Creating a Pathfinder

A pathfinder is a group of descriptive resources geared towards a particular group or community for a specific purpose.  I had to create a pathfinder with a group of other students for our final project in our Reference and Information Services class.  We visited the Somerville Public Library ans spoke to Kevin O., a Reference Librarian there.  We asked questions about the community the Somerville Library serves and found out that they have a large population of unemployed patrons over fifty looking for jobs.  This group was two-fold, where half of the patrons were non-degree holders that needed to learn/brush-up on computer and English skills in order to find work and the other half were degree holders that had been laid off.  The second group would also benefit from learning more technology skills and, in addition, were interested in starting their own small businesses.  We decided to focus our pathfinder on these groups and after much research and a few visits to the library we came up with a detailed list of resources that we thought were beneficial.  We broke our pathfinder into relevant sections so that the librarian or patron can go right to the topic they need.  Each heading includes a list of resources including books, websites and even e-books. 

Job Resources for People Over 50 Subject Headings:

Searching for Opportunities
Developing Skills
Perfecting Your Resume & Interview
Making Connections
Changing Careers
Thinking Outside the Office
Putting Your English to Work

 The purpose of a pathfinder is so reference librarians can have quick access to a detailed list of resources for particular reference questions that they receive often.  We hope the Somerville Library will find our pathfinder useful for their patrons.  This topic is a prevalent one now, not only for Somerville, but all communities.  Unemployment is at an all time high.  Although out pathfinder does include specific community resources for Somerville, there are a lot of great general resources for the over fifty set.  Here are a few of my group's favorites:

Martini, Kitty and Candice Reed. Thank you for Firing Me!: How to Catch the Next Wave of Success after you Lose your Job. New York: Sterling Publishing Co. Inc, 2010.

            Kitty Martini and Candice Reed take on a decidedly sassy tone in this morale-booster of a career-hunting guide. Their sharp tone both bullies and encourages the reader to get out of an unemployed funk and into a new, passion-filled career. Although this book isn’t specifically for over 50, chapter 10, “Banking on Boomers,” deals with the baby boomer industry. Yet, some readers might enjoy the fact that this isn’t written specifically for the job hunter over 50 because the authors talk about new trends in career searching without any hint of condescending patience towards the non-tech-savvy individual. Readers of any age are urged equally to get excited about and embrace new job opportunities and methods of job searching. You can also visit Candice Reed’s Blog at http://jobs4yourfiredass.blogspot.com/ for a continuously updated perspective.

Breitbarth, Wayne. The Power Formula for LinkedIn Success: Kick-start Your Business, Brand, and Job Search. Austin, TX: Greenleaf Book Group Press, 2011.

This timely title focuses just on LinkedIn (see below) and how to use it most effectively during a job search. With witty headings and a conversational tone, this book is both informative and entertaining. Perhaps one of the most helpful sections can be found on pp. 145-152, where the author outlines a six-week, two-hour-per-week start-up and maintenance plan for creating an account on LinkedIn.

HireCulture, http://www.hireculture.org (accessed May 1, 2011).

           HireCulture.org is a job bank created and managed by the Massachusetts Cultural Council. Listings are primarily by Massachusetts cultural organizations, both non-profit and commercial. Searches can be modified by region, category, type, and organization. Posted positions include the Job Title, Date Posted, and Organization Name. Listings include information about the organization, the organization’s website and contact information, if available, and a breakdown of the position. HireCulture.org also makes available their contact information, a list of Frequently Asked Questions, and Other Resources where one might extend their job search. This is a simple, easy-to-use job bank with no advertising.

USAJOBS - The Federal Government's Official Jobs Site. “Resume and Application Tips.” http://www.usajobs.gov/ei/resumeandapplicationtips.asp (accessed May 3, 2011).  

