Handbook of Library Training Practice and Development

Volume Three

Alan Brine

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN:
  9780815346814
• eBook ISBN:
  9781317123996
• Topic: Languages & Linguistics
• Subtopic: Library & Information Science
• Index: Languages & Linguistics

Librarians must now work at a different level from that required 20 years ago, but the training available is not always appropriate or accessible to all. The authors of this volume have responded to this significant and continuing change within the profession by offering a much-needed guide to best practice for staff training and development in library and information work. This handbook addresses new aspects of service provision both in the UK and abroad, and provides an up-to-date review of the current developments that are becoming increasingly important to librarians through the influence of the electronic age and the widening of areas of professional involvement. The Handbook of Library Training Practice and Development will be invaluable to those responsible for the development of staff and line managers as well as providing a crucial insight into the information profession for anyone new to this career path or looking to develop their knowledge within it.

SECTION IV

MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER 8

SUPPORTING FIRST LINE MANAGERS

BARBARA ALLAN

INTRODUCTION

The aim of this chapter is to consider current training practices that are relevant to first line managers. Many new and aspiring managers require training in specific aspects of their new role and this includes topics such as budgets, project management, performance management and quality management. While much of this training takes place through short courses, blended learning, which combines different approaches to learning and training, is an increasingly common approach to developing managers in the workplace. This chapter is organized around the headings: blended learning; budgets; project management; performance management; and quality management.

BLENDED LEARNING

Training practice for first line managers may involve 100 per cent e-learning and this is particularly useful for topics that are rule-based, for example, accounting and finance, or legislation. Conversely, many training programmes are delivered 100 per cent by face-to-face workshops, and examples given below include accounting and finance, project management and a range of training and development events associated with quality management processes. Increasingly, blended learning is used as a means of tailoring a training solution that meets the needs of the employing organization and the participants. Many people use the term blended learning to mean a combination of e-learning and face-to-face workshops, as illustrated in Figure 8.1.

Figure 8.1 Popular conception of blended learning

Figure 8.2 Characteristics of blended learning

Source: Allan 2007.

However, blended learning can involve designing a specific training and development process that requires a carefully selected blend of characteristics (Allan 2007). This is illustrated in Figure 8.2 which identifies the different aspects of learning and teaching which may be blended together:

• Time, for example, synchronous or asynchronous learning activities and communications

• Place where learning takes place, for example, on-campus, in workplace, at home

• Different information and communication technologies, for example, CD/ DVD, first generation Internet technologies, social networking software or Web 2.0, or new developing technologies

• Context of learning, for example, academic, training provider or workplace

• Pedagogy, for example, tutor- or student-centred, behaviourist or constructivist

• Focus, for example, aims of learning process presented by tutors or aims negotiated and agreed by individuals, groups or communities

• Types of learner, for example, learners with different roles such as student or practitioners, or multi-disciplinary or professional groupings of learners and teachers

• Relationships with others in the learning process, for example, individual learning, group learning, or development of a learning community

The examples given in this chapter include a mixture of 100 per cent e-learning, 100 per cent traditional face-to-face workshops, and blended learning.

BUDGETS

All library and information services operate within a particular financial context and the ability to understand finance is important for all managers. Individual organizations will have their own finance department which manages all aspects of finance including financial policies and procedures, the management of budgets, associated computerized information systems, and also financial planning. In addition to internal budgeting policies and procedures, many library and information workers manage projects that are funded by external sources. This means that they become involved in obtaining external funding and then managing a budget.

For many library and information workers their first experience of budgets and financial management is at library school where this topic is likely to be covered within a general management module. Once in the workplace, they are likely to find that they need to update this knowledge and also develop skills in working with the financial systems of their employing organization. Training practice in the context of budgets commonly involves attending short courses that focus on specific aspects of finance. These courses are commonly provided by:

• Employing organization

• Professional associations and groups

• Funding bodies, for example, for externally funded projects

TFPL1 provides a good example of a one-day workshop on finance and budgeting that is aimed at library and information professionals ‘with responsibility for managing their own budgets, but who have received little financial skills training and who want to increase their confidence in this topic’. Its outline is presented in Box 8.1:

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Introduction

Library and information managers are increasingly expected to manage complex financial resources; to develop and interpret budgets and financial statements; to make a case for financial resources and also to negotiate value-for-money contracts with their suppliers.

This intensive one-day workshop recognizes that many people are anxious about managing their budgets. The day will be very practical and participants will be supported to carry out a range of exercises including understanding and interpreting financial statements, using financial information for decision making and planning, and making a case for financial resources.

