OLA 2015 Post 2

Presentation: Creating Dynamic Exhibits & Events with Experience Design

Good Idea: Tie exhibits into events/ conferences on campus. Get the subject experts to contribute.  Make sure to acknowledge their contributions.

Good Idea: Incorporate Archive materials and other campus collections into book displays. Include short, engaging write ups on everything.

Presentation: Friends of the Library

Food for Thought: Friends go beyond just a willing source of volunteer - they also promote events, build connections with other community groups, and have access to grant $ we may not.

Food for Thought: Friends sponsor programs/ activities the Library does not have in regular budget (eg, author series, film nights, literacy events, competitions, etc).

Online Resource: http://friendsoflibraries.ca/

Presentation: Pertinent Promotion: Library Marketing at the Right time and Place

Action Item: Make a pretty one pager with vision, mission, and goals. Helps demonstrate a culture of strategic planning to outside partners. Take it on the road (with cupcakes and buttons). This is also a way to learn about your corporate culture.

Food for Thought: One marketing Coordinator, but supported by Marketing Committee. Aligned to strategic plan.

Good Idea: Halloween Party! Haunted House in the Library, decor and costumes, and treats!

Good Idea: Marketing checklist. Include contact people, main steps, reminder to post to internal calendar, target audience, etc.

Good idea: Standing Agenda items discussing upcoming events at the University, sharing inspiration.

Good Idea: User centred language on the website. No "catalogue", even. Totally task oriented. If people don't understand where a link goes, they won't click on it. Eg: Archives > University History. Discovery Tool> Search Everything. LibGuides> Guides by Subject, Digital Librarian.

Food for Thought: Show, don't tell!

Presentation: Advocacy - Gap between Evidence & Practice

Food for Thought: Main key is to develop relationships with decision makers, align demonstrated return on investment with their priorities.

OLA 2015 Post 1

Presentation: Creating a Virtual Learning Commons Using Google Sites

Food for Thought: Google Sites are easy to build, can insert documents, forms, etc easily from Google Drive.  You can set privacy for individuals or groups (with manual set up). However, data is stored in data banks outside Canada, and privacy and security is not their main priority.

Online Resource: Google Site from this presentation: http://bit.ly/VLCOLA
General Learning Commons Google Site Idea Bank: https://sites.google.com/site/internationalvlcideas/?pageDeleted=%2Fphysical-learning-commons-plc

Presentation: Google Apps for Education

Food for Thought: "Google is never going to die" - but they have phased out multiple projects which have had poor uptake.

Presentation: Action Research in the Library: Think It, Plan It, Do It, Share IT

Online Resource: AASL Infographic Great infographic about 'What Librarians Do'

Food for Thought: Sharing is part of advocacy - it helps others understand the impact of what we do.

Food for Thought: Action research involves 'finding out if you are fooling yourself' - deciding on a change, making the change, and analyzing the effect of the change, rather than just assuming it is an improvement.

Good Idea: Your own statistics have a much bigger impact than studies at other Universities. Don't forget to collect data about people's attitudes and perceptions, beyond just use. And always find a way to share the results!

Presentation: Developing a Real-Time Visual Dashboard for Library Statistics

Food for Thought: "Libraries are good at collecting data; we aren't good at making decisions from it". Visualizations help us recognize small, potentially meaningful changes in patterns.

Good Idea: Used PHP -> Google chart with API

Presentation: Permission to Build Granted

Food for Thought: Clients need to clearly define a vision/ program. They contribute experience, and establish success parameters. Project Manager negotiates between both sides. Architect translates vision into physical form and represents the client (in design-bid-build projects).

Food for Thought: Choosing a builder: make sure you have clear and concise requirements and selection criteria. Bids will almost always go to the lowest bidder, so the requirements are critical for ensuring you get what you want. Builders can be pre-qualified, based on experience, financial status, and capability to complete. References ARE important, and should be checked.

Online Resource: https://www.raic.org/raic/contract-documents Standard Contract documents in Canada.

Good idea: Doing a schematic design, showing adjacencies but not necessarily scale, can be useful for designing flow of space. It is like a mind map of the space, not a floor plan.

Food for Thought: As time progresses, the cost of any changes goes up, and the client's opportunity for influence decreases. Example - think of the plugs you will need in the floor at the outset!

Good Idea: Identify a Project Sponsor - a third party with the ability to make decisions, but who is fair and approachable. They will help resolve budget disputes (when the client wants something expensive, most likely).

Action Item: Develop a two stage RFP. Issue and RFP, narrow down the candidates, and invite them to a competition for concept drawings (with honorarium), and conditional second stage dependant on funding. This ensures continuity, but doesn't oblige us to do the work - best way to get concept drawings to use for fundraising.