News Update

Hello, Everyone
I hope you're enjoying our beautiful spring weather!
Here are some news items to keep you up to date on our Strategic Plan projects:

• I hope you have all had a chance to meet Shimon Croxton, our new Communications Assistant. Shimon has been busy writing press releases and creating publicity for our full summer schedule of activities. He'll be taking over publication of our weekly NewsNotes electronic newsletter next week. If you're a regular contributor to the newsletter, please begin to send your articles to him. Shimon is also taking a look at our signage. While at Stevens Point, he participated in a complete redesign of directional and informational signage for the university library. He's pledged to do the same for us, helping us make the user experience more friendly, one of the goals of our Strategic Plan. You'll see him in all our buildings replacing worn out signage with fresh information, combining multiple signs into shorter, easier bits of information, and strategically placing directional signage to help people find their way. If you haven't already met Shimon, please introduce yourself.
• Robin Potente is retiring to spend time with her two little grandchildren. We will miss her terribly, but she promises to bring the twins to story times! If you are considering applying for the Administrative Secretary position vacated by Robin, please do so quickly. We'll close applications on June 3rd. This is an internal search. I know we have the perfect talent on staff willing to carry on Robin's legacy of excellent service to the community.
• You've heard me talk about "Power Walls" and "Digital Power Walls" and maybe you're wondering what happened to that idea? We're moving forward. Reference staff at SW are planning the perfect relocation for the public copiers and Shimon is weeding the public information wall to make room for Chuck and his crew to add shelving along the curved wall which will house new books front and center to catch our visitors' eyes. We'll also be adding a touch screen computer to entice interaction with our Overdrive digital collections. These projects are meant to drive increased interest in our collections and therefore more use! Look for activity soon.
• Big news! KPL was selected as one of a handful of Wisconsin libraries to participate in the Library Edge Initiative. This is an assessment tool to gauge our support of community digital learning and achievement. The Edge assessment was created through a partnership between the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and the Urban Libraries Council. The assessment takes the data we submit and compares it to benchmarks for libraries our size, then returns a report indicating where we are doing well and where we can do better. It also provides for staff training, skills assessments, and materials to help us promote our value to our local governments and influence support for improvements. Participation is quite an honor, costs us nothing but hard work, and it's just what we need to present our case to our Common Council for capital funds to support technology improvements. These tools will go a long way toward meeting the technology goals of our Strategic Plan.
• Looks like the roll-out date for debit and credit card payments has been postponed due to our Chase representative's time away from the office. Hopefully we'll see our equipment in another week. I know many of you are anxious to say "Yes!" when asked if patrons can pay with a credit card. At least we can say "soon." I'll let you know the minute all the paperwork is signed.
• I'm back in school, taking the LEAN Certification program through GTC. LEAN is the Toyota program introduced in the 1980s and still very active today in industry. In a nutshell, it's a model process with the aim of  reducing waste to improve efficiency. I liked what my instructor said the first day of class, and I want to be sure to share it with all of you, because it's common knowledge that every company and every library using the LEAN approach faces an initial hurdle when announcing adoption of LEAN principles. That common hurdle is staff fear. People hear LEAN and think "I'm going to lose my job. They're going to cut staff." Here's what my instructor said yesterday, and you are going to hear this over and over again from me:

LEAN IS NOT "LESS EMPLOYEES ARE NEEDED."

Take a look at KPL's strategic plan. Look at all the work we have to do. We are a service organization. We need people to do the work, and chances are good we aren't going to get a lot more money to do it, so if we can use the resources we have as efficiently as we can, we can shift some of our resources to new areas of service. Think public programs, outreach, classes, all those things that improve lives in our community. Circulation won't go away. We'll still need people to put books on the shelf, order materials, move them to and from buildings, fix the air conditioning and mow the grass. There is a place for the gregarious person and the shy person in this library now and in the future. So don't worry. Remember why you joined the library. We have an enormous impact on the lives of the people in our community.  That will never change.
Barb

Air Conditioning This Summer

Hello, Everyone
I've heard from many staff that the air conditioning in our buildings is very cold. I know your experience varies with the type of work you do. If you're at a desk most of the day, you're probably feeling colder than those staff who move around. In an effort to compromise, I've asked Chuck to set our summer temps to 73 degrees. We may find that it's not the right temperature, but it's a start. Please provide feedback to our maintenance staff about how that temperature works for you.
Thanks for your help.
Barb

Library Cleanup Days

Hi, Everybody

Robin and Michelle have been cleaning up at CCB to prepare for the arrival of our new Communications Assistant, Shimon Croxton. We can’t believe some of the stuff that’s been sitting around unused for years. Something tells me all our branches could use a cleanup, too. So, I’m declaring two cleanup days- one a physical cleanup and one an electronic cleanup.

