Customized Workshops & Services for Libraries
Library Roving Service
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I know many Libraries have been trying out roving and making it part of their excellent service model. Here’s a good idea I came across on the Central New Jersey Library webpage. I love this ”pro-active” announcement, featured in their “Local Events” section, which alerts patrons to their upcoming roving service. It is great for patrons to know why staff seem to be “wandering around” the Library or approaching them. It is also very helpful to roving staff when at least some patrons are are expecting to be approached! Here is the announcement from the Central New Jersey Library web page, announcing roving at the John F. Kennedy Library. And Kudos to the library for supplying Apple iPads for roving staff!
“Through August. Staff will roam around the library to help you look up books, DVDs, CDs or other items and point you in the right direction, or reserve an item immediately on their new Apple iPad or a nearby desktop computer.”
I will be hitting the road (well…actually – the air!) bringing 2-3 weeks of our workshops to New Zealand – and I couldn’t be more excited. Thanks to the Management at Palmerston N. City Library and the Auckland City Libraries, I will be providing our “Pro-active Service and Roving” concepts and skills to many Library Managers and Staff in New Zealand in August and September. Both Library Systems have many progressive services and an admirable approach to service excellence. I’ll post some of their best ideas on this website in late September. And – of course – I’ll be sure to find time to tour a bit of this wonderful and scenic country while I am there.
I had an email from someone attempting to access the SirsiDynix Institute Audio seminar archives, which no longer appear on their website. This is a concern to me, because I have a link on this website to an audio seminar I provided for them waaaaay back on Dec. 11, 2007. You can access my audio seminar “Guide to Roving, an Essential Service for Library 2.0″ on Apple iTunes at no charge.
You can also access more of the FREE SirsiDynix Institute Archived seminars at Apple iTunes at
You may have to download iTunes (its free). Once you are on the main iTunes page click on “podcasts”, then “audio podcasts” then use the search window at the top right to enter “Sirsidynix Institute”….and – Voila! There are the archives. You can sort the list by date, name, duration. They are all free. Enjoy!!!!
By now, most librarians agree that the role of the library is changing, and that e-journals and e-books are poised to turn the library building into study space and librarians into e-sherpas, and many academic libraries have begun moving in that direction. This interesting article appearing in USA Today 06/09/2010, describes how the Welch Library at Johns Hopkins University is pioneering what I would call a “a radical roving” approach. Two years from now, the medical library at Johns Hopkins, a world leader in medical research, will have realized a “distributed” library model, which the article calls “A library located everywhere, and nowhere.” Not only in the sense that every researcher’s computer can access the library’s website and its vaults of electronic journal articles and e-books, but in that library personnel are embedded in various departments to work with researchers on their own turf. Many Academic Libraries have adopted some forms of this model in the past, however, what’s different is that the Welch Library ”will be “recycling” much of its print collection, and storing other books offsite; faculty and students will be able to send away for the hard copies via snail mail — like ordering a DVD from Netflix.”
Read more at http://tiny.cc/embedded_Librarians
On Wednesday Feb. 24th I will be presenting a Pre-Conference Workshop at the Ontario Library Association Super Conference.
Workshop Title: Best Foot Forward: Pro-active Service and Roving 2.0
Date/Time: Wed. Feb. 24th, 2010, 9:30 AM – 4:00 PM
Location: Metro Toronto Convention Centre, 255 Front St. West, Toronto Ontario
Fee: OLA members $125, Non-Members $165
Register via the Ontario Library Association at http://www.accessola.com/ola/bins/content_page.asp?cid=5
Workshop description:
Best Foot Forward: Pro-active Service and Roving 2.0
The use of roving reference has been in practice in libraries for several years and much has been learned. As one of the pioneers, Joan has travelled to the United States, Australia, and throughout Canada, leading libraries in their implementation of the concept.
In this new 2010 version of her practical and entertaining workshop, Joan reveals what libraries have shared with her about the most common challenges they face when trying to implement roving. More importantly, she will share updates on the latest and best tips, practical approaches, tools, and solutions she has seen libraries use to overcome their challenges.
You will walk away with
1. Current, practical approaches, tips and techniques
2. Common obstacles and pitfalls, and how to avoid them
3. Answers to your own specific questions about roving reference in your library
4. A comprehensive list of URL’s of pertinent articles, presentations, white papers, and more
Amid the flurry of hype, hurrah’s, opinions and blogs about the new Apple iPad I found this post by David Lee King on his blog. Davis feels that the iPad will be a natural tool for use when roving. You can see the rest of his article at http://www.davidleeking.com/2010/01/28/ipad-a-game-changer 
Think Reference Desk and roving reference here. It’s the same price as a netbook laptop. But probably easier to carry around, easier to show stuff to people, easier to make the text larger for people who need larger text (you just touch and stretch the screen with your fingers to make the text larger – just like an iPhone). And has a 178 degree viewing angle, so it would work well to show stuff to patrons.
Over the past 6 and 1/2 years, in Roving workshops with over 1200 Library managers and staff, I have found that people commonly need clear answers about some important questions before they can successfully implement Roving. Our Pro-active Service and roving Workshops address all these questions, and much more.
I have summarized the most common of these “frequently asked questions” for you in the following list.
“10 FAQ’s To Answer For Smoother Roving implementation”
1. Why is this important? (What is the objective? How does it link to our Vision, Mission, Goals?)
2. Who will be Roving? (which roles, positions, departments, branches, F/T/ P/T)
3. When should I rove? • Will there be a schedule, or will it be just a percentage of my shift, or will it be just at my discretion? • If there are to be shifts…how long will a roving shift be?
4. Where do I rove?
• Just in my department?
• On this floor only? Other floors?
• Beyond the Library walls?
5. How do I rove?
• What if there is no one else staffing the desk? Can I leave the desk empty?
• Do I have to do my roving time in one “chunk”?
• What if there are no patrons in the department?
• How do I deal with multiple customers or answering phone calls?
• How do I deal with questions outside of my departmental or role related expertise?
6. What tools or support will be provided to help me rove?
a. INFORMATION
i. Trends affecting libraries
ii. Other libraries’ approaches
b. TECHNOLOGY AND OTHER TOOLS
i. Computer Technology (i.e. Notebook computers, PDA’s etc.)
ii. Communication devices (i.e. Vocera, Walkie-Talkies, or portable phone headsets etc.)
iii. Clipboards, “Tick sheets”
iv. Identification (i.e. badges) c. TRAINING i. Roving Training ii. Pro-active Service (at a desk; in stacks(pages/shelvers), at Ciric. desk) iii. Cross training d. COACHING i. Managers participating and/ or demonstrating roving ii. Dialogue, Feedback (i.e. from Co-workers, Managers and/or from Patrons?)
e. REINFORCMENT / SUPPORT
i. What follow-up will there be?
ii. Practice sessions
iii. Other support (i.e. Reminders, posters, newsletters, staff meetings)
f. TWO-WAY COMMUNICATION
i. Committees of representatives of supervisors and staff
ii. Dialogue, what’s working, what’s not, solutions. Make it part of every staff meeting agenda
7. How can I get my other work done? Will Managers help by scheduling off-desk work or automating, eliminating or re-assigning other tasks/priorities
8. What if there is no one else staffing the desk?
9. What if there are no patrons in the department?
10. Do I have to do my roving time in one chunk??
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