This government site requires the user to create a free account to guide potential federal job candidates through the job search process. However, resume tips can be accessed from the web address above without creating an account. Tips include “paying attention to keywords,” “being concise,” and “using numbers to highlight your accomplishments,” which are helpful in any kind of resume writing. The USAJOBS Resume Builder helps tailor a unique resume that provides the information needed to seek employment at any government agency.

LinkedIn, http://www.linked.com (accessed April 30, 2011).

LinkedIn is a career networking site for connecting with former, current, and potential colleagues. Users can create personal profiles documenting their job history and experience as well as upload resumes. Your LinkedIn contacts enable you to increase your own online network and contacts; they can also write recommendations for you that other users, such as potential employers, can see. Groups and discussion boards are other helpful LinkedIn features; “What’s Next,” a group of users who are contemplating midlife career changes, can be found at http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Whats-Next-Midlife-Career-Change-2080874.

U.S. Department of Labor. “MySkills, MyFuture.” http://www.myskillsmyfuture.org (accessed May 3, 2011).

            This subset of the Department of Labor’s CareerOneStop website is targeted toward workers who have lost their jobs and wish to find careers that use the skills they already have. It draws on data from the Occupational Information Network (O*Net) to score careers on 120 components of knowledge, skills, and abilities. When workers enter the job they’ve lost, the site uses relevancy matching to suggest other careers for which they would be “neither greatly over- or under-qualified.” Results are presented in a grid that shows typical wages and training required, with symbols to indicate “bright outlook” careers in growth industries and “green” opportunities. Listings for each career include descriptions, statistics, job duties, and links to the CareerOneStop site for further details. Unfortunately, these links do not lead directly to the career being researched, but to the CareerOneStop home page. It’s also not clear how frequently the site is updated, although it makes the claim that “CareerOneStop is updated with the newest data as it is released and provides the most recent data available.”

U.S. Small Business Administration. “Follow These Steps to Starting a Business.” http://www.sba.gov (accessed May 3, 2011).

This informative government site features a ten-step process for starting a small business, with helpful links for finding a mentor, writing a business plan, marketing, licenses and permits, loans and grants, business laws and regulations, and even counseling and training.  The site also offers a “local resources” link where entering a zip code supplies contact information for local government offices of the Small Business Association. Entering the Somerville zip code yields results for the Massachusetts District Office, Boston SCORE (Service Corps of Retired Executives), and the Boston U.S. Export Center. Other links of note include “Women’s Business Ownership: Starting, Financing and Growing the Right Way” and “Determining Your Financing Needs.”

Hemmert, Amy, and Tina Sander. Out & About in the World of Computers: An Introductory Computer Course for Beginning English Language Learners. Burlingame, CA: Alta Book Center Publishers, 2008.

            The superb design of this book makes it a good resource for job-hunters even though it does not specifically address employment. An overview of the book’s scope and sequence appears in table form on the first four pages. While an introduction for teachers suggests the book is primarily intended for classroom use, self-directed learners would be able to navigate the resource with the help of clear section headings, as well as teal-colored type for URLs, examples, and arrows pointing to screen shots. General tips for computer use, such as “Stand up and stretch every 20 minutes,” are interspersed with detailed introductions to word processing (Microsoft Word), e-mail, and the Internet. Reviews of these three topics at the back of the book include page numbers, so that quick reference can lead to more information as needed. While the target audience is clearly English language learners, if native English speakers weren’t bothered by activities like “Who is famous in your native country?” they might also find the book useful.

I have quite a few more resources I can recommend, so please make a comment on this blog entry if you'd like to look at a complete list!

 

Library Directorship

A lot of hard work, planning and decision making goes into being a Library Director.  As my final project for my Principles of Management class, I interviewed Madeline Miele Holt, Director of the Ames Free Library.  Here are some key points from our interview.

