Sustainable Public Libraries

Here’s a sneak preview of the article I am writing on sustainable libraries.

In this time of economic recession and national anti-tax sentiment, and with the changing nature of how people access information, what’s a public library to do? I believe this is the question on virtually every public librarian’s lips: How can we ensure that the public library will survive and thrive in the future?

The bad news is that there is no magic bullet. The good news is that there are principles and practices that can significantly impact our sustainability. We need to adapt our tools, develop new skills, and employ fresh thinking, discipline, and hard work. Three things in particular I believe to be important: strategic planning, community building, and advocacy.

Strategic planning should take us to the foundation of why we exist, not just build on what we already do. Community building is more important than ever, and will require us to be outside the library walls and at the table when community decisions are made. Establishing effective partnerships keeps us actively engaged and involved in our communities. And we need to train our users and others to advocate for us.

What do you think we should be doing over the next few years so that our children and our children’s children have public libraries to enjoy?

Award!

What a surprise to find out that I have been chosen as the 2012 recipient of the Elizabeth Futas Catalyst for Change Award, given by the American Library Association! When I was nominated for this award, I wrote the following post at my personal blog site. It still seems appropriate.

Don’t aim at success–the more you aim at it and make it a target, the more you are going to miss it. For success, like happiness, cannot be pursued, it must ensue…as the unintended side effect of one’s personal dedication to a course greater than oneself. ~Viktor Frankl

I was recently nominated for a national professional award. (Thanks, Kathleen & Wally!) I can’t imagine myself among the list of those who have received this award, so I have had a hard time getting my head around the idea. I’ve always been fairly suspicious of award winners, but maybe they’re as surprised as I by their nominations. Several people wrote eloquent letters of support for the nomination, which I admit will be inspiring to look back at on the “rainy” days of my life!

Whether or not I receive this award, I am heartened by the nominators’ efforts, and it makes me want to pay it forward by nominating someone else for something. Meanwhile, I’m trying to remember Einstein’s words, “The only way to escape the personal corruption of praise is to go on working.”

May you all have those in your life who believe you’re worthy of an award! Who would you like to nominate or otherwise honor?

Good to Great

What makes an organization great? I really like what Jim Collins has to say on that subject in his book, Good to Great. The concepts from his work seem highly applicable to libraries and nonprofits, perhaps especially in this time of lean resources. And he gives us hope with his statement, “Greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness, it turns out, is largely a matter of conscious choice and discipline.”

It’s not how big you are, how much money or staff you have, or whether you’ve won awards that makes you great. This is very good news for organizations such as the Wayne Library Alliance (WLA) in rural Pennsylvania. I am currently working with consultants Steve Spohn and Karen Hyman on a LYRASIS project to help redesign libraries there.

What does conscious choice and discipline look like? First, you have to know your core values and the timeless purpose of your organization. What should never change? Even back in 2003 Marylaine Block said, “If we allow our libraries to become no better than the chain bookstores and no deeper than the internet, why SHOULD taxpayers support us?”

“First who, then what” is the phrase Collins uses to emphasize that we should concern ourselves first with getting the right people on the bus in the right seats. Only then do we figure out where to drive the bus. Collins says we waste our energy trying to “motivate” the wrong people to get on board with our direction and plans!

Other Collins wisdom is that the charismatic leader is at least as likely to be a liability as an asset. What he calls “Level 5 Leaders” have the combination of personal humility and professional will. I believe the WLA director, Molly Rodgers, is just such a leader.

Confronting the brutal facts (while never losing faith) is an important element of the discipline we need. Staring down sacred cows (or dismounting from dead horses, as Karen urges) is essential. This goes hand in hand with the concept that good is the enemy of great. When we believe we’re good, we stop looking, stop moving, stop thinking beyond the status quo.

What do you think makes for greatness?

Boards, Friends, and Staff: Keeping the Roles Straight

Has your board stepped up to the strategic planning and policy role? Or is it mired in detail, with a tendency to micro-manage?

Do your Friends seem more like “Fiends?”

Is your director unable to make administrative decisions without being second guessed?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, consider developing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) or memorandum of agreement to clarify and separate the roles of executive director, board, Friends, staff, volunteers–whatever groups you feel have potential for conflict or confusion.

Examples of MOUs may be found here. But remember, the process is more important than the product. Getting representatives from these groups around the same table to talk about their respective roles is the real benefit to this process. The MOU then provides a good tool for communicating to others.

I’d love to hear from you if you’ve used such a process or would like to try it.

