Strategic Plan

 

2009 - 2011

 

 

 

Nov. 4, 2008

 

Robert Smith & Associates

 

 

“Creative Solutions for Libraries”

 

PLAINFIELD-GUILFORD TOWNSHIP

PUBLIC LIBRARY

 

Table of Contents

 

		PAGE
The Planning Process		3
Process		4
Demographics		5
Library Use		5
Emerging Library Trends		7
The Plan		8
Vision And Mission Statement		8
Service Priorities		9
Strategic Issues		9
The Strategic Plan 2009 - 2011		10
Measuring Success		12
Next Steps		13
Appendices
1	Community Vision	15
2	Community SWOT Analysis	17
3	Community Needs	19
4	Library SWOT Analysis	20
5	Library Information	22
6	Comparing Plainfield With Other Indiana Libraries	31
7	Demographics Hendricks County, Guilford Township and  Plainfield	34
8	Goals And Strategies Worksheet	48

 

 

 

 

PLAINFIELD-GUILFORD

TOWNSHIP

PUBLIC LIBRARY

 

STRATEGIC PLAN

2009 – 2011

 

THE PLANNING PROCESS

In 2008 the Library embarked on a strategic planning process.  The consulting firm of Robert Smith & Associates was engaged to assist in the facilitation of the process.  A Long Range Planning Team of staff and Board members was established.  

The Library Board of Trustees, as well as the Library administration and staff have worked diligently to provide excellent customer service, programming for all ages, and the introduction and integration of technology.  This planning process was initiated to take the Library to the next step of excellence in serving the community.

The planning process included:

Data Analyses

Data was gathered on the demographics of the service area and the County.  Library usage statistics were gathered and compiled to show trends and use of the Library’s programs and services.  The consultant also spent time observing customer use of the library.

Community Input

The consultant interviewed twelve key community individuals, conducted three focus groups, including one with teens and talked to a number of mothers in the children’s room and at the Lunch Bunch.

The focus group participants, the Friends of the Library and the key community individuals all expressed a high level of satisfaction with the Library‘s services and collections. They discussed potential improvements to the library and additional services that would meet the changing community needs. Included in the suggestions were:

• Additional computers, Internet use and computer instruction, including classes for seniors
• An increase in hours, especially open Sundays all year
• Continued improvement to the collections, especially DVDs,
• Increased programming for teens and seniors
• A dedicated area for teens
• Continued improvement to the layout of the library by creating dedicated spaces for different activities and a better use of the lobby
• Many residents of are still unaware of all that the Library offers. The Library needs to continue to improve its communication and marketing to all residents.

 

Most importantly, they view the library as an integral part of the community and as an essential factor in the community’s quality of life. The library is the hub of the community, connecting all residents to sources of information and to each other, and providing access to information technology.

Board of Trustees Input

Each Board member was interviewed about the current needs and future needs for the Library, and how the Library addresses the needs of the community.

 

Staff Interviews and Meetings

The consultant conducted a number of group sessions with the staff.  The managers and supervisors had individual interview sessions.

Long Range Planning Team Meetings

The Planning Team was composed of representatives of the Library Board of Trustees and the Library staff.   The Planning Team was:

• Laura Anderson 
• Susie Geswein
• Mary Glaser
• Kerry Green
• Paula Hilton
• Nelda Keltner
• Theresa Lucas
• Kevin Neal
• Jan Owens
• Reann Poray
• Edra Waterman
• Rachel Ziegler

The Planning Team met six times with the consultant.

 

PROCESS

The Long Range Planning Team completed the following tasks:

• Identified social, technological, educational, demographic and other trends likely to have an impact on the delivery of library service.
• Assessed the Library’s strengths and capacity to deliver quality service including the capabilities of the current facility.
• Analyzed strengths and weaknesses, opportunities and the threats to the Library
• Viewed presentations on demographics, library statistics, and library trends including examples of how other libraries have adapted spaces to better serve the community.
• Identified the Library’s Service Priorities and Strategic Issues
• Developed a vision to guide the Library’s future and created a Mission Statement that incorporates the Library’s primary purpose for delivering library service to the community.
• Considered strategic roles for the library to shape the way that library service will be delivered.
• Determined goals and strategies for the Library for the next three years
• Composed activities that would support the reaching of the goals and strategies

 

DEMOGRAPHICS

The population of Guilford Township, which includes Plainfield, has grown in the last 17 years. In 1990 Guilford Township had only 19,468 residents by 2007 that number had increased to more than 29,391 people. Plainfield’s population in 2007 is 24,734.

 

• The Plainfield population is expected to reach more 42,000 than by 2020.

 

• According to the US Census, 25% of the township’s population is under the age of 18, 32% is between 25-44 years of age and almost 34% of the population is 45 or older.

 

• The median age for a Guilford Township resident is 35.8 years, slightly older than the statewide median age of 35.1 years.