• Holt points out that her experience at the Reference Desk was invaluable to her as a manager.  She learned a “two-pronged” set of skills, technical and interpersonal, that have shaped how she manages the library today.  However, she says she wished she had taken more management and business related classes before becoming a director.  After her promotion she learned a lot of skills hands-on, like budgeting, information about town finances and municipal government.  One of the most important things she learned after becoming director is that there are no clear cut solutions.  She emphasizes that being a Library Director involves a lot of compromise, especially when working with the town.
• I ask Holt what some of the most important aspects of being a manager are and she replies by telling me there are differences between being a manager and a leader.  She explains that librarians can sometimes be “mired” down with keeping libraries running smoothly and efficiently, making it hard to focus on “being a visionary and focusing on how the library will evolve in the future including the betterment of the community.”  She goes on to stress that “libraries can’t survive unless they elevate the community.”  She works to create a balance so she can be both manager and leader but even she admits it’s hard.
• Focusing on the future of libraries, we talk about plans and goals for the Ames Free Library.  The library is working on a strategic plan built on their slogan “Where the community connects.”  The main objective is to make sure the library thrives regardless of the future.  The four goals included in the library’s long term plan focus on providing functionality and accessibility, quality library service to an increasing population, funding to maintain and improve services and focusing on collection development.  In addition, the plan is also to focus more on the “virtual community” by embracing technology and using social networking and other technological tools.  The library wants to provide entertainment, promote gatherings and forums for the community, do community outreach, and promote education and cultural events to better the lives of the people it serves.  They want to articulate how technology is being used in the library and demonstrate the positive uses of these technologies, like e-books and e-readers. The library already has a Facebook page and two blogs (One of them is mine!  The other is from the very talented Children's Librarian, Ms. Cathie!) accessible through their website. Holt’s role in making this strategic plan work is as a leader and visionary with an eye to the future.
• Next we discuss how these goals get put into place and who decides what’s important to the community.  The library has organized a committee of people from different groups in town, such as the Council on Aging, the Easton Historical Society, My Brother’s Keeper, Stonehill College, and the Easton Cultural Council, to represent the needs of community members.  The library is asking them for feedback and has created a survey so they can incorporate the needs of these groups into library services and outreach.  In addition, the library has formed a long range planning committee consisting of board members and library management to discuss the outcomes and evaluate feedback.  Holt and her Assistant Director also attended a state sponsored seminar for libraries focusing on long range planning.
• Keeping the spotlight on goals, I ask Holt what some of hers have been as Library Director, in addition to creating a strategic plan for the library.  Holt tells me that when she was promoted to Director, it was a time of transition in the library.  This was one of her most difficult managerial issues so far as Library Director.  The library was also in temporary quarters as the historic library building was undergoing a much needed renovation.  The staff had gone through one move and was adjusting to even smaller quarters than they were used to.  They had to catalog, process and receive new books in the kitchen of their temporary quarters where people would also be eating lunch! Moving back into the renovated building and opening a library branch for teens also loomed in the future and the staff was exhausted and overall morale was low.  Holt had recently read the book Fish! A remarkable way to boost morale and improve results and thought it would be a fun way to energize library workers.   She was thinking to the future and wanted to build the relationships between the community and the library.  The first step was building the relationships between co-workers and getting everyone on the same page.  She thought that having staff read the book would help to strengthen these relationships.  The library bought copies of the book for all employees and was able to access the movie version based on the Pike Place Fish market.  They had a staff enrichment day where employees talked about the book and the video and how they could adopt the practices that were used in the library.  Each month at staff meetings different aspects of the book were discussed, including team building activities and strategies on how to improve customer service skills.
