative Approaches • Innovative library managers look for ideas everywhere • business books  other departments • customers  non-LIS conferences • And for everything • Shelving • Checking out books • Organizing workflow, work spaces

20. Informal Processes: Living the Innovative Life “We live it – so things don't seem innovative to us” (jhw-3)“Tech people see themselves as being innovative.  Librarians see it as doing their jobs.  Constantly evaluating.  Matching programs with population” (ckp-4)

21. Entrepreneurial Role • Several mentioned the library as the organization that came up with the ideas, did pilot projects, and then transitioned the functioning program to another department, complete with best practices.“[we] are small business incubator. [funding agency] is the venture capitalist.” (ckp-4)

22. Entrepreneurial Role • The library • has the enterprise view • has access to ideas/vision • can do research • is the home of innovation

23. There are No Failures • We asked each manager about things they'd tried that failed.  Overwhelmingly, the managers stated that there were no failures. • Some innovations were too early • Some had unexpected consequences • Some did not have customer/partner buy-in “they were things to bring more attention to what we had, not what we needed to do” (ckp-1)

24. There are No Failures • They learned, identified what didn't work, tried a new approach, got more buy-in/feedback the next time... “Don't worry about mistakes...know that things will break”(jhw-1)

25. Staff & Structure • Need to do more with fewer FTE • One reported 30% less in last 4 years • Flat staff vs. growing user base • Limited hierarchical structure • Aging staff that needs to work smarter • Want staff to be self-motivated “Innovation used to mean hiring more staff.  Now innovation means doing more with less money.” (jhw-2)

26. Mentoring • Our participants hire creative, enthusiastic staff, and have them manage projects.  The manager offers coaching and mentoring in project management. “Everyone has something that they can feel passionate about, my job is to coach them in how to do something and then they take it to the next level” (ckp-3)

27. Conclusions • Non-innovative  Innovative • Motivation • Funding • Staff size

28. Conclusions • Atmosphere • Everyone looking for new ideas • Low risk experimentation and play • "Committee of the whole" to bounce ideas off of (jhw-1) • Training • Ways to think about innovation • Planning/project management

29. Advice: Leadership • Be committed • Embrace technology or promote those who can • Be open to successes & failures • Have a plan / long-range plan • Have courage • Make a financial commitment • Hire a consultant

30. Advice: Training • Attend workshops & conferences (leadership & staff) • Teach techniques that help with innovation • Read & share what you read • Reward staff for participating in training

31. Advice: Focus • Focus on your users & their needs • Make yourself available to your users • Implement their good ideas

32. Americans for Libraries Council (ALC) Cornell University Liverpool (NY) Public Library MIT  Middle Country Public Library- Centereach Mukilteo (WA) School District NY Library Association Orange County (FL) Library System Public Library Association (PLA) Public Library of Charlotte Mecklenburg County  Richmond (B.C.) Public Library – Ironwood Branch Smaller college libraries South Jersey Regional Library Cooperative  Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library Western Benchmarking Consortium Who Inspires Them?

33. Final Advice “You have to feel excitement and passion and have fun and laugh and make mistakes and feel it and these are hard things to do.” (ckp-1)

34. Contact Information • Jill Hurst-WahlHurst Associates, Ltd.hurst@HurstAssociates.com • Christina K. PikasThe Johns Hopkins UniversityApplied Physics Laboratorychristina.pikas@jhuapl.edu