WSU Libraries Planning Committee Meeting notes, 12.Jun.1996

Washington State University Libraries
Planning Committee
12.Jun.1996 Meeting
Summary Notes

Attending: Rhonda Gaylord, Mary Gilles(Co-Chair), Daryl Herbison, Lauren McNiece, Jill Palmer, Barbara Paulson, Janina Pupeliene (guest), Marilyn Von Seggern(Co-Chair), Kay Vyhnanek, Sharon Walbridge (Recorder), and Leslie Wykoff (via phone), and Christy Zlatos.
Absent: Janet Chisman, Vicki Croft, Ingrid Mifflin, and John Webb.

Check-in
Mary Gilles noted that copies of the Transforming Higher Education monograph will be put on reserve in Holland and Owen Science & Engineering Libraries, routed to other Pullman campus libraries, and sent to each ECLS library. Gilles will also make sure that articles distributed to the Planning Committee are also placed on reserve and provided to libraries.

Meeting minutes
Minutes of the June 5 meeting were approved as distributed.

Services List and Introduction
The Committee reviewed the compilation of services and the introductory text. Kathy McGreevy will distribute the document to departments with enough copies for each library employee. Completed forms will be returned to her. The deadline for return will be June 24.

Moving Forward
The Co-Chairs prepared and distributed an outline which they hope will provide the Planning Committee with focus. The Committee agreed that the outline is helpful and will serve as a working document. Part of a chapter from a book on organizational structure, The portable MBA in management by Allan R. Cohen (New York : Wiley, c1993), was distributed.

The Cohen book defines five types of organizational structures: functional, product, matrix, divisionalized, and cluster (cluster seems to be the same as the current term "team"). It was agreed that we need more information on these, e.g.- examples, advantages and disadvantages. We can get some information from the various library Websites such as Saskatchewan, Minnesota, etc.
The question was raised as to whether we needed one organizational type or whether units could "do their own thing". Some members felt that we needed an over-arching one.
What can we learn from smaller libraries where the human dimension seems to be more dynamic?
We may need to connect with Virtual WSU - we need more information and will talk with John Webb about this next week.
Next week we will continue brainstorming trends in the state and in academic libraries, using John Webb's expanded vision statement, the Transforming Higher Education monograph and the various articles we have received as resources. How do the trends relate to us? Imagine the WSU Libraries in twenty years ... we do not have to reach absolute agreement as there may not be one path or option
We could recommend pilot projects as a part of our recommendations in our final report.
Even futuristic organizations admit they cannot realistically predict more than about 18 months out. What we need is a way to respond to change that is inevitable.

Library Staff Questionnaire
The Subcommittee working on this(Mary Gilles, Daryl Herbison, Lauren McNiece and Barbara Paulson) discussed their latest iteration, which included three questions. During discussion, that introduction and questions were modified to the following:
The Planning Committee is moving into the next phase of its process which is working on the organizational structure and decision-making process. While the Committee's role is not to resolve specific problems, your responses to the following questions will help the Planning Committee identify patterns that relate to organizational issues.

What issues must be dealt with if the Libraries are to be more effective; or in other words, what stumbling blocks do you perceive which prevent the Libraries from moving forward? How would you prioritize them?

What do you think can/should be done to better enable you to do your job, or in other words, what stumbling blocks exist that prevent you from doing your job as well as you would like? Prioritize your responses if you wish.

What assets and attributes do the Libraries have now that will help us move toward the future?

Is there anything else you want the Planning Committee to consider?
The goal is to have this questionnaire out by June 17 with a deadline for completion by June 26. Kathy McGreevy will distribute and receive the completed surveys.

Summary by Marilyn Von Seggern, based on Sharon Walbridge's
WSU Libraries Planning Committee meeting notes