exponential change

McMaster University LibraryExponential Change in Traditional Organizations

http://www.slideshare.net/trzecia/exponential-change/

Introduction

• New to McMaster

• 20+ years experience

• Public/academic libraries

• Grant initiatives involving archives, museums and others

• Systems background

• Last position: Wayne State University, Detroit

Member: Gamer Generation

• Tauren (Horde Faction)• Hunter Class• Currently Level 70 and

enjoying the Burning Crusade

• Born: 20-Sep-2006

The beginning of the story…

July 2006• University Librarian at

McMaster University– Top 200 Universities

worldwide– Canada’s most research

intensive– Recognized as “Canada’s

most innovative”– Problem-based learning

Why did I choose to come to Canada?

Challenges

McMaster University Library

• Challenges• Library in state of decline

– 1991: Ranked 86th among ARL

– 2006: Ranked 109th

Challenges

• Lowest funded medical-doctoral library in Canada

• Lowest # of librarians in ARL• Lowest #FTE in ARL• Unionized environment• Length of service• App. 40% staff in “back office”• 10-15% of staff on LTD

The kick in the teeth

• 8 weeks after I started: – Provost left– $20m structural deficit

• Freeze vacancies• Across the board cuts

State of transition

• Three Provosts (one interim)• Two VPs Research• Two Deans of Humanities• Two Deans of Engineering• Currently: Interim Dean of Graduate Studies• Soon: Interim Dean of Social Sciences

My first 18 months

Period of change…..(details forthcoming)

Where we are….

• Budget– Library acquisitions exempted from campus-

wide budget cuts– $630,000 base budget increase– $600,000 one-time budget reallocation

• Two capital campaign items– $6m “Innovative Learning”– $4m “Learning Commons @ Thode”– $1.2m in donations this year

Where are we now….• Created 7 new librarian positions

– Gaming Librarian– Marketing/Communications/Outreach– Teaching and Learning– Digital strategist– Digital technologist– E-resources– Archivist/Librarian

• Two new positions on the way– Data/GIS Librarian– Scholarly Communications Librarian

Where are we now…• Inherited Classroom Audio Visual Services

– Staff of 10– Budget of $1m– Responsible for all classroom technologies

• Opportunity to integrate instructional technologies, academic resources, and support services

Campus News

Local News (The Spec)

Note: they read my blog!

National News (CBC, G&M)

National Television (Canada AM)

One week: PR hat trick

University Affairs The SpecG&M

Awards• Learning Commons: two significant awards:

– Rudy Heinzl award– PMI award

Late breaking news

•Recipient 2008 ACRL Excellence in Academic Libraries Award•Sponsored by Blackwell Book Services•Previous recipients include:

•Cornell•Virginia•Arizona•Georgia Institute of Technology•Others

Most importantly• Co-chair of the Provost’s Task Force on

Teaching and Learning– Identifying SWOT on our campus– Recommendations to Provost– Potential campus-wide impact on teaching

and learning

• Chair the Burlington Learning Space Design Committee

How did we get here?

“The Change Agent’s Handbook”

Full disclosure: a little reverse engineering!

1. Clarify the mission, vision, and reasons for change

A new message, bold vision, get attention

Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.

Today’s learner• Intuitively visual

communicators• Easily move between

virtual and physical• Learn through discovery• Respond quickly• Able to shift easily

– Diana Oblinger

Vision and MissionVision

McMaster University Library will be recognized as Canada's most innovative, user-centred, academic library.

Vision and MissionMission

The University Library advances teaching, learning and research at McMaster by:

• teaching students to be successful, ethical information seekers

• facilitating access to information resources • providing welcoming spaces for intellectual discovery • promoting the innovative adoption of emerging

learning technologies

2. Establish the roles, responsibilities, and structure to support change

Transformation Team

Transforming our organization• Stopped doing what we didn’t need to do:• Eliminated copy cataloging as a function

– 8 voluntary separation packages;– 6 months pay– $300,000 salary savings

• 9 new positions created– 7 new librarians

• New positions=new functions

Reassignments• Metatadata librarian• User Experience Librarian• Director of Liaison Program• Director of Assessment• Development officer• Clerical support:

– Digitization– maps– e-reserves– tiered reference

Seven new librarians in one year!

