Organizational management

Format: Webinar, original date February 22, 2019
Hosted by: Big Talk from Small Libraries, Nebraska Library Commission
Length: 1 hour

Format: Webinar, original date May 24, 2022
Hosted by: WebJunction
Length: 1 hour

Across the United States, there are increased reports of book challenges from community members, which have led to very public and heated discussions. As public library leaders and staff consider how to prepare for similar local challenges, being proactive about developing and sharing policies and procedures can help to create clarity and establish expectations around responses to book challenges. This preparation may also include engaging stakeholders, partners, and supporters around the value and essential need for intellectual freedom in the library. Join this discussion with panelists who are working through these issues in their communities, to learn about the resources they have found useful, and their suggestions for getting started.

Presented by: Amanda Vazquez, Amber McLain, Brianna Hoffman, and Jennifer Pearson

Effective library policies are essential for setting clear expectations, defining responsibilities, and establishing boundaries for both patrons and staff. This session will cover the ten most common patron-facing policies and offer guidance on selecting and tailoring them to meet your library and community needs for safe and effective operation. Using a Code of Conduct policy as an example, we’ll discuss how to avoid policies driven by trauma or drama, ensuring they are clear, accessible, and enforceable. Additionally, we’ll explore best practices for policy management, including the importance of regular reviews by directors, boards, and staff, to maintain accountability and relevance.

Presented by: Robin Newell

Format: Self-paced course
Developed by: WebJunction
Length: 1 hour

In a crisis, you must be prepared to communicate clearly and quickly. This course for leaders of libraries, archives, and museums will guide you in preparing to communicate in the event of a crisis. You will identify stakeholders and potential responses, create a roster for your crisis communications team, and use a template to build your own customized Crisis Communications Plan.

Related course: Introduction to Crisis Communications for Libraries, Archives, and Museums

Format: Webinar, original date July 25, 2018
Hosted by: NCompass Live, Nebraska Library Commission
Length: 1 hour

Is your library prepared for disaster? Find out what you need to know at this introduction to disaster planning. During this session, we will discuss the following:

• Identify, anticipate and avoid preventable emergencies
• Plan for emergency response for staff and patrons
• Suggest ways to prevent destruction and protect collections
• Consider mitigating damage when an emergency occurs so that disaster is avoided or minimized
• Establish guidelines for managing disaster salvage and recovery

Presenter: Michael Straatmann

Format: Webinar, original date November 4, 2014
Hosted by: WebJunction
Length: 1 hour

Many librarians find themselves challenged to make the transition into proficient managers, often without clear guidance. For her dissertation on front-line public library managers, Michele Leininger, a PhD candidate at the University of Pittsburgh, chose to investigate how and where new managers find the help they need. Through a series of diaries and interviews at one library system, Michele’s research tells both the individuals' stories about how they learned and transitioned from librarians into managers, as well as the story of the library organization and its peer support network. Discover what the research has revealed and what it means for others interested in the transitional journey to proficient manager.

Presented by: Michele Leininger

Format: Webinar, original date July 11, 2019
Hosted by: WebJunction and the Association for Rural and Small Libraries and Library Journal
Length: 1 hour

Privacy, confidentiality, and intellectual freedom are core values of librarianship that are easy to agree with, but difficult to implement. Hooray for Freedom! will help you assess your professional practice, give you the legal and ethical context to support democracy in your library, and help you identify practical ways to implement improvements.

Presented by: Margo Gustina and Eli Guinnee

Format: Webinar, original date October 12, 2016
Hosted by: WebJunction
Length: 1 hour

Have you noticed that some libraries manage to thrive even when times are tough and things are going against them? We would all love to know how to pave the way for future success in a world that seems to change by the hour. Successful libraries don’t have a crystal ball but they do share five characteristics that encourage positive results, regardless of what the world throws their way. Learn how to activate these characteristics in your library, including low cost/no cost tips that apply to any size of library or community. Give your library a new lease on life and revitalize excitement about your services.

Presented by: George Needham

Format: Self-paced course
Developed by: WebJunction
Length: 1 hour

A crisis is any situation that threatens the integrity or reputation of your library, museum, or archive. This could include funding reductions, safety or security events, health issues, public challenges, or other problems.

In this course, you will learn about the three types of crises and how they are defined. You will also compare examples of crises. Finally, you will evaluate your organization’s crisis preparedness.

