Valuing Libraries: Demonstrating the Contributions Libraries Make to Their Communities

1. The New Jersey State Library & the Highlands Regional Cooperative Library Funding and Resource Development Taskforce present: Valuing Libraries: Demonstrating the Contributions Libraries Make to Their Communities A Two-part Workshop Sponsored By Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records October 31 & November 1, 2006 Presented By: Joanne P. Roukens, Executive Director Highlands Regional Library Cooperative Denville, NJ www.hrlc.org

2. Special Acknowledgement Special thanks are due to Donna Bachowski, formerly the director of the Edgewater Public Library (NJ) and now with the Orange County Library System (FL). Donna co-wrote and originally presented these workshops with me and none of this would have happened without her hard work, insight enthusiasm and friendship. Joanne P. Roukens HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

3. Acknowledgements • HRLC Funding and Resource Development Taskforce • New Jersey State Library, Norma Blake & Jeff Kesper • Morris County Library, Sara Weissman • INFOLINK, Cheryl O’Connor • Neptune Public Library, Marian Bauman HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

4. Special Acknowledgement To: www.webjunction.org & OCLC & The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

5. Today is about how you can demonstrate your library’s impact on your community.

6. Valuing Libraries – Part 1 Valuing Your Services

7. Valuing Libraries Toolkit www.hrlc.org/funding/valuinglibs.htm Copies of everything you need, plus PowerPoints and other documents for the Arizona workshop are at: http://az.webjunction.org/do/Navigation?category=372 HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

8. Overview All materials for this workshop are based on the WebJunction “Demonstrating Impact” web documents http://webjunction.org/do/DisplayContent?id=1193 HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

9. Overview Three steps to demonstrating impact: • Strategize (today) • Quantify (today and homework) • Make the Case (tomorrow) HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

10. Objectives After this program, you will be able to: • Define what is valuable to customers and funders/stakeholders • Execute a seven-part strategic process • Identify your library’s “Value Proposition” • Quantify your library’s value HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

11. Value and Vision • What is value? • "Value and Vision" by Eleanor Jo “Joey” Rodger, American Libraries, Nov. 1, 2002 • Ideas of value have changed • Moving target, constantly needs assessment • Usefulness, quality, availability, image HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

12. Value and Vision • What it is not: • Historic is not valuable • Doesn’t correspond to staff ideas of importance • Is not about our professional values HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

13. Value and Vision • Not enough money to go around • How do we create more public value? • “Bridging the Value Gap: getting past professional values to customer value in the public library,” by Gary Deane, Public Libraries, Sept/Oct 2003 • Doing wrong things well does not create value HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

14. Value and Vision Publicly Valuable • Strategic triangle • Publicly valuable • Politically and legally supported • Administratively and operationally feasible • Commit to reflection, listening and flexibility Political & Legal Support Feasible HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

15. Value and Vision • Evaluate each service • Identify feasible enhancements • Listen and understand agendas • Recognize trends and realign Enhance Value: HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

16. Exercise HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

17. Value and Vision Summary • Identify was is and is not “value” • Examine services using the Strategic Triangle • Need to keep an eye on trends and realign • List what is valuable to customers, funders/stakeholders HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

18. Demonstrating Impact Step 1: Strategizing

19. Strategizing Steps • Assess your resources • Identify your target • Become a lobbyist • Identify what is important to funders • Identify what you do best • Determine how to articulate value • Find the connection HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

20. 1. Assess your resources • All types and all sizes can do this • Principles stay the same • Fit your plans to your library HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

21. 2. Identify your target • Critical to success • Understand your audience • Express your value so it relates to them • Relate value in real-world terms HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

22. 3. Become a “Library Lobbyist” • Get out there • Build personal connections HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

23. 4. What is important to funders? • What is on the board’s mind? • What is on the council’s mind? • What do the constituents say? • What economic trends are in your community? • What are the hot-button issues? HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

24. 5. Identify what you do best • Clear mission statement • Strategic plan • Library audit – http://skyways.lib.ks.us/pathway/audit.html HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

25. 6. Articulating Value • Focus on what you offer and what your funders value • Audience attention is limited, as is your time. • Concise, easy to understand and substantiate • http://www.infolink.org/services/other/roi.asp HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

26. 7. Find the connection • Connect the dots • Simple and powerful • Value Proposition HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

27. Value Proposition • An offer to some entity in which they get more than they give up, as perceived by them, and in relationship to alternatives, including doing nothing. HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

28. The Value Proposition • An offer, not a demand • Not what you value • Only valuable perspective is the customer’s • Valuable in a competitive environment HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

29. OR If you give me this (the money I am seeking), you will get that (specific benefits that come from library services). HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

30. OR The promise that a library makes to its customers about what they can expect to receive in return for their time, their effort, their loyalty, and especially their dollars. HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

31. What your library does well What your funders value Value Proposition HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

32. The Value Proposition Must fill two requirements: • Actionable by you and your organization • Credible and compelling to target audience HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

33. Exercise HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

34. Example Services the Acme Cleaners do best: HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

35. Example You, the customer, need: HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

36. Acme Cleaners’ Value Proposition HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

37. Summary • Assess your resources • Identify your target • Become a lobbyist • Identify what is important to funders • Identify what you do best • Determine how to articulate value • Find the connection HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

38. Demonstrating Impact Step 2: Quantifying

39. Demonstrating Impact: Quantifying • Translate intangible benefits into hard numbers • What are our intangible benefits? HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

40. Approaches to Quantifying • Traditional statistics • Outcome Based Evaluation - OBE • Return on investment - ROI • Anecdotal • Data from peers HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

41. 1. Traditional Statistics • Circulation figures, patron visits, collection size, reference transactions, program attendance • Pro: Demonstrate base level of service • Con: Doesn’t speak powerfully to funders HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

42. 2. Outcome Based Evaluation • Shows results as determined by previously set categories • Pro: Specific, powerful, becoming more prevalent • Con: Can be an involved process HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

43. 3. Return On Investment • Common in the for-profit sector • Shows value of services • Pro: Clear, accurate statement of fund use and resulting benefits • Con: Difficult to quantify benefits from non-priced goods and services HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

44. 4. Anecdotal • Humanizes your services • Pro: Powerful communication tool • Con: Lacks hard evidence HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

45. 5. Data From Peers • Comparison of your services and statistics to libraries with similar service profiles • Pro: Fairly easy to complete • Con: Can backfire – all politics are local HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

46. Bottom Line • Best and most powerful arguments will come from information about the realities of your own community and your own library. HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

47. What Data Do You Need? • Based on your strategy and your locality • Need enough to establish the library value to your funders HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

48. Data Collection • Easiest: repackaging existing data • More difficult: compiling, analyzing raw data • Most difficult: collecting fresh data We are going to do it the easy way! HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

49. What You Are Going to Do! • Gather your statistics • Population • Total of last fiscal year budget • Last year’s circ/usage stats • Use price list and select • Open worksheet and fill in numbers HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006

50. What You Are Going to Do! • Divide total value figure by budget figure • Multiply by 100 to get ROI percentage HRLC Funding & Resource Development Taskforce & the New Jersey State Library, 2006