ALA Midwinter Day 2
Day 2 of Midwinter I decided to attend the Info Commons interest group. MPOW is looking at creating a learning commons in the near future and I thought that I should go and see what was the latest info on the topic. Ironically, SUNY Cortland was starting work on an info commons when I left. In fact, they are in the midst of renovations to make it a reality right now. As a result, I did a considerable amount of reading on info commons. I went to the interest group to see if there was anything new on the topic and it ended up being a very broad refresher for me, which probably wasn’t the best way for me to spend my time. I saw several other people from MPOW there though, which I took as a good sign because I think the session gave them a much better understanding of what a info commons is and what the challenges with creating an effective one are.
In the afternoon I went to BIGWIG, which is the blogs and wikis interest group. Right now this group is working intently on the LITA blog, which from everything I have seen and heard has been a success. Ironically, many people at the meeting don’t have a lot of experience with blogs and few had any technical experience with blogs. As a result, I ended up offering a lot of opinions and advice. I also volunteered to do some technical stuff for the LITA blog, including building a “get a LITA blog” account form, and stylesheet for mobile devices. I don’t mind in the least doing it and it is a chance for me to keep my technical skills sharp while I’m doing less coding at work. I also offered to create a couple tutorials for the group including “how to choose your blogging software” and a “Blogging and tagging” tutorial.
The nice thing about interest groups is its a way to be involved without being required to go to the annual conference. Since I’m still getting settled in my new job and have an another commitment at the time of annual, interest groups suit me better than committees at the moment. Maybe next year I’ll be in a better position to take on committee responsibilities.
After the conference was over for the day, I went off to dinner with a bunch of people from MPOW. I think that this is one of the best things about conferences, particularly when you are new, getting together with people you work with to talk about issues (some of them related to work, some to librarianship and some just to life in general). The dinner table was a combination of people from different divisions: systems, access services, and reference and instructional services. It was nice to see everyone together, something that doesn’t seem to happen as much as I would like at MPOW.
This is one of the biggest differences I’ve seen in moving from a small and a big library. The lines between divisions and departments are clearly drawn in the sand. I see it in the physical design of the building, the way meetings are organized, the different (implied) dress codes, and who works which desks. Although we are encouraged to work cross departments it is clear that the lines are always there. This just doesn’t happen when you work some place smaller. Everyone teaches, everyone works the desk, everyone has subject duties, there isn’t time or staff to make such rigid distinctions. As a result, the idea of department is at best amorphorous. I miss this aspect of working in a smaller library, because even though I’m encouraged to spend some time working an another department (I have found the time to do so yet), in the end my ass belongs to systems. There is something lost when the lines are this strict.
- It hampers communication
- It stifles innovation
- It makes professional develoment and growth difficult
One of the things I’ve always thought made me good at what I do was the fact that I worked the desk and taught which kept me in touch with my users. Now the only way I can do that which is officially part of my job is by conducting usability testing.
Another example of a departmental disaster in the making is Jane’s situation. She is extremely interested in technology but doesn’t work in the technology (systems) department. Technology isn’t technically her job. Therefore the resources that would be helpful to her professional growth are at arms length. Luckily, Jane has an awesome boss who understands the situation and does everything she can to help Jane negotiate the boundaries and get technology into her job. But still it is a cumbersome affair.
Let me make this VERY clear. The solution is not to move Jane to systems! The solution is getting the organization to rethink the way in which it is organized so that the departmental lines are not barriers. Technology infuses everything we do therefore technology should not be confined to a single department or division. User services infuses everything we do therefore it should not be confined to a single department/division either. What formal changes this translates into at MPOW I don’t know. However, if MPOW wants be innovative, responsive, and agile they will need to change.