Related course: Crisis Communications Planning for Libraries, Archives, and Museums

Format: Webinar, original date November 29, 2018
Hosted by: WebJunction and OCLC, Transformative Leaders Series
Length: 1 hour

Charles Darwin said, "It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change." It has never been a better time to be a librarian—especially when we recognize and act on our power to help people in our communities build better lives through learning and literacy. To do that, our identity, our education, our organizations, and our work is changing. Learn how library staff are becoming change agents to help Topeka and Shawnee County Public Library, the 2016 Gale/LJ Library of the Year, become an essential asset in its community.

Presented by: Gina Millsap and Thad Hartman

Format: Webinar, original date April 18, 2019
Hosted by: WebJunction and the Association for Rural and Small Libraries
Length: 1 hour

All libraries provide vital services to their communities, but libraries that serve small, rural populations have the potential to go beyond providing information and access—they can inject the vitality that will help their communities thrive. Addressing the challenges faced by rural areas may seem daunting to a library with few staff and limited resources, but any tiny library can find more ways to support the needs of their community by thinking strategically and creating new connections with their stakeholders, patrons, and other library staff. Learn how small library director and 2018 Library Journal Mover & Shaker, Allie Stevens, applied the concept of growth mindsets to set her priorities, use resources and volunteers smartly, and avoid burnout as a solo librarian. Follow her lead to turn your library into a powerhouse for your community.

Presented by: Allie Stevens

Format: Self-paced Course
Developed with: Funding from the Institute of Museum and Library Services and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Length: 3 hours

Are you new to the public library director role? Or considering becoming a director in the future? 
This series will introduce you to the many and unique facets of public library directorship. Each of the four on-demand recordings provide a broad overview that both informs and inspires.

Overview
Public Library Directors 101 is an introduction to some of the key concepts every new public library director needs to know on the day they start their new job.

This four‐part video series was designed by state librarians, library development directors, and CE coordinators around the question: “What do public library directors tell us they wish they had known when they started their job?”

The videos are under ½ hour each and apply to any library director in any size of library in any state. It is recommended that new library directors view all of the videos within the first month they begin their job. The videos are as follows:

• Your New Role – Whether you have served in a different role at your library or you are brand new to the community, this video explores how a library director needs to refocus when assuming this new position.
• Community Relations – The directorship is an outwardly‐focused position in the library. This session explores the concept and considers the library as a community anchor institution.
• Planning and Project Management – The director is the futurist for the library. While he or she may have participated in planning activities in the past, now the director will be leading the charge in planning for the library’s future and implementing the plan.
• Asset management – Finally, this episode looks at how the director will be managing all the assets of the library system ‐ which includes buildings, the collection, revenue, and staff.
  

Course Design:
Produced through the Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA) Continuing Education Connector project.

Format: Webinar, original date August 4, 2020
Hosted by: OCLC, IMLS and Battelle
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes

As libraries and museums around the country begin to resume operations and reopen to the public, the need for clear information to support the handling of core museum, library, and archival materials has become increasingly urgent. Through the REopening Archives, Libraries, and Museums (REALM) Project, OCLC, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and Battelle are conducting research on how long the COVID-19 virus survives on materials that are prevalent in libraries, archives, and museums. Join us to learn more about the testing process, how to present results to your stakeholders, project resources to inform your local decisions, and what you can expect from the project in the months to come. 

Presented by: Sharon Streams, Kendra Morgan, Marvin D. Carr, Thomas Mera, and Will Richter

Format: Webinar, original date April 4, 2012
Hosted by: WebJunction
Length: Length: 1 hour

Many of us regard a move into management as going to the dark side, but leadership is not only reserved for those with manager in their title. Learning effective supervisory skills can benefit many levels of work in the library, especially if you wear multiple hats in your organization serving as both staff peer and manager. Find out the top 10 actions to take and the top 10 mistakes to avoid as an everyday leader. By the end of this webinar, you'll have some simple and effective tools to help you work more powerfully with your colleagues or become the supervisor you always wanted to work for.

Presented by: Edra Waterman

Format: Webinar, original date April 15, 2021
Hosted by: OCLC and IMLS
Length: 1 hour 30 minutes

The REopening Archives, Libraries and Museums (REALM) project is hosting a webinar to explore the topic of COVID-19 vaccines and how they impact the reopening and ongoing operations plans for organizations. Presenters will provide information on vaccine education, including resources available to help address vaccine misinformation in the community. They will also share aspects of what is known and unknown in the scientific community about vaccines, along with a general update about the REALM project.

Presented by: Crosby Kemper, Erica Kimmerling, Amy Marino and Elisabeth Wilhelm