Communicating to Collaborate

Andrea KapplerCataloging Manager, Evansville Vanderburgh Public LibraryALA Annual - June 26, 2010

Moving Forward Despite Looming Budget Cuts

Evansville Vanderburgh Public Library◦ Southwestern Indiana, along the Ohio River◦ Evansville, IN, population: ca. 170,000

Medium-sized public library◦ Central Library, 7 branches, 1 bookmobile◦ Collection: 948,359 items; 655,651 are books

(69%)◦ Staff: 208 employees; 128 FT, 80 PT◦ Computers: 235 public, 182 staff

The Back Story…

Acquisitions: 1 collection development librarian, 3 FT support staff

Cataloging: 1 director, 1 manager, 1 PT professional cataloger, 6 FT paraprofessional catalogers

Serials: 1FT clerk Digitization: 1.5 digitization specialists Processing: 2 FT processors Materials budget:$1.8 million

Technical Services: Departmental Snapshot 2005

Complacent attitude Can’t see the forest for the trees Expert mentality Customization crazy

The Way We Were…

Gradual staff losses Consultant’s report Digitization initiative Property tax cuts & caps Emerging digital formats

Catalysts for Change

A little bit of both! Reactive Proactive

Reactive or Proactive?

Relevant to our users Spend our money wisely Do more with less!

Our Challenges

Up Down Across Up Out

Communication is Crucial

Internal collaboration◦ Administration◦ Cross-departmental teams◦ More “bottom-up” participation

External collaboration◦ Vendor partnerships◦ Community partnerships◦ Other library partnerships◦ Grants, donations

Collaboration is the Key

Outsourcing Business approach Centralized & standardized

◦ Processes◦ Collections

Statistical data New & improved collections New products

So What Has Changed?

Acquisitions: 2 collection development librarians, 3 FT support staff

Cataloging: 1 manager, 1 professional cataloger, 4 FT paraprofessional catalogers

Digitization: 1 FT digitization technician, 1.5 digitization specialists, 1 digitization intern

Processing: 2 PT processors Materials budget:$2 million

Departmental Snapshot 2010

Realign:◦ Staff◦ Collections◦ Expectations

Be creative, communicative, & collaborative

Do More with Less!