Core Library Leaders and Managers Interest Group

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

I have developed an e-mail distribution list for all library faculty and staff. This may sound obvious, but neither of my last two jobs had one.  We have an IT support staff person who maintains the list (using the campus LISTSERV platform), adding and removing people as they are hired or depart. This is much simpler that individuals creating their own lists and possibly missing some individuals. We include our custodial staff so that they are aware of events and activities. We also have a second list that includes representatives from the non-library units colocated in our building.  Individuals can opt-out of either list, and both were established as un-moderated "open" lists, meaning that anyone may post to the list and have their message instantly distributed to all subscribers.  Should we encounter any problems with this approach, we can always change to a moderated/approval system. That said, we haven't had any issues in two years.

------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

At my previous library we were a smaller team of people with the majority being part-time so internal communication was really important, so everyone was up to speed not only on larger changes but the day-to-day things. We used Workplace by Facebook which was helpful on a lot of fronts. Due to some prior issues with text messaging, unless it was a time sensitive schedule issue, staff were to use Workplace to message each other regarding work related issues since staff were not issued work email address. I wanted as little messaging happening on personal accounts as possible. I was also able to set up Groups for special projects and topics to help classify information. It was easy to use and manage from a manager perspective and also easy to deactivate people once they left. Staff were given time at the beginning of their shift to check Workplace for any information they may need for the day. 

At my current job we have various email lists that are used depending upon who needs to receive the information. All staff have a work email so this makes it easy to communicate and avoid people receiving work related messages in their personal accounts when they aren't working. Some staff also use Slack as a communication tool as well. 

I think it's hard to find a perfect solution that everyone loves. When I introduced Workplace it was on a let's see how this works and evaluate in a few months. There was one person who wasn't a fan, but it served its purpose, and I made adjustments as to how we used it as our team changed.

------------------------------
Mary Gazdik
Director
Chester County Library & District CenterShe/Her/Hers
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Thanks for sharing your experiences, Mary.  We are a Microsoft campus, so we have been using Teams as an overlay to Sharepoint for document management.  It also has a good chat function, though we use for person-to-person communications more than groups.  That said, several of our project and working groups use Teams channels more fully for communication in connection with document sharing.

------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 06, 2023 10:18 AM
From: Mary Gazdik
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

At my previous library we were a smaller team of people with the majority being part-time so internal communication was really important, so everyone was up to speed not only on larger changes but the day-to-day things. We used Workplace by Facebook which was helpful on a lot of fronts. Due to some prior issues with text messaging, unless it was a time sensitive schedule issue, staff were to use Workplace to message each other regarding work related issues since staff were not issued work email address. I wanted as little messaging happening on personal accounts as possible. I was also able to set up Groups for special projects and topics to help classify information. It was easy to use and manage from a manager perspective and also easy to deactivate people once they left. Staff were given time at the beginning of their shift to check Workplace for any information they may need for the day.

At my current job we have various email lists that are used depending upon who needs to receive the information. All staff have a work email so this makes it easy to communicate and avoid people receiving work related messages in their personal accounts when they aren't working. Some staff also use Slack as a communication tool as well.

I think it's hard to find a perfect solution that everyone loves. When I introduced Workplace it was on a let's see how this works and evaluate in a few months. There was one person who wasn't a fan, but it served its purpose, and I made adjustments as to how we used it as our team changed.

------------------------------
Mary Gazdik
Director
Chester County Library & District CenterShe/Her/Hers

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Are folks producing internal newsletters or regular (formal or semi-formal) types of communications for employees?

My setting is relatively small, but I try to put out a weekly update to faculty and staff.  It is somewhat informal, often in the first person, though I do compose it in Word and distribute it as a .pdf attachment via e-mail.  I always open with a "kudos" section to share thank yous for good deeds (both from me and from others who submit them to me). I also share updates on projects, reports from admin meetings I attend, and other bits of information.  I also include a simple calendar of upcoming events and our larger group meetings. I sometimes close with something less work-related - maybe a photo I shot in our area, some holiday jokes, or an interesting story from another library.  These updates are never more than a couple of pages long, and I can attach other documents to the cover e-mail when appropriate. I started this at my last job and have continued into my current position. Feedback has been good over 4 years and I've found it to be a good use of my time.

------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Erik, last year I began using mailchimp to create a weekly internal newsletter that I distribute to our library staff listserv and our library student employee listserv. One element of our communication strategy is the use of targeted channels (ex: professional development opportunities, library news, just for fun, etc.) in a "Library Employees" team in Microsoft  Teams.  All library staff and student employees are added to the team and can view or contribute to the conversations across channels. Often others add likes, comments or, in some cases, entertaining GIFs (Schitt's Creek ones are especially popular!).  My favorite channel is our "kudos" channel, where anyone can recognize a colleague for anything from helping to move furniture to receiving an important award.  I love to see a colleague post a sincere shout out for a peer, especially when it sheds light on something the rest of us would have had no way of knowing -- or appreciating.

In the weekly newsletter I provide a minimal round-up of the prior week's posts (a link to each channel with a few words max about the gist of each post) so those who don't follow Teams closely don't miss anything important (like those kudos!) and have a second chance for engagement. The newsletter also includes a few feature tidbits and links to our internal calendar, the university's events calendar, and a page with info about our active searches,  along with an image featuring highlights of the library's social media from the previous week. 

If you're curious about mailchimp, set up a free account and give it a try.  I've been having fun learning to use it, and now when I receive an email newsletter I read the content -- and  scan it for layout ideas!

------------------------------
Laura Taylor
Assistant Dean
Northern Arizona University Cline Library
She/Her/Hers
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 08, 2023 02:54 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Are folks producing internal newsletters or regular (formal or semi-formal) types of communications for employees?

