Diana Silveira - Library Technology Planning for Today and Tomorrow: A Lita Guide

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Library Technology Planning for Today and Tomorrow: A LITA Guide

Diana Silveira

ROWMAN & LITTLEFIELD

Lanham Boulder New York London

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Available

ISBN 978-1-5381-0931-1 (hardback : alk. paper) | ISBN 978-1-5381-0932-8 (pbk. : alk. paper) | ISBN 978-1-5381-0933-5 (ebook)

TM The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of American National Standard for Information Sciences Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992.

Printed in the United States of America

To my family, friends, and colleagues who have supported me
throughout my career.

The prospect of technology planning can seem overwhelming and time consuming, especially for those who work in an already short-staffed library. If this is your situation, you may be thinking,

• We havent had a technology plan up to now, and things seem fine. Why change?

• Theres not enough money to add new equipment, so why should we even bother with planning for technology?

• Lets just continue to deal with technical issues as they arise.

• Its easier to go with the flow and buy new technology when we have some extra funds.

• The citys (or countys or school districts) information technology department handles technology for our library, so we dont need to worry about it.

Such thinking will prevent your library from becoming all that it could be. In truth, creating and implementing a technology plan can help you open the door to the modern era. Sound planning can lead to increased funding for technology in your library. Most important, a solid technology plan can help you create an environment that truly meets the needs of the community your library serves.

Lofty goals? Maybe so, but this is 100 percent true. Having a plan will allow you to prepare for the future instead of merely reacting to technology crises. Determining the technological needs of the library and its users will equip you to better allocate existing funds.

Library Technology Planning for Today and Tomorrow was created to help those who work in librariesespecially those who are new to the planning process. The objective of this book is to guide library staffs in working through the entire process of creating a customized technology plan. This LITA Guide will also show library staffs the importance of technology planning; it demonstrates how the process of creating and implementing a plan can help the library, its staff members and users, and the community as a whole. Designed to break down the planning process into manageable steps, it provides a practical and useful guide for the first-time planner. As readers work through each step in the process, they move closer to completing a plan that addresses the needs of their library and their community.

This LITA Guide was developed with knowledge Ive gained in more than fifteen years of working in libraries and with libraries as a trainer and consultant. As a former public librarian, Ive also worked with academic, school, and special libraries while on the staff of a multitype library consortium and as a consultant. As a library consultant, I have helped libraries of different types to use technology effectively.

My planning philosophy is simple: Planning should be a practical process that makes it easier to achieve your goals. Time is short and library funding is tight; both time and money must be applied reasonably if your library is to be successful. As consultant, Ive gained an outsiders perspective of the process of developing and successfully implementing technology plans. From this Ive identified the key areas on which a library must focus for success. This books practical nature, with each step clearly laid out, equips the time-crunched librarian to work logically through a planning process that will help the library accomplish its objectives.