Organizational Effectiveness (SCOE) Project: Discussion Forum

Note: The initial posts for this group will be re-posts of messages, updates, and materials that were previously posted to the ALA Members Connect group and will include links to the original posts. This message was originally posted on March 13, 2019.
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Dear Members,

I am pleased to present to you a report on the ALA Steering Committee on Organizational Effectiveness' (SCOE) work at the Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, WA. Some brief background on SCOE before the report:

• Charge: Appointed by then ALA President Jim Neal in June 2018, The Steering Committee on Organizational Effectiveness will carry out a comprehensive review and study of ALA's governance, member participation and legal structures and systems, with the goal of proposing changes that will vitalize its success, strength and agility as a 21st century association.
• Timeline: SCOE is using an iterative process with the goal of bringing draft recommendations of changes to Annual Conference in 2019. Members will have the opportunity to provide feedback and input into these recommendations through a series of in person and virtual sessions prior to, at, and immediately following the Annual Conference. SCOE will then further refine the recommendations based upon feedback. All recommended changes must be voted upon by membership on a Spring ballot. The current goal is to have recommended changes on the Spring 2020 ballot after substantive member input and engagement.
• Virtual Engagement: SCOE held a webinar in February 2019 to go over the process and gain a first round of feedback from members. This webinar was recorded and will be available for viewing very soon in a public space, in addition to all of the documents we have used so far so that folks may see the progression of the committee's work and changes made based upon feedback. At the bottom of the below report are spring opportunities for virtual engagement with members. Registration information will be forthcoming.

The following report was created by our consultants at Tecker International who are guiding us on this project:

The ALA Steering Committee on Organizational Effectiveness (SCOE) utilized the gathering of leaders and members during the January 2019 ALA Midwinter Meeting in Seattle, WA to introduce the Organizational Effectiveness Review project.  During those meetings, members of SCOE held 6 one-hour open sessions, met with ALA Committees, and presented introductory information to a number of Division meetings, ALA Council, and other gatherings. The goals were to:

Over 200 ALA members participated in SCOE introductory sessions throughout Midwinter and over 100 pages of input was received as a result of those discussions.

There were a number of general themes identified during the Midwinter Meeting discussions.  While there were a number of individual observations heard throughout the Meeting, the following themes were common to multiple groups.  Those key themes include:

• Simplify and streamline. There was a sense that groups within ALA and ALA as a whole needs to simplify and streamlineorganizational operations. There are a lot of moving parts and not always heading in the same direction.
• The need for change. There was general agreement that change is needed and that the changes need to reflect the needs of the broad library community.
• Defining inclusion. There is not a common definition of inclusion. Multiple groups challenged the sense that the ALA culture is inclusive. That challenge was transferred to this project.
• Streams of change. The multiple streams of change within ALA (IT development, real estate, membership project, Executive Director search, and organizational effectiveness) create a great deal of fear and uncertainty for ALA staff and leadership. That dynamic is creating additional challenges for this 
• Out vs. In. Those who are not active participants of a group are skeptical of those who are active participants of a group. This is true of the Executive Board, Council, Divisions, and Roundtables.  For example, individuals who are not on the Executive Board mistrust the decision-making process of the Executive Board.  Individuals who do not participate on the Council view the Council as a small and closed group. 
• There is very little knowledge of the organizational effectiveness project and as a result, a great deal of fear of the project. This is also reflective of the other changes taking place within the organization and librarianship as a whole.
• Staff input. There needs to be a very clear avenue of input for ALA staff.
• ALA and libraries working together. There was general agreement that change is needed and that the changes need to reflect the needs of the broad library community.

In addition to these key themes and direct input to changes within the organization as a whole, sessions also provided an opportunity to offer suggestions about changes to the following components of ALA:

• Executive Board
• Council
• Divisions
• Roundtables/MIGs
• Committees

The input received at the Midwinter Meeting and following will go into refinement of possible recommendations to meet the project charge which will be communicated to ALA members and the library community over the next few months through ALA communication channels. 

Additionally, discussions during the Midwinter Meeting identified the need to expand the discussion beyond the core SCOE group.  A variety of specific sessions are being planned throughout April to incorporate additional voices and perspectives. Registration information is forthcoming, but please save the date. These sessions will take place:

• April 9, 11:00 am PT/1:00 pm CT/2:00 pm ET: Member Engagement through Round Tables and Member Initiative Groups
• April 15, 11:00 am PT/1:00 pm CT/2:00 pm ET: Prioritization and Accountability through Council and the Executive Board
• April 22, 11:00 am PT/1:00 pm CT/2:00 pm ET: Prioritization and Volunteer Engagement through Committees
• April 29, 11:00 am PT/1:00 pm CT/2:00 pm ET: Prioritization and Member Engagement through Divisions

We hope you will continue the feedback and discussion with us over the next few months. Feel free to email SCOE Chair, Lessa Kanani'opua Pelayo-Lozada with any additional input you wish to provide at lessalozada@gmail.com or fill out this form.

Sincerely,

Steering Committee on Organizational Effectiveness Members:

Lessa Kanani'opua Pelayo-Lozada, Chair

Emily Daly

Emmanuel Faulkner, Sr.

Kenny Garcia

Mandi Goodsett

Terri Grief

Alexia Hudson-Ward

Ben Hunter

Steve Laird

Jack Martin

Alanna Aiko Moore

Lucinda Nord

Vailey Oehlke

Andrew Pace

Juan Rivera

Karen Schneider

Felton Thomas

Kerry Ward

Nora Wiltse

Steven Yates

Shali Zhang

Executive Committee:

Lessa Kanani'opua Pelayo-Lozada, Chair

Wanda K. Brown

Mary Ghikas

Jim Neal

Tecker International Consultants:

Jim Meffert

Paul Meyer