Arizona Public Libraries
Planning for Results
In 2002, the Library Development Division of the Arizona State Library trained twenty librarians from around the state to facilitate public library planning processes using The New Planning for Results. State Library staff then matched the trained facilitators with public libraries interested in planning and started the process of getting the libraries to come up with a community centered plan that assessed and met their needs. The State libraries, using LSTA funding, paid the facilitators a stipend for each library plan that was completed and awarded a $2,000 implementation grant to each library that completed a plan. A total of 87 Arizona public libraries have completed plans since 2002. Some sample plans are listed below. If you need help with planning or facilitation contact Malavika Muralidharan
Plan Links
- Alpine Public Library
- Apache Junction Public Library
- Camp Verde Community Library
- Casa Grand Public Library
- Coolidge Public Library
- Copper Queen Public Library (Bisbee)
- Douglas Public Library
- Florence Public Library
- Glendale Public Library
- Grand Canyon Public Library
- Greenlee County Library
- Lake Havasu City Public Library
- Larsen Memorial Library (Pinetop-Lakeside)
- Mesa (AZ) Public Library
- Nogales/Santa Cruz County Public Library
- Oro Valley Public Library
- Pima Public Library
- Round Valley Public Library
- Safford City - Graham County Library
- Scottsdale Public Library
- Show Low Public Library
- Tempe Public Library
- Tuba City Public Library (Tribal library plan)
- Winslow Public Library
Success stories
The Libraries that completed the process have not only benefited by having a sense of direction and measurable achievable goals, but have had a lot of visibility in the community. The staff felt empowered and involved. Here are some of their stories
Success stories from Arizona libraries that have used the NPFR process"Results" Workforms
Here are the electronic versions of the work forms from the "PLA Results" series books: "The NEW Planning for Results," "Staffing for Results," "Creating Policies for Results," and "Managing for Results."
PLA has made all of these forms available free of charge to the thousands of librarians who are using the books in the series to make management decisions in their libraries. The instructions and work forms included in each title can be accessed by clicking on the link below. You can download these work forms, enter data from your library, and save them on your computer. If you wish to take the class online go to E-Learn Libraries, Inc.
The New Planning
for Results (NPFR) Workforms
Sandra Nelson. The New Planning for Results: A Streamlined Approach. American Library Association, 2001.
The New Planning for Results is an all-in-one guide that outlines a tested, results-driven planning process designed to enable libraries to respond effectively to rapid change. The book includes case studies, work forms, and a new toolkit to provide library staff with all of the tools they need to complete a successful strategic plan in less than five months. If you are interested in taking the class on-line go to http://www.elearnlibraries.com/
Contact Malavika Muralidharan at mala@lib.az.us for scholarships
Creating Policies
for Results (CPFR) Workforms
Sandra Nelson and June Garcia, Creating Policies for Results: From Chaos to Clarity. American Library Association, 2003.
This comprehensive how-to book addresses each major area of library services: governance and organizational structure, management policies, and services relating to customers, circulation, information, and groups. The book provides guidelines to help library staff assess existing policies and revise and develop new ones. The book also provides the tools needed to communicate the new and revised policies to ensure that staff have the information they need to do their jobs and that library users receive consistently excellent service. If you are interested in taking the class on-line go to http://www.elearnlibraries.com/
Contact Malavika Muralidharan at mala@lib.az.us for scholarships
Staffing
for Results (SFR) Workforms
Diane Mayo and Jeanne Goodrich, Staffing for Results: A Guide to Working Smarter. American Library Association, 2002.
How long does it take to . . . catalog a book? Staffing for Results will help you to answer this question and others you have related to the output and performance of your staff. By analyzing, in a systematic way, how long work activities take and then assigning steps to each unit of work, you will have a quantifiable measure of the output of your staff. The only book of its kind, Staffing for Results equips you to not only gauge performance and output but also build on what you learn to maximize and even increase productivity. Using common public library tasks as the context, Staffing for Results walks you through the process of measuring work, identifying best practices, assigning costs to each activity, analyzing resource allocation, and communicating results.
Managing
for Results (MFR) Workforms
Sandra Nelson, Ellen Altman, and Diane Mayo. Managing for Results: Effective Resource Allocation for Public Libraries. American Library Association, 2000.
Every public library, regardless of size, has four important resources to help meet its mission and achieve its goals in the community. Staff, the library's collection, technology, and the library facility itself all need to be carefully managed for the library to achieve the results outlined in its strategic plan. Managing for Results helps librarians to take a proactive approach to marshaling and managing all of the library's resources effectively.
Glossary of terms used in the Results books
Updated: 03/29/2006
