Framing new measurements flat army

Framing New Measurements of EngagementStephen Abram

Executive DirectorFederation of Ontario Public Libraries

Richardson Jalakas & Associates 2

FOPL (& SOLS, OLS-North, OLA)

0 Study member engagement metrics in Ontario from the point of view the public library “brand”


#1- Census – use of websites

0