 

• Guilford Township residents are well educated with 17.5% of those over the age of 25 with a bachelor’s degree and 5.8% with a masters, doctorate or professional degree.

 

• Guilford Township residents are affluent with a median family income of $62,484 as compared to the average of $60,891 for Hendricks County.

 

•  There was an increase in the free-lunch program in the schools from 12.7% in 2000 to 22.4% in 2007.  This is attributed to an increase in rental properties.  

 

 

LIBRARY USE

Use of the Plainfield-Guilford Township Public Library continues to grow every year. This reflects the trend throughout the United States. Despite the fear that the Internet would make libraries obsolete, it has created just the opposite situation. Many new customers are coming to the Library to use high speed connections that allow them to access web-based information more quickly; for others the library may be their only source of Internet access. And to the surprise of many, people still continue to read and use libraries to explore new avenues for learning.

The Plainfield-Guilford Township Public Library is a busy library. For the year ending 2007, residents:

• Borrowed 311,91 items
• Visited the library 192,951 times
• Asked 21,961 reference questions

 

But those numbers only tell part of the library story for 2007.

• More than 10,882 people attended one of 629 library programs.
• More than 690 groups used the community meeting rooms for meetings or programs 

 

The following charts indicate the increase in use of the Plainfield-Guilford Township Public Library over the last 5 years. Usage indicators illustrate that the library is steadily increasing its use and expanding the resources offered to the community it serves. Of special note is the increase in circulation.

Additional charts are included in the Appendix.

 

EMERGING LIBRARY TRENDS

 

Today libraries are going through a reexamination of the methods and ways of reaching the public.  Technology has added a new dimension to the delivery of services and materials to meet the needs of a community.  The following trends have an important impact on the Library.

 

• The expectation that the library serve as the community’s navigator for electronic as well as print information has expanded the library’s traditional role. The Library is increasingly called on to provide skilled searching and help to locate resources in the complex online world of information. Technology is fundamentally changing the way the Library operates and interacts with the community.  New uses for technologies are constantly being introduced, such as Blogs, RSS, Web 2.0, Text Messaging and other means of communications that need to be integrated into a library so that it can service the community. People also expect an increased level of instruction in how to use the various databases and electronic resources

 

• Libraries are being designed to be the center of activity in a community, a place for people to experience community.  Some libraries have taken on the role as the “experience” library with themed learning stations and other experiences for the customers.  The popularity of chain bookstores and coffee houses where customers can relax, read, attend a program or browse for hours indicates a need for pleasant community gathering spaces.

 

• Convenience of use is a growing factor in determining successful experience within retailers and non-profit organizations.  Customers, who lead increasingly busy lifestyles, expect efficient and friendly service and comfortable surroundings. Customers demand better, faster service that is available when they want it.

 

• Organizations that provide knowledgeable and friendly service with readily available resources are rewarded by customers with increased use. Time starved families, especially with young children, look forward to services and resources that respect their time.   Customers are increasingly expecting and receiving more – and more personalized – services

 

• Reading and family literacy is emphasized in the schools as educators understand more about the connection between reading and educational success. Early childhood development and reading skills have become a focus for children’s services.

 

• Libraries are designing spaces and programs to attract teens, and to provide services to meet their needs.

 

THE PLAN

 

The Library has achieved its current level of quality through the joint efforts of many parties. The Library’s success over the next three years will require a similar sharing of effort and responsibility. All involved must be prepared to chart a course that will enable the Library to keep pace with the expectations of the Library’s many constituents and communities.

 

This plan represents the culmination of this analysis and planning. The plan describes a long-term vision to guide the development of library services in Plainfield and Guilford Township. The Strategic Plan that follows outlines the steps the Library will take to make certain that all residents of the Library’s service area receive the excellent library services they have come to expect.

OUR VISION

 

Plainfield-Guilford Township Public Library

“The destination for learning, discovery, culture and enjoyment for all.”

 

The mission describes the library’s purpose and its reason for being. The mission guides the allocation of library resources and in establishing priorities.

MISSION

The library is an inviting place connecting the community with opportunities for personal enrichment and enjoyment.

 

SERVICE PRIORITIES

The Planning Team identified the following Service Priorities for the Library. These priorities are the driving force for meeting the needs of the community.

Create Young Readers: Emergent Literacy

 Preschool children will have programs and services designed to ensure that they will enter school ready to learn to read, write, and listen.

Satisfy Curiosity: Lifelong Learning

 Residents will have the resources they need to explore topics of personal interest and continue to learn throughout their lives.

Connect To the Online World: Public Internet Access

Residents will have high-speed access to the digital world with no unnecessary restrictions or fees to ensure that everyone can take advantage the ever-growing resources and services available through the Internet.

Stimulate Imagination: Reading, Viewing and Listening For Pleasure

Residents who want materials to enhance their leisure time will find what they want when and where they want them and will have the help they need to make choices from among the options.