• Digital Strategies Librarian (Nick Ruest)• Digital Technologies Librarian (John Fink)• Teaching and Learning Librarian (Karen Nicholson)• Marketing, Outreach, Communications Librarian

(Catherine Baird)• Immersive Learning/Gaming Librarian (Shawn

McCann)• E-Resources Librarian (Janice Adlington)• Archivist Librarian (Rick Stapleton)

3. Develop the required leadership team capability

Informed ourselves: guest speakers• Faculty: Dr. Brian Detlor (Business), Dr. Claude

Eilers (Classics) and Dr. Geoffrey Rockewell (Multimedia)

• Mike Ridley (Guelph)• Perry Willett (UofM)• Alane Wilson (OCLC)• Michael Stephens (tametheweb)• Joan Lippincott (CNI), • John Shank (blendedlibrarian.org)

Retraining: Learning 2.0 @ Mac

Learning 2.0 @ McMaster• 12 week program• use freely available online tools

– Blogger– Wordpress– Bloglines– Del.icio.us– Flickr– Firefox and plugins

Investment in staff• Significant increase in funding allocated to

training and development– ALA– CLA– OLA– EDUCAUSE– CNI– Many, many more

4. Assess the current situation

Assessment• LibQUAL• SAILS

Determine the key strategies for achieving the change

Transformation: Four themes

• Transforming ourselves• Transforming our resources• Transforming our services• Transforming our facilities

5. Develop implementation plans Implement and monitor progress

Seven new librarians

• Digital Strategies Librarian (Nick Ruest)• Digital Technologies Librarian (John Fink)• Immersive Learning/Gaming Librarian (Shawn

McCann)• Teaching and Learning Librarian (Karen Nicholson)• Marketing, Outreach, Communications Librarian

(Catherine Baird)• E-Resources Librarian (Janice Adlington)• Archivist Librarian (Rick Stapleton)

First in Canada: Reference service in Second Life

First in Canada: Endeca

First in Canada: Digital Commons

Digital Dissertations

Map Mashup and digital maps

Drupal: Peace and War• Open source

content management

• Open content• Canadian Memory

Fund• Digitize materials

from 20th century peace and ward

• Partnership with Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum and Hamilton Public Library

Evergreen • Open source ILS• Partnership with Windsor and Laurentian• Hope to be the first ARL to go open source

for our ILS (2009?)

News to come….• “This close” to making a major

announcement• Getting into mass digitization• Innovative partnership – first of it’s kind in

the world• Partially supported by math and engineering

Our Facilities Learning Commons @ Mills

Thode Library Renovations

6. Determine causes ofunder- and over-performance

• Still a work “in progress”• Annual reviews

– UPC– Budget

• This year: Thode Science and Engineering Library staffing model review

• Staff vacancies: no “status quo”• Assessment plan: this year

7. Apply learnings

My own lesson:

Do not fear to be eccentric in opinion, for every opinion now accepted was once eccentric.

Note of caution

Tell all the Truth but tell it slant---Success in Circuit liesToo bright for our infirm DelightThe Truth's superb surprise

As Lightening to the Children easedWith explanation kindThe Truth must dazzle graduallyOr every man be blind---

Emily Dickinson

8. Celebrate, reflect, document

ACRL Application

•Recipient 2008 ACRL Excellence in Academic Libraries Award•Sponsored by Blackwell Book Services•Previous recipients include:

•Cornell•Virginia•Arizona•Georgia Institute of Technology•Others

Thank you!

Jeff Trzeciakemail: trzecia@mcmaster.cablog: ulatmac.wordpress.com