How do you manage?
I was going to stay out of this whole Marathon County firestorm, but I’m curious. Let’s play Library Journal’s “How Do You Manage?” game:
You’re the Marathon library director. Your health insurance costs are skyrocketing, up 16%. You’re required to give staff mandatory 3% yearly salary increases. Fuel costs are up, materials costs are up, everything’s up except your funding, which is fairly stagnant. Per capita library spending is under $28, and your budget is going up 2-3% a year, at best. You’re already down 3.5 FTE from 5 years ago.
What do you do?
(Let’s take it as a given that you’ll avoid the current bad PR route of implying that your staff’s jobs could be done by trained monkeys, reclassifying positions, and inviting them to reapply at a lower salary. Also, please, no “I’ll take it out of my own salary.” I don’t believe you, and no one else will. Yes, you could fire that consultant, but that only helps you this year — think long-term, here.)
What do you DO?
This isn’t an idle question — it’s the larger, and the real, Marathon County question. What’s happening in Marathon County is happening at public libraries all over the country, who are facing similar decisions of what to cut, where to belt-tighten, what to do when you just can’t belt-tighten anymore. If you’re going to be a 21st century public librarian, you need to be prepared to make tough decisions about where to allocate your resources.
Bob Watson:
It’s not just the resources … it’s also the justification for resources. I fear that too many libraries *are* seen as recreation centers (and lenders of exclusively recreational material) rather than as vital resources for the betterment of both individuals and the community as a whole.
We need to sell our professional services. We also need to think very hard as to what they might be.
10 March 2008, 11:59 amJess:
And I was going to stay out of this firestorm, too…
(Biting tongue…shaking head…HERE WE GO)
Since this library makes a very good buck on processing passports in Wausau I am using those funds to offset rising insurance costs for employees. By the way…why on earth do they need a heated sidewalk? Anyone?
11 March 2008, 4:38 pmrachel:
OK, I think this gets away from the point a little. Assume you’re not Marathon County, and never heard of the concept of a heated sidewalk… Instead, you’re Library X. You want to maintain bookmobile service to your far-flung rural community. Gas is up to 3.50/gallon. Your bookmobile is 20 years old, needs repair, has 125,000 miles on it, gobbles fuel, and seems to be leaking oil.
The point is, Marathon County may be incredibly stupid in terms of PR, incredibly insensitive to employee morale, all those bad things. But libraries everywhere are forced to make decisions as to how they spend limited funds in the face of increased costs.
16 March 2008, 3:19 pmJess:
I am looking at alternative sources of funding that are outside the realm of the library’s budget. Let’s say this is Library X. If I don’t have a Friends of the Library group, I am starting one. And I am using this Friends of the Library group for fundraising schemes such as highly-profitable book sales, baking sales, etc. A Friends of the Library group can help with little things like a new computer or two for the library, and little things with a bookmobile (that’s what we do it at our library).
With budgets being dismantled, I am also making a list of my library’s priorities so I don’t lose focus, and I am prepared to answer directly to the library patrons who use the library and the library board itself.
I am also spending much time sending staff OUT of the library to meet the needs of the people. True reference librarianship today involves librarians leaving the library to meet people’s needs…wherever they may be…and in doing so I am marketing my staff and my library in a new way.
18 March 2008, 12:47 pm