Planning is the Board’s Job

Strategic planning is sometimes left to the executive director. If that’s true for your organization, you may want to rethink this practice. Yes, the director can usually come up with a cogent and relevant plan for the agency. But part of the board’s responsibility is representing the interest of stakeholders and steering the course for the library or nonprofit. Planning is best accomplished by the board-director team, with plenty of stakeholder participation.

When there’s conflict–between the board and director, the board and community, the funders and the board, the director and community–no one should be “going it alone!” A well-developed strategic plan includes all parties with a stake in the outcome. This helps ensure buy-in, is a great communication tool, and keeps the process open and responsive to changing community needs.

Don’t leave planning to one person or one group. It is the board’s responsibility to set direction for the organization. And to do that effectively takes many heads and hands!

Good Management Isn’t Always Enough

This article is reprinted with permission from Blue Avocado, a practical fast-read magazine for community nonprofits (and one of my favorites). [You can subscribe free by sending an email to editor@blueavocado.org or at www.blueavocado.org.] Here, editor Jan Masaoka helps us differentiate between good management and high impact:

September 22, 2010

Do you know a nonprofit that is always in some sort of chaotic state with everyone running around and no systems, but somehow still manages to do important, good stuff?

And on the other hand, do you know any nonprofits that are like smoothly running machines — checking off everything on the management audit — but aren’t really having any real impact on the world?

Most of know at least one of each of the above two types! We bemoan them both. We might dub the first one the “Disorganized Doer and Shaker” and the other one the “Orderly Chair Occupier.”

The fact that both types of organizations exist is evidence of something very important, yet seldom said: good management does not necessarily lead to high impact.

Good management is certainly a good thing, and good management can support high impact. But the organization with the up-to-date personnel manual, the gorgeous financial statements and the four-color annual report could also be the stale organization that is just coasting on its reputation and name recognition.

This leads us to the other question that we seldom ask ourselves in nonprofits: are our programs really as terrific as we say they are?

Great management systems hid a disconnect with community

We know a prestigious nonprofit serving low-income young people that became the poster child for good management by a large national consulting firm that worked with this nonprofit in strategic planning. Shortly after the case study was published, the nonprofit’s executive left to work at a large foundation. Her successor was shocked and dismayed to discover that this well-managed icon had very weak programs and impact. She commented in a newsletter, “I need to find out why kids don’t like us” (paraphrased).

The reality is that we seldom question the value of our programs. We are eager to critique our management systems, but we shy away from critiquing our programs. We are not embarrassed to say that our accounting systems are out-of-date, but we seldom admit (or even think) that our programs might be out-of-date.

In short, we need to work separately on management and on program impact. We cannot assume that focusing our attention on improved management processes will mean we have high impact.

 — Jan Masaoka  read more »

Reinventing the Organization

Jim Collins (author of Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…And Others Don’t)  says greatness is not a function of circumstance. Greatness is a matter of conscious choice and discipline. This is really hopeful news, because it gives us control over our destiny in these uncertain times.

Here’s what I think conscious choice and discipline can mean:

Conscious: Know what should never change. Revisit your core values and timeless purpose. For tools to help you do that, see Collins’ Web  site.

Choice: Determine the strategic value of your organization in the context of your community. Know where you fit in, and be at the table when important community decisions are made. Don’t limit yourself to participation in kindred organizations. For example, libraries have traditionally aligned with education and literacy, but librarians should also be involved in economic development initiatives, community planning, recreation and other areas of community building.

Discipline: Create a culture of shared leadership and discipline in your organization. A recent partnership between the ICMA (International City/County Management Association) and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation explored how local governments can use their public libraries in more innovative ways. Here are the leadership skills that may be important in this new environment:

• Participate. Leaders belong “at the table” with other local decision makers, involved in overall planning for community betterment and service provision.
• Share your mission. Service providers should know and share the strategic mission of local government. They should find areas of commonality and ways to share resources and efforts with government departments.
• Build partnerships. Partnerships with public agencies, nonprofits, and the private sector strengthen programs. Effective partnerships require time and effort to establish, but they are worth the effort if they support the vision of the community.
• Appreciate diversity. Differing cultural norms (organizational and community norms, for example) should be recognized, understood, and respected; and adjustments should be made as needed in program planning and execution. Flexibility and adaptability are key characteristics, needed by all involved in joint ventures.
• Communicate. Communicating with partners, stakeholders, and the larger community is important to grow and nurture partnerships.
• Foster champions. Champions and advocates are important to make programs successful and sustainable. Champions have a clear understanding of the organization’s services and the role it plays in the quality of life of a community. They can contribute support in any number of ways, including time, funds, influence, services, goods, and related items.

