Who Makes the Decisions where You Work?
I recently bitched about not getting keychain cards for our patrons, which is, in reality, just one of the many ways our library ignores "customer service."
In this instance, though, my main bitch is that this decision was made, pretty much unilaterally, by one person - and that person is not a professional librarian (or a librarian at all, really). Now, in "fairness," we have been without a director for 8 months, and we have had no one really making any decisions for the good of the library - or our patrons. We've been in limbo. But we do have four librarians on staff, and not one of them was consulted about this - and I think that's a mistake.
So, my question for discussion is, "Do you think that at least one professional librarian should be consulted when it comes to decisions dealing with patron satisfaction?"
I know that it sounds - and perhaps is - obnoxious to pull the "MLIS card," and that paraprofessional staff often feel like they are not respected for the work they do, but isn't there a reason we went to library school and at the very least went through the rigmarole (and expense) of getting a professional degree? Shouldn't matters of collection development, equipment purchase, computer configuration, and yes, patron SERVICE at least have input from the librarians on staff (and especially when there is no director to oversee things)?
What do you think? Does stuff like this happen where you work? Do you have a "system" for decision making?
Oh, BTW - you can now subscribe to the comments on this blog - since comments are what this blog is all about!
In this instance, though, my main bitch is that this decision was made, pretty much unilaterally, by one person - and that person is not a professional librarian (or a librarian at all, really). Now, in "fairness," we have been without a director for 8 months, and we have had no one really making any decisions for the good of the library - or our patrons. We've been in limbo. But we do have four librarians on staff, and not one of them was consulted about this - and I think that's a mistake.
So, my question for discussion is, "Do you think that at least one professional librarian should be consulted when it comes to decisions dealing with patron satisfaction?"
I know that it sounds - and perhaps is - obnoxious to pull the "MLIS card," and that paraprofessional staff often feel like they are not respected for the work they do, but isn't there a reason we went to library school and at the very least went through the rigmarole (and expense) of getting a professional degree? Shouldn't matters of collection development, equipment purchase, computer configuration, and yes, patron SERVICE at least have input from the librarians on staff (and especially when there is no director to oversee things)?
What do you think? Does stuff like this happen where you work? Do you have a "system" for decision making?
Oh, BTW - you can now subscribe to the comments on this blog - since comments are what this blog is all about!
Labels: customer service, decision makers, paraprofessional, patrons, professional
posted by jess at
5:27 PM
4 Comments:
We've been through the key card route (and failed), but we have savvy patron's who just cut up their cards and put a hold in it.
I'll say kudos that our new self checks will let you enter the number without having your card handy, which is a bonus for my since my barcode is wearing out and I don't want to memorize a new number.
As for the decisions, it depends on the project. If we decide to patch the LMS (nearly yearly at least), then the head rep from each department gets a vote in the yay or nay after testing.
Cards? I think it boiled down to cost. But, which is more expensive? The card, or the time it takes to look someone up by another form of ID?
By
Anonymous, at 10:27 PM
Cost isn't really an issue. My library switched to using both the big card and keychain card. It was actually MORE expensive to stick with our ugly cards than the new cards. Patrons LOVE it! Plus there is no excuse for not having your library card. When we issue the card we say, "Now you can't leave home without it."
It sounds like your issue is that no one wants to make a major change or decision until there is a head honcho. It is not unusual for that to happen. We went through an 8 month period without a manager. However, as acting, I still made changes and decisions but authorization came from a non-library person :)
By
Jeff Scott, at 3:57 PM
In my library, it all depends on the department. There is some librarian vs. non-librarian friction in the library (and I think this is somewhat salary-driven). Because of that, in departments with a lot of staff, the staff often have more say than the librarians in management decisions (to try to equalize the power to keep people happy, if that makes sense). While I think all opinions should be valued, it sometimes irks me that I get paid more because of my MLS, but then they don't utilize the knowledge I have because of that degree!
So to answer your question, while one person may have ultimate decision-making authority, any well-run library should have open discussions about policy and policy decisions should always involve librarians. After all, if librarians aren't experts about libraries, their services, and their users, who is?
By
Anonymous, at 11:44 PM
I want to express sympathy for your situation, we lacked a library head for quite a long time and I recognized the feeling of despair. Of course this person should have listened to you! And to the users.
Personally I think that there are both formal and informal structures in play. The head do not have to be a librarian but should be engaged in the issues.
In my university library I feel that I am being listened to and that many of my ideas about methods and customer orientation are contributions that matters - after a long period of stagnation. But I still have no formal position.
By
Pernilla Andersson, at 6:23 PM
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home