Outcomes

As a result of attending this course participants will:

• Feel more confident in understanding, interpreting and presenting financial information

• Gain experience in developing and controlling budgets

• Be able to communicate more effectively with finance departments

• Develop services with a sound financial basis

• Exchange ideas and experience

Programme content includes:

• The language of finance

• The role of financial planning in strategic management

• Financial cycles and timescales

• Interpreting financial statements

• Compiling a budget, monitoring and controlling expenditure

• Costing methods and making a case for financial resources

• Financial decision making toolkit

• Dealing with difficult situations with financial managers

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Box 8.1 Finance and budgeting for LIS course

Source: TFPL. <http:/./www.tfpl.com>.

ASLIB2 and the Chartered Institute for Library and Information Professionals (CILIP)3 also provide one-day workshops, and examples of their courses are shown in Box 8.2, Box 8.3 and Box 8.4.

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Programme features:

The budget cycle

The different types of figures/terminology

• Requested budget

• Given budget

• Increase on previous year’s spend

• Actual spend

• Savings

• Overspend

• Reforecast

• Quotes vs. estimates

• Recording receipt of invoice vs. actual payment

A practical look at a spreadsheet example

• Percentage formulae

• Recording monthly, periodic and annual payments

• How to record subs with monthly invoices that do not fit in with your same financial year

• Copying contents of cells to a summary sheet

• Working out the rolling reforecast

• How to work out what is overdue

• How to record credits

Why you should attend

What this course intends is to demonstrate how you can use Excel spreadsheets to manage your library budgets. To compare what you estimated you would spend with what you actually spent. To enable you to know at a moment’s notice where you are at any point in time with your actual and newly predicted spend and not have to spend ages doing a manual reforecast. Common and more complex Excel formulae will be explored to make your professional life easier and to automate as much as possible. It is not intended to be a book-keeping course, but is aimed at the average library manager who is too busy to spend ages on budget management but for whom it is important that they can lay their hands on vital, up to date information without having to have a major trawl through past invoices and catalogue records to try and work out where they are in the spending stakes.

Who should attend

Anyone who has to manage all or part of a budget, whether this is for work or for a professional association or organization. Only a very basic knowledge of Excel is required; beyond that there is no need to know Excel well.

By the end of the course

You will have gained more knowledge about how you can use the functionality of Excel to not only record the budget but to keep it as a living, useful document throughout the financial year. There will be a focus on the specific vagaries of library budgets but many of the tips could be applied to other arenas. You will be able to take away some formulae and ideas of how you could use Excel to manage your budget.

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Box 8.2 Spreadsheet course outline

Source: ASLIB. <http://www.aslib.com/>.

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You can only spend it once! With organizations facing tougher competition for funding and resources, and increasing pressure to offer more for less, it is no longer sufficient to be able to present the facts and a well-reasoned argument when submitting a business case. Whether developing a new service, defending an existing one or trying to secure staffing levels, using and presenting financial information effectively can help you secure the desired result.

By the end of the event participants will have:

• Gained an understanding of the key techniques involved in appraising financial information and making a ‘Business Case’ using financial data

• Examined the processes involved in:

– Cost comparison

– Justifying staffing structures and budgets

• Be able to use the techniques learnt to evaluate data and present their case in effective ways, on return to work place

Who should attend?

Senior managers whose role includes responsibility for evaluating the quality of service delivery against the cost of delivering that quality. These senior managers are likely to contribute to service development and service planning decisions, or be seeking imminent promotion to a similar role.

Programme content includes:

Key ground rules for presenting financial information

The ‘business’ case

Cost comparison

Justifying a staffing structure

Group work: cost comparison justifying staffing requirements scenarios

Group work: evaluating a request for increased resources to extend opening hours

Presentation of group work

Review

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Box 8.3 Supporting your case using costing and budgeting data

Source: CILIP. <http://www.cilip.org.uk/>.

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Against a background of constrained resources, the challenges in maintaining a modern, fit-for-purpose range of services in the public library sector is immense. This one-day training programme will help library professionals identify where they are spending their library’s money and whether that fits with the current strategic plan.

Participants will be provided with a framework to challenge the financial structure of their budget and compare and contrast against published national information, for the purposes of planning continuous improvement measures for the future.

Benefits of attending

By the end of the event participants will have:

• Compared key financial performance indicators of their library service with national averages

• Identified where their library service performs differently to the national average

• Identified further areas for investigation to understand differences in actual performance

• Levied preliminary challenges as to the possible reasons for differences in financial performance and service delivery consequences

Who should attend?

Senior library managers in the academic sector responsible for evaluating the most appropriate budgetary allocation for their service. Understanding of service delivery quality thresholds and staffing structure will be helpful.

Special notes

Participants will need to bring details of the information they provided for the collection of statist...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Dedication
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Boxes
• List of Tables
• Notes on Contributors
• Foreword
• Introduction
• SECTION I: TEACHING AND TRAINING USERS
• SECTION II: RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
• SECTION III: SERVICES TO USERS
• SECTION IV: MANAGEMENT
• SECTION V: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
• SECTION VI: INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENTS
• Index