[Adapted from Donelan, Molly and Liz Miller. “Public Libraries Daring to be Different.” PM Magazine 92 (September 2010).]

How do you plan to reinvent your organization in this new economic and political environment?

Group Therapy

What is the most pressing issue facing your library or nonprofit at the moment? Is it related to: Funding? Staffing? Marketing? Fundraising? Planning? Policy? Advocacy? Boards? Communications? Image? Friends of the Library? Continuing Education? Burnout? Management?

Tell us your challenge du jour. I promise to respond to all posts, and our community of readers will likely have suggestions for you. (And if you pass on this post, we’ll have the benefit of an even larger pool of brainpower!)

Check Your Lifeblood

I think of capacity as the lifeblood of an organization. In the way that the  circulatory system keeps our bodies going so that we can accomplish our life’s mission, an organization’s capacity is what goes on behind the scenes so that it is able to deliver needed products and services. If there is not enough capacity, the best strategic plan in the world won’t get you very far.

Capacity changes over time, and that’s good news. It means we can improve it. But we have to start where we are. Many factors influence our organizational capacity, including the age and developmental state of the organization, the organization’s size and growth rate, the external environment in which the organization operates, and the funding and support available.

How does your library or nonprofit stack up with regard to the following elements of capacity?

Governance: the board is engaged, regularly participates in continuing education and self-assessment, understands its policy role and doesn’t interfere with management, and conducts efficient and effective meetings.

Leadership: the director is alert to changing community conditions, policies are up-to-date, the board evaluates the director annually, and there is a succession plan for leadership.

Financial Management: Funds are allocated in accordance with a strategic plan, there is an operating reserve for contingencies, there is an annual independent audit, and donors are promptly acknowledged and recognized.

Human Resources: The organization is able to recruit and retain capable staff, has a competitive salary and benefit package, evaluates staff performance annually, and is committed to regular staff development and continuing education.

Internal Operations: Communication is open and frequent, appropriate information is shared and used effectively for decision making, and the organization provides the skills and tools employees need to perform their jobs efficiently and effectively.

Facilities: Public areas are comfortable and well-maintained, facilities are well-located for use by the clientele, and there is adequate parking.

Planning: The organization has a current strategic plan that is used to make decisions about programs and services, stakeholders are involved in planning efforts, and time is set aside to engage in regular strategic planning and thinking.

Evaluation: Every service or program offered includes an evaluation component, and program outcomes are measured and shared.

Marketing and Community Relations: The organization is recognized in the larger community through its logo or tagline and has high visibility from effective use of a variety of media to convey a clear and strategic message.

Where could you build additional capacity today? Share your ideas about capacity-building.

How a Consultant Can Help

The director and board of your organization may very well have experience and expertise in strategic planning. What they don’t have are objectivity and time to follow through. Here are some of the benefits of using a consultant for your next strategic planning effort or review.

1.  Perspective. The consultant is a neutral observer, and as such, can bring “fresh eyes” to your organization’s structure, challenges, and decision making. She may also be able to acquire sensitive or confidential information and share it in a way that preserves confidentiality or anonymity.

2.  Independence. Is there an elephant in the room? As an outsider, the consultant can often say things that an insider cannot. He can help the leadership and staff challenge sacred cows, and tell the truth that may beg to be told.

3.  Organization. The consultant will help you design your planning project, breaking it down into manageable steps. She can also shepherd you through the process, helping everyone stay on track for a successful completion. 

4.  Experience. The consultant can bring experience from his work on many other projects. While every project is unique, there will be common threads. The consultant may identify strategies or best practices that have been successful elsewhere and that can be adapted to your unique environment.

5.  Facilitation. Bringing consensus among stakeholders with different points of view requires facilitation and group management skills. The consultant not only brings that expertise, but also has the benefit of being disinterested (but not uninterested!) in the outcome.

Lest this sound like a panacea, note that there are some things a consultant cannot and should not be asked to do!  They include:

• Taking full responsibility for the plan
• Deciding on the organization’s mission, vision, goals, or objectives
• Explaining the value of planning to your board, funding authorities, or stakeholders
• Generating enthusiasm for change

What experiences have you had with a strategic planning consultant? What do you see as the benefits of using outside assistance?

[Thanks to Richard Mittenthal’s article, “Don’t Give Up on Strategic Planning: 10 Keys to Success,” in the May-June 2004 issue of Nonprofit World, for many of the ideas in this post.]