Why? Because the demand for our services is growing. We need to
grow our ability to meet it, and there are some new tools we
haven’t had before.
By By: Jamie LaRue
Douglas County Libraries is retooling.
Why? Because the demand for our services is growing. We need to
grow our ability to meet it, and there are some new tools we
haven’t had before.
So our retooling will begin with something called “self-check.”
Our first full-scale experiment will be at the Parker
Library.
Right now, our very capable staff spends a lot of time doing
simple tasks: scanning the barcodes on your library card and books,
for instance.
Frankly, that’s a ridiculous underuse of their skills. Over the
years, I’ve learned that the people who work at our circulation
desk are among the best read, most savvy library consumers you’ll
find.
Of course, their deep dedication to public service comes in
handy when some odd circumstance comes up. Our people know the
system, and can help steer you through it.
But most of the time, a lot of the process of checking out
materials is purely mechanical.
So here’s what we want to do:
1. Put out more self-check stations. This is essential. Right
now we have one public self-check station, and three staff
stations. This week, we’ll have four public stations, and one for
staff. We really can’t add more staff at a circulation desk – not
enough room, not enough money.
A different configuration, with our staff overseeing several
stations, will let us grow our capacity.
2. Get our staff out from behind that desk. This is the Big
Change. The idea is that we’ll not only have our people standing
right there to help our patrons past the rough spots, staff will
also be there to do something even more important.
What’s that? To help you find the materials in the first
place!
3. Make checkout easier. There are all kinds of little “blocks”
that might come up during checkout – really, just notes and
reminders to our staff. We’re trying to whittle those down so that
they don’t stop people from checking things out
themselves.
There are some things you can do to help us test this new
system.
1. Have patience! Like every other new technology, there will be
bugs and gaffs. But we’ll work to get it right.
2. Please carry your library card with you. I know it can be a
pain to pack one more thing in your purse or wallet. But having
your library card will make things go faster and
smoother.
3. Holler for help if you need it! Again, all of our staff is
still around, and eager to make this experiment go as smoothly as
possible. But we’re sure you’ll find their help far more
significant and useful out in the stacks, rather than at the
circulation desk.
3. Let us know what you think. The first couple of times might
be weird or awkward.
But after you’ve tried it a few times, staff would appreciate
some thoughtful feedback. Right now, we see this as one of the key
ways we can handle more work with the same number of
people.
We’re also looking, as noted above, to make more intelligent use
of the skills of the very bright people who work for us.
Jamie LaRue is the director of Douglas County Libraries.