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Posts Tagged ‘strategic thinking’

In this podcast, George & Joan conclude their three-part series discussing a checklist they’ve developed on strategic thinking.

The first podcast addressed the question, “Will it show?” The second podcast asked, “Can it grow?” This third podcast addresses the question, “Does it flow?”

Questions asked in this podcast:
• Is it equitable (not necessarily identical) across our entire service area?
• Is it conveniently accessible to community members?
• Can most members of the community use it without specialized instruction or extensive assistance?
• Is it compatible with tools – especially non-library tools – the community already uses?
• Is the format based on community demand rather than library tradition?
• Does it value “yes” over “no”?

Here is the checklist they’ve been using in this series.

In this podcast, George & Joan continue a three-part series discussing a checklist they’ve developed on strategic thinking. The first podcast asked the question, “will it show?” This second podcast asks the question, “can it grow?”

How do you decide what activities have a future? And once you make that determination, how can you be sure that you have the staff and resource time to keep the activities going? They ask another important question as well: are you ready for success? There’s a lot of food for thought here.

Two of the library community’s leading consultants and thinkers, Joan Frye Williams and George Needham, will be providing guidance on how all of us can better understand and respond to the goals and priorities of our communities, employees, and colleagues through the latest offering in Infopeople’s “Building Leadership Skills” series.
“In tough economic times, knowing how to be strategic in decisions about where to cut and where to spend is more important than ever. Because we travel all over the U.S., we can offer strategic skills in the context of what we know about successful practices in other libraries,” Frye Williams noted recently in talking about the “Building Leadership Skills: Strategic Thinking” sessions which she and Needham will be offering in libraries through California from March 9-27, 2009.
Strategic thinking focuses on identifying and seizing opportunities to make a difference, and choosing one’s actions accordingly. Emphasizing day-to-day strategic thinking rather than how to develop comprehensive strategic plans, Frye Williams and Needham will guide participants in a pragmatic exploration of leadership and strategic thinking, taking the long view, leveraging a library’s existing assets, identifying strategic opportunities, and overcoming objections to a proposed course of action.
According to the instructors, strategic thinking should be part of everyone’s job. This course, therefore, is designed for those who are interested in positioning themselves, their work group, or their library for greater success. The session is also open to people who are new to the library field, and to others—fundraisers, grant writers, marketing staff, and public information officers – who do not have an extensive library background.
Enrollment to date shows that library directors, assistant directors, and board members will also be among the attendees, making this “an excellent – and affordable – opportunity for team building and horizon expanding,” Frye Williams observed.“Participants will learn practical criteria and techniques for making tough decisions and we’ll provide tips for how to continue moving forward even when resources are limited.”
The workshop is the latest offering in Infopeople’s multi-stage Eureka! Leadership Program, and it will remain available as a contract workshop through Infopeople for those who are not able to attend the currently scheduled sessions. Registration ($75 per person) for all remaining “Building Leadership Skills” sessions is continuing on the Infopeople website. Instructors include Steve Albrecht; Stacey Aldrich; Suzanne Merritt; and Marie Radford.
Sessions of “Strategic Thinking” are currently scheduled for Arcade Library in Sacramento (3/9/09); Fresno—Woodward Park (3/12/09); San Diego County Library Headquarters (3/23/2009); Buena Park Library District (3/24/09); Pio Pico Koreatown Library in Los Angeles (3/25/09); and San Francisco Public Library—Latino/Hispanic Community Meeting Room (3/27/2009).