My setting is relatively small, but I try to put out a weekly update to faculty and staff.  It is somewhat informal, often in the first person, though I do compose it in Word and distribute it as a .pdf attachment via e-mail.  I always open with a "kudos" section to share thank yous for good deeds (both from me and from others who submit them to me). I also share updates on projects, reports from admin meetings I attend, and other bits of information.  I also include a simple calendar of upcoming events and our larger group meetings. I sometimes close with something less work-related - maybe a photo I shot in our area, some holiday jokes, or an interesting story from another library.  These updates are never more than a couple of pages long, and I can attach other documents to the cover e-mail when appropriate. I started this at my last job and have continued into my current position. Feedback has been good over 4 years and I've found it to be a good use of my time.

------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Great discussion topic and interesting responses so far! I hadn't heard of FB Workplace, but it made me laugh because my uncle enjoys being deliberately obtuse and calling Facebook "Faceplace."

I recently moved from a mostly-Microsoft organization to one that has more of a mix-and-match approach to internal communication platforms. I had really enjoyed using Teams chat at my old job, but there was great variability across the staff in terms of interest in it. In my current job, lots of people use Slack quite actively for internal communication, which I find very useful and fun. We're a hybrid organization that relies heavily on virtual communication, and it's great to have an alternative to email that feels less formal. It's much better than email at mimicking some of those water cooler or hallway interactions missing when we're not together in person.

Another aspect of internal communication that has been on my mind lately, since I'm still pretty new in my organization, is the challenge of tracking all the different channels staff need to be plugged into. It's easy to inadvertently leave people out of important conversations simply because no one realized they hadn't been added to a listserv, Slack channel, group text, etc. Up-to-date onboarding documentation helps, but this stuff changes all the time!

-Miranda

PS It's very meta that I wasn't participating in this discussion because something got messed up with my Connect email notifications from this group. Communication! [sigh]

------------------------------
Miranda Bennett
Director of Shared Collections
California Digital Library
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Replying to my own response here to note that it can be a problem when people aren't removed from communication channels post-employment, too. The listserv circle of life!

-Miranda

------------------------------
Miranda Bennett
Director of Shared Collections
California Digital Library
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 11, 2023 01:16 PM
From: Miranda Bennett
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Great discussion topic and interesting responses so far! I hadn't heard of FB Workplace, but it made me laugh because my uncle enjoys being deliberately obtuse and calling Facebook "Faceplace."

I recently moved from a mostly-Microsoft organization to one that has more of a mix-and-match approach to internal communication platforms. I had really enjoyed using Teams chat at my old job, but there was great variability across the staff in terms of interest in it. In my current job, lots of people use Slack quite actively for internal communication, which I find very useful and fun. We're a hybrid organization that relies heavily on virtual communication, and it's great to have an alternative to email that feels less formal. It's much better than email at mimicking some of those water cooler or hallway interactions missing when we're not together in person.

Another aspect of internal communication that has been on my mind lately, since I'm still pretty new in my organization, is the challenge of tracking all the different channels staff need to be plugged into. It's easy to inadvertently leave people out of important conversations simply because no one realized they hadn't been added to a listserv, Slack channel, group text, etc. Up-to-date onboarding documentation helps, but this stuff changes all the time!

-Miranda

PS It's very meta that I wasn't participating in this discussion because something got messed up with my Connect email notifications from this group. Communication! [sigh]

------------------------------
Miranda Bennett
Director of Shared Collections
California Digital Library

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

Prior to the pandemic, we used Slack for the majority of our in-house communication between librarians, part time staff, and student workers both as groups via channels and individually. In the time since, our campus has moved to Microsoft Teams for communications, so we have a "Team" for adult employees only (full time librarians and part time staff) as well as one for student workers. We enjoy using this for weekly updates, task assignments, group and individual updates and communication. In addition, we use Sling for scheduling our student workers and use their Newsfeed for general announcements/communication between staff and student workers. Between semesters and during the summer when Teams and Sling are less likely to be monitored by students, I utilize email with read-receipts to communicate with our student workers.

------------------------------
Jacqueline Bynum
Collection Development Librarian
Margaret Estes Library, LeTourneau University
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------

We also use a newsletter approach and Microsoft Teams-it can get a bit unwieldy when a lot of folks post then react, but it's allowed us to think about when to communicate through what channel, formal vs informal, etc.

------------------------------
Cinthya Ippoliti
Auraria Library Director
University of Colorado Denver; Metropolitan State University of Denver; Community College of Denver
she/her/hers
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 18, 2023 12:12 PM
From: Jacqueline Bynum
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Prior to the pandemic, we used Slack for the majority of our in-house communication between librarians, part time staff, and student workers both as groups via channels and individually. In the time since, our campus has moved to Microsoft Teams for communications, so we have a "Team" for adult employees only (full time librarians and part time staff) as well as one for student workers. We enjoy using this for weekly updates, task assignments, group and individual updates and communication. In addition, we use Sling for scheduling our student workers and use their Newsfeed for general announcements/communication between staff and student workers. Between semesters and during the summer when Teams and Sling are less likely to be monitored by students, I utilize email with read-receipts to communicate with our student workers.

------------------------------
Jacqueline Bynum
Collection Development Librarian
Margaret Estes Library, LeTourneau University

Original Message:
Sent: Jan 02, 2023 04:23 PM
From: Erik Nordberg
Subject: Internal communications - Tips and Tricks?

Let's start with a simple question:  how do you inform employees and work colleagues about things?  New policies, upcoming events, information from leadership meetings you attend?

Most library leaders and managers utilize a tiered approach for sharing information internally.  What tips and tricks would you share with others?






------------------------------
Erik Nordberg
Dean of the Paul Meek Library
University of Tennessee at Martin
He/Him/His
------------------------------