• Holt implemented other changes as well. She wanted a more involved staff that would be able to interact easily and share feedback at all levels.  She wanted to promote open communication and address problematic issues right away.  She wanted staff to know they were welcome to make suggestions for improvement, especially for Holt herself.  She wanted to instill the value and benefits of open, proactive management.  She felt building these relationships between all levels of staff would help create a better work environment and make staff happier, allowing them to provide the excellent service she now praises them for achieving.  The Fish! book helped build morale by encouraging library employees to have fun at work.  Employees were more comfortable and open with each other and the new management.  This created a relaxed and renewed staff that provided great customer service and resulted in higher job performance.
• I inquire if Holt receives any assistance in making the difficult decisions that are part of the Director’s job.  Holt relies heavily on her assistant director, Uma Hiremath.  The two of them are the library’s “inner circle” when it comes to management.  Hiremath consequently is in charge of the interpersonal and day to day aspects of the library and staff needs, program planning and also evaluates library success and recommended changes.  Hiremath reports these details to Holt, leaving Holt to focus more on important and pressing Director-related issues.  Holt and Hiremath maintain constant communication, providing updates and feedback.  They have an administrators meeting once a month with other members of management and librarians and also a staff meeting once a month with all staff. 
• The discussion then moves to employees.  Holt says the Ames Free Library is a great place to work in the way that the staff all genuinely gets along.  They even take part in social events after work because they generally like one another, and this builds strong interpersonal relationships, which reflect on the service they provide.  Holt encourages “everyone to do wonderful things, allow for room to grow, going above and beyond.”  She says she tries to “give people opportunities to make the most of their talents and fatten up their resumes (not that she wants to lose any of her valuable staff).” The staff seems to enjoy these opportunities as they collectively make many individual contributions to the library such as monthly reviews of music, books and movies, computer tutoring lessons, blogs and knitting circles.  She stresses that the staff members at the Ames Free Library are very experienced (the average worker being employed at the library for seven years) and do extraordinary things.  Holt even says her employees have a healthy competitiveness she promotes.
•   Holt and Hiremath have formal staff performance evaluations once a year.  They asks staff members to come prepared with a list of jobs they do, what they like about their positions and what they would like to change.   Together, they provide feedback to the employee, recognizing strengths and weaknesses, and expect the same kind of feedback from the employee.  They make it a point to ask what they, the upper management, can do for the employee.  In addition, Holt has an “open door policy” throughout the year where she welcomes staff to drop in and speak to her informally about anything.
• Holt stresses that managers must be open to anything available to them that may be helpful.  The key is to take the bits and pieces that apply to one’s institution and situation and make them work.  Holt emphasizes that she wished she’d had more management knowledge when she became Director and recommends taking classes in business management and public speaking as a way to prepare.  As a small business manager, she’s “always on her toes” and has to be ready to do the next thing.  She says that Library Directorship is “a big job with a lot of facets that make it even bigger.”  There are many people to answer to including staff, the board of directors and the town and she must always be prepared.   She depends upon “point people” in the town for feedback and decision making, which is crucial in developing a sense of who can help the library when the time comes.  Reaching out to town figures help forge relationships and support for the library.
• Our interview is coming to a close, and I ask Holt for her elevator speech.  This is something we recently discussed in class and Holt has just mentioned a time when she froze when asked what purpose the library serves.  She has since made it a point to be able to quickly respond to such a question and does so to mine.  “The library focuses on the community and advocacy.  Libraries have learned to be community focused organizations instituted to bring people together, enlighten, educate and look to the future to embrace technology.  Libraries are intermediaries between technology and the average user.  Even if some day all materials are electronic someone has to be the agent (the librarian) to teach the content and be the providers of the technology and information.” 

I bet you didn't realize how much work being a Library Director is! These topics are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to everything a Library Director is responsible for. Let's show appreciation to all libraries and employees at all levels for the outstanding job they do of bringing the community together and promoting learning, literacy and success for their patrons!

Madeline Miele Holt's Recommended Management Books 

• The small public library survival guide by Landau
• Good to great: why some companies make the leap…and others don’t by Collins
• Castles against ignorance: how to make libraries great educational environments by Rossman
• Librarians and the awakening from innocence by White
• Leadership on the line: staying alive through the dangers of leading by Linksy
• A place at the table: participating in community building by McCook