Explore Our Community: Community Resources and Services

Residents will have a central source for information about the wide variety of programs, services, and activities provided by community agencies and organizations.

Visit a Comfortable Place: Public and Virtual Spaces

Residents will have safe and welcoming physical places to meet and interact with others or to sit quietly and read and will have open and accessible virtual spaces that support social networking.

 

STRATEGIC ISSUES

 

The Planning Team identified the following strategic issues that the library needs to address in the planning for the future:

 

1. Customer Focused Services
2. Reaching Teens and Tweens
3. Community Awareness of the Library
4. Technology
5. A Functional Building

 

STRATEGIC LONG RANGE PLAN

2009 - 2011

 

Strategic Issue: Customer Focused Services

 

GOAL 1 - A: The community will find a broad range of resources which meets their changing and growing needs and interests.

 

GOAL 1 - B: Children of all ages and their caregivers will discover a wide variety of resources to develop skills essential to learning.

Strategies:

 

• Increase use of library materials by reorganizing and merchandising the collection
• Develop multi-format collections in an efficient, cost-effective manner that meet specific community needs
• Develop innovative programs to bring new audiences to the library
• Reallocate funds to increase the materials budget to at least 12% of the total budget
• Implement customer-focused services and policies
• Provide services to help children under five years old to become “Ready to Read”
• Provide tools and resources to enhance the skills of all employees

 

Strategic Issue: Reaching Teens and Tweens

 

GOAL 2: All teens and tweens will have an inviting place and will find activities and materials to engage a wide variety of interests.

Strategies:

 

• Increase library use by teens and tweens
• Provide opportunities for teen and tween input into the library services and programs
• Create a space for teens
• Create a space for ‘tweens
• Explore partnerships with others who work with teens and tweens

 

Strategic Issue: Community Awareness of the Library

 

GOAL 3: The library will reach out to the community to build awareness of its resources.

Strategies:

 

• Redesign the library’s webpage to create a virtual library
• Develop target communication strategies for promoting the library’s resources
• Provide a central source for information about the wide variety of programs, services and activities provided by community agencies and organizations
• Establish annual events that community members will anticipate
• Expand community support of the library

 

Strategic Issue: Technology

 

GOAL 4: The library will create an exceptional technology presence.

Strategies:

 

• Provide a greater technology presence in the library to respond to the community’s needs
• Develop a comprehensive program for technology training for the public
• Use and promote technology to add value to all library services and library operations

 

Strategic Issue: A Functional Building

 

GOAL 5: The existing facility will be improved to create a more comfortable and easier to use environment for library users.

Strategies:

 

• Reorganize the library’s existing space to remove barriers and to create new opportunities for use
• Provide an entrance that is inviting and informative for easy movement around the library
• Improve signage within the library

 

 

MEASURING SUCCESS

 

Each year, Library staff and Trustees will set aside time to assess their progress in meeting the goals, strategies and activities outlined in this document. In evaluating its success, the Library will:

Measure levels of community satisfaction	Develop and administer specific community needs surveys Develop and administer customer satisfaction surveys Administer one-on-one exit surveys in the Library asking people for their  impressions and satisfaction with specific services
Measure and analyze customer use	Record and report circulation statistics Monitor collection turnover Record and report number of library visitors Record and report number of reference queries Monitor and record number of people attending programs Record the frequency of computer use Monitor and record frequency of use of databases and Library web pages Monitor the percentage of the population using the Library and set high goals for new registrations in each year of the plan Develop baseline data about current Library use and measure changes in use following building improvements Develop baseline data about specific collections and determine levels of use if featured in special displays
Improve Library efficiency and effectiveness	Measure the number of items loaned Measure the use of the website and other self-service information tools
Increase the level of awareness	Measure the number of new partnerships each year Measure the number of presentations to community groups

NEXT STEPS

 

The Planning Team did a superb job of sifting through information, participating in the planning sessions, identifying strategies, writing a Mission Statement and Library Vision, and finally composing Goals, Strategies and Actions.

The first step is the Library Board approves the Strategic Plan.  After that the Planning Team meets to determine priorities and a timeline for each Goal and Strategy, including the Actions.  Then the Director meets with the appropriate staff to work on the implementation of the Strategic Plan.

The Library will have to either allocate or reallocate resources in order to implement the Plan.  The Board will have to approve some of the Action Steps whenever the implementation plan is presented to them by the Director.

The Planning Team and/or the Library Board Planning Committee should meet on a regular basis to measure progress on the implementation of the Plan.  They should report to the full Board at least twice a year on the progress.

After one year the Strategic Plan should be reevaluated to see if the Goals and Strategies are still relevant, and if there are new activities that they Library should implement to address the current needs of the community.

 

The Strategic Plan is the Library’s road map for the future.  The plans are made, and now it is time to start the trip!

“Organizing is what you do before you do something, so that when you do it, it is not all mixed up.”  A. A. Milne