Wednesday, June 18^th will be Library Cleanup Day (facilities) . That means you get to wear jeans, tee shirts (tasteful) and tennis shoes (NO OPEN TOED SANDALS, PLEASE, FOR SAFTEY REASONS) , and focus on straightening, tossing, wiping, and sorting through staff areas. Refrigerators, lockers, desks, offices, storage rooms, basements, closets,  service desks, all those places we tend to keep things and then forget about them.

I will work with Chuck and his crew to provide cleaning supplies and maybe even a dumpster or two  if we think we need it. Light lunch will be provided to keep you cheerful J

Tuesday June 24^th will be Electronic Cleanup Day. This is a great time to go through sent folders, inboxes, documents, etc, and see what you can toss to give the LAN a refresh.  We’ll provide brain food that day, since we expect this to be a cerebral experience.

Cleanup days are a lot of fun, but some of us Type A’s have a hard time refocusing on fun, so I’m counting on the lighthearted members of our staff to help us step back from the paperwork and make cleanup the main focus for the day. It may be a bit of a challenge to simultaneously meet the public, as we will stay open, but I know it can be done!

We’ll get back to you with logistics as we move closer to the date.

Barb

Improving Services

Hi, Everyone
I want to help you keep track of some policy changes we are implementing to improve the customer experience. This nice thing about a blog is, you can always refer back to this post if you want to refresh your memory.

1. We are raising the fine threshold from $5 to $10. This means people who have been blocked for accumulated fines of $5 will now be blocked at $10.  Alice will announce when that is in place.
2. The fine threshold for patrons to use computers has already been set to $10.
3. People will be able to pay partial fines once the checkout fine threshold is set to $10.
4. The maximum overdue fine on any one item remains $5.
5. Community Libraries have elected not to change their thresholds- in case you get any crossover patrons who are confused.
6. We are contracting with Chase to install debit/ credit card transaction units at all circulation check out stations. Launch date is June 1. Training will be provided for all circulation staff.
7. Minimum credit/ debit charges will be $5 to save on bank transaction fees paid by the library.
8. Laura at SW had a wonderful idea to repurpose the computer lab as a local history/ genealogy room. We are going to move forward with this idea. The computers will be relocated behind the reference desk for easy access to staff and a more open environment. Much of the file cabinet furniture and the microfilm/ microfiche machines will move into the room. We'll paint the walls an attractive color, add tables and chairs and even a rug to give it a "research" feel. We can even hang some of the historic photos we have on the walls. It will be really nice when finished.
9. Chuck and the maintenance crew are going to build a "Power Wall" along the front curved wall of SW to maximize this premium space. We will house new materials on those shelves and face front all we can to market this fabulous collection. I am purchasing display units to sit along the main path leading through the building so we can keep running displays of staff picks and "In the News" items. Part of the new "Power Wall" will be an Ebook Power Wall, essentially a touch screen allowing people to search for Overdrive ebooks and add them to their virtual book bags. Another piece of the Power Wall will be an interactive board to invite the community to participate in a collaborative activity. If you attended our PLA Road Show, you saw Jill's slide of a wall with the words "Before I Die..." and blank lines afterward. We are going to attempt this idea and see how much our community enjoys engagement of this sort.
10. Youth Services at SW is also changing. One of the carrels for computers is already removed, opening up space for activities. Jen and her amazing staff will be brainstorming just how to repurpose the space. One idea is to set up low bleachers for an open-air story time.

Our new Communications Assistant joins us on Monday. Shimon Croxton is a graduate of UW Stevens Point with a B.F.A. in Applied Media Arts, Concentration in Graphic Design. Shimon has been rebranding First Methodist Church here in Kenosha. He will be focused on reworking our signage, launching a Library Bucks program, and advising us as we reconfigure public spaces. Shimon 's main office will be at CCB, but he will be very mobile, so I expect he may temporarily set up his office at each of the branches from time to time as he considers signage and general layout. I will be bringing him around for everyone to meet next week- please give him a warm welcome to our library family!