Feature: Training and Development
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Connect with Other Professionals
The Problem Working in the average organization can be an isolating experience, especially as it relates to people who understand your job and your work. While the camaraderie of the office was something organizations could rely on in years past, hybrid and remote work makes it difficult to rely on in-person interactions throughout our workweek.…
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Keeping Track of Training Activity
The problem Professional development is ever-evolving, with a steady stream of conferences, workshops, and webinars continually emerging across various platforms. Keeping track of these educational opportunities is as crucial as it is cumbersome. Compounded by the varied formats of certification issuance by training providers. As a result, this makes tracking of training activity a daunting…
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Organizing Training into Topics and Themes
The problem In the realm of library staff development, the abundance of resources has never been greater. Yet, these valuable assets are often dispersed across various platforms, from organizational websites to training providers, making the comprehensive organization into coherent topics and themes a rare occurrence. This dispersion has led to a substantial challenge: the assembly…
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Prepare for Performance Reviews
The problem Performance reviews are an important opportunity within the talent development lifecycle to acknowledge individual performance and teamwork and set the stage for effectiveness in the next year. When properly executed, reviews build a foundation for staff retention and shaping the library leaders of tomorrow. Yet, when the narrative of an employee’s year—achievements, growth,…
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Evaluate a Product Before Purchasing
The problem Scouring the internet for impartial reviews of library products or services can be daunting. The web is saturated with marketing material, often skewed and lacking an objective lens. Protective of their customer base, vendors tend to hold back their lists. Inadvertently this fosters a circuit of backchannels at listservs and conferences for information…
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Train People on a New Product
The problem Adopting new software products and adapting library workflows to new systems can be time-consuming for leaders, managers, and staff. Ensuring all employees have developed the new knowledge to complete their tasks with the new product efficiently is essential to sustaining impactful library services and operations. Vendors, training providers, and the library community have…
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Assess Current Needs to Prioritize Training Opportunities
The problem Many organizations have a budget set aside for training opportunities. Yet, few libraries can accurately assess training needs to ensure that funds are allocated toward the areas of greatest potential impact for short or long-term skill development. Given the comprehensive service portfolios of many library organizations, numerous competencies and tools are essential for…
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Deliver a Comprehensive Training Program
The problem Developing a comprehensive library training and development program that can advance the organization’s mission, vision, and local community context can be a complex endeavor for library and human resources leaders to meet organizational, staff, and community needs. Library service portfolios are both broad and deep. Consequently, many staff must provide high-quality information service…
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Increase Capacity in Key Areas
The problem While libraries have developed many metrics to measure the size, coverage, or usage of library collections that can be benchmarked within the industry, libraries have minimal data available to understand the skills and capabilities of the organization. When a new priority or initiative is needed to fulfill key stakeholder needs, such as engaging…
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Create a Learning Organization
The problem As a learning organization pivots to fully digitized service offerings, the journey toward sustainable change management presents new complexities. Onboarding employees now involves navigating their varying competencies amidst a tech landscape that never stands still. It’s an environment where roles evolve in real time, task execution shifts, and skill development must keep pace…
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Increase Access to Professional Development Opportunities
The problem Ongoing skill development is vital for library organizations. However, access to professional development opportunities can vary across branches, departments, or staff categories. This inconsistency may result from budgetary limitations, time constraints, or availability issues. Access to training is often linked to travel and workshops available a few times per year on the conference…
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Onboarding New Employees
The problem Onboarding is more than just a formality – it’s the cornerstone of new staff’s effectiveness, engagement, and retention. Orienting new staff to the many documents, websites, procedures, and forms is a critical task. Yet, this crucial process often lacks consistency and structure, handled in an ad-hoc manner across various teams and departments. Few…