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MAALL 2020: Shift Happens: Technology

Key Ideas

  • The COVID-19 pandemic has led to an increased reliance on technology in our work lives.
  • Meeting staff technology needs in the beginning presented a challenge, especially since the shift to remote work occurred quickly.
  • Moving forward, take the opportunity to plan for your staff's technology needs.
    • Look at medium to long-term needs of onsite and remote workers.
    • Remote workers have special considerations that should be included in their technology plan:
      • Equipment needs
      • Other IT concerns
      • Consider using a checklist to make sure these needs are met
  • Since March, the use of technology applications in libraries has expanded in many areas (both day-to-day work and library services).
    • While the adoption of these new technologies may have been out of necessity, seize the opportunity to identify which have led to improvements and consider how that impacts your organization's decisions going forward.
  • Recognize that technology can also be a stressor and is not a solution to all problems.
    • Follow tips and advice for best practices in using and implementing new technology.

Supporting Workers' Technology Needs

Short-term solutions utilized by our panelists during the initial shutdown:

University of South Dakota Law Library:

  • Assigned equipment already available as part of the Law Library's equipment lending program (laptops, webcams, headsets, etc.)
  • New items were added to lending program to fill short-term needs and also to be available in the future (i.e. more webcams and more headsets!)

Littler:

  • Purchased Chromebooks for non-exempt staff to use working from home

Drake Law Library:

  • Employees were able to take home their desktop computers, but they had to be brought back on site for updates

University of Nebraska:

  • Employees were also able to take home their desktop computers

Does your organization continue to have remote workers?  Make sure they have a plan for their tech needs!

1.  Ensure that they have all the needed equipment.  Create a checklist of everything they will need and purchase items recommended by your IT department.  Examples:

2.  Ensure that the remote work plan addresses the following technology concerns:

  • Network and internet connectivity (including speed)
  • File storage and synching
  • Access to local and shared files
  • Does the employee need VPN access?
  • Security, privacy, and confidentiality
  • How will the employee receive IT support?
  • How will phone forwarding be managed through VOIP or other systems?
  • How will software and operating system updates be handled?
  • Contingency planning for when problems arise

More Sources: 

Kent State University:  https://www-s3-live.kent.edu/s3fs-root/s3fs-public/file/Telecommute%20IT%20checklist%200.pdf

UC Santa Barbara: https://www.it.ucsb.edu/flexible-work-arrangements/checklist-are-you-ready-work-remotely

Use of New Technology Tools Among Program Participants

Poll Results for Tech Question

Examples of a Shift to Technology Use Leading to Improvement in Services

From our panelists:

Drake University Law Library:

  • New student online orientation materials in video format
    • Follow-up hands-on exercise for students to practice what they learned in the video, such as navigating the library website and locating key resources
  • Ability to create videos "on the fly" during a virtual reference/training session (using Teams) as opposed to writing out step-by-step instructions
    • Can send out the video as a follow-up instead
  • Virtual reference
  • Facilitating virtual study groups via a LibGuide: https://libguides.law.drake.edu/StudyGroups

University of South Dakota Law Library:

  • New student online orientation materials in video format
    • Can be accessed at point-of-need or as a refresher
  • Increased attention to our digital outreach
  • Virtual reference
  • Ease of providing librarian-led sessions in doctrinal courses via Zoom

University of Nebraska Schmid Law Library:

  • Provided opportunity to adopt online study room reservation system, which had been under consideration
  • Virtual reference

Littler:

  • While Littler’s Library was accustomed to having a few virtual team members and all virtual patrons, the majority of librarians worked in the office. Providing necessary hardware so that employees can continue to work efficiently, and over the long-haul, has required frequent reassessment and advocacy for equipment.

Tips and Suggestions for Using Technology in the "New Normal"

Tips from the panelists:

  • Patience with technology (and each other!)
  • Remember that technology cannot solve every problem, but it is an important tool.  Creative and flexible problem-solving includes utilizing technology where appropriate.
  • Focus on what you are trying to accomplish and how best to do it
  • Liberate yourself from "this is how we have always done it" to consider what would work best today, leading to more efficient and effective solutions
  • Document technology tips and instructions so they are available at the point of need

Tips from our participants:

From Gail Wechsler:
Google voice phone number for library so not exposing home cell number.

From Hyla Bondareff:
Also, with an iPhone, you can change the phone settings and turn off ‘show my caller id’

From D. Nixon:
Most phones have that, but then people are reluctant to answer anonymous calls.

From Therese Arado: 
My voicemail says to email me. (Karen Wallace adds: I have my voice mail set to go directly to my email as an attached sound file.)

From Melissa Hassien Fayad:
I have my work phone transferred to my home phone for WAH days. Unfortunately, that means that I may not recognize non-work numbers and have answered the phone to scammers.

From Susan Urban:
We’ve been using Skype for Business for a few years already, and it was very easy to set that up on personal phones to receive and make calls from the work number on our cell phones.

 

 

More Sources:

Dorothy Leonard-Barton & William A. Kraus, Implementing New Technology, Harvard Business Review (Nov. 1985):

https://hbr.org/1985/11/implementing-new-technology

Don't dismiss this article because it is from 1985!  Key points:

  • Implementation of new technology requires internal marketing
  • Implementation managers should:
    • Observe the current job routine
    • Discuss with workers what they find frustrating and rewarding about their work
    • Examine how the process relates to other processes
  • If an innovation is to succeed, the implementation team must include:
    • A sponsor, who makes sure that the project receives financial and manpower resources
    • A champion, who is a salesperson, diplomat, and problem solver for the innovation
    • A project manager, who oversees administrative details
    • An integrator, who manages conflicting priorities among the group using communication skills
  • Managing resistance to change
    • Need to address incentives for end-users and fear of loss of control/power

 

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