Winnefox Strategic Planning Process
This plan is based on the process
outlined in Planning for results : a
public library transformation process by Ethel Himmel & Bill
Wilson, published by
1.
Estimate the level of effort for each task and set the
planning timetable
When: September, October, November
Who: Winnefox staff, member library directors
Winnefox staff will draft a plan
for review by member directors.
Directors will discuss the plan in LAC meetings and suggest
changes. Staff will revise the draft plan,
based on suggestions, and distribute a final proposal to directors and to the
Winnefox board for approval at the November meeting.
2.
Prepare for keeping people informed
When: September & early October
Who: Winnefox staff, planning committee
Member directors will be kept
informed of the planning process by regular updates from Winnefox staff and by
reports from representatives on the planning committee. Winnefox trustees will receive progress
reports at each board meeting.
3.
Select the planning committee and consultant
When: December
Who: Winnefox director, member library directors,
Winnefox board
The planning committee will consist of:
Each LAC will meet in October or
November to discuss the planning process and choose their representative to the
committee. The WALS & WCTS Executive
Committees will meet, either physically or via email, to choose their
representatives. Trustees will be
appointed at the November board meeting.
Staff will solicit bids for an
outside consultant to meet with each LAC in January or February to discuss
libraries’ service needs as spelled out in Step 5.
4.
Orient the planning committee
When: December & January
Who: Planning committee
The committee will review Planning for results, finalize
the timetable, and begin to discuss how tasks will be carried out.
5.
Scan the libraries & identify member libraries’ service
needs
When: January & February
Who: Planning committee, library directors and staff, consultant
Discussion should not be limited to discussion of current services but rather should focus on what member libraries would like Winnefox to be doing over the next 3 – 5 years. A visioning process will be conducted at the System annual meeting on 16 January to brainstorm possible future services for Winnefox. The consultant will meet with each LAC at a subsequent meeting to discuss the ideas that came out of the brainstorming session as well as current services.
As part of the discussion the
committee will examine the issues on the attached list, which was compiled from
comments made by directors during the 2005 director search process and in the
2007 system plan review process.
6.
Scan the System
When: January & February
Who: Planning committee, Winnefox staff
Staff and the planning committee
will examine current Winnefox services and identify trends (i.e.: where will we
be in 3-5 years if no changes are made).
They will also identify strengths and weaknesses in system organization
and staffing.
7.
Scan other library systems
When: January and February
Who: Planning committee
The planning committee will look
at services provided by other library systems in
8.
Determine which library service needs the system should
address
When: March
Who: Planning committee
The committee will identify which
of the service needs identified in step 5 the system is able to provide. Among the issues to be examined considered
will be:
(a) Written agreements that
provide that member libraries will provide services to all residents of the
system area and to provide for the loan of materials between
member libraries.
(b) Backup reference, information and
interlibrary loan services from the system resource library
(d) Referral or routing of reference and interlibrary loan requests from
libraries within the system to libraries within and outside the system.
(e) Continuing education for library staff and trustees.
(fm) Electronic delivery of information and physical delivery of library
materials to participating libraries.
(g) Service agreements with all adjacent library systems.
(h) Professional consultant services to member libraries.
(i) Any other service programs designed to meet the needs of
participating public libraries and the residents of the system area, as
determined by the public library system board after consultation with
participating public libraries.
(k) Promotion and facilitation of library service to users with special
needs.
(L) Cooperation and planning with other types of libraries resulting in
agreements for the appropriate sharing of library resources.
9.
Set goals & objectives
When: April & May
Who: Planning committee
Based on the list of services
developed in the previous step the committee will begin to state how those
services should be delivered. Goals are statements of what services the
system will offer. An example would be:
“Winnefox will offer a variety of continuing education programs to allow member
library directors to fulfill certification requirements.” Objectives are quantitative statements
that specify how the goal is to be met. One
goal may have several objective associated with it. An example of an objective would be: “Winnefox will offer at least [number]
workshops a year on [topic].
10.
Review system measurement and evaluation techniques
When: April & May
Who: Planning committee
At the same time the goals and
objectives are developed the committee will develop criteria for evaluating how
well the system is providing services.
11.
Revisit the impact of the choices and compile the draft
plan
When: June & July
Who: Planning committee
The committee will draft a plan after
reviewing the service priorities, goals, and objectives. The draft plan will be submitted to member
library directors for comment. The directors
will discuss the draft plan in LAC meetings in May and June, after which the
committee will revise the plan based on director comment.
12.
Obtain final approval
When: 25 July
Who: System board
The plan will be submitted to the
system board for approval at their July meeting.
13.
Publish and distribute the final plan
When: August
Who: Winnefox staff
The approved plan will be
distributed to member libraries, DLTCL, and other interested parties.
14.
Implement plan’s recommendations
When: Beginning in August
Who: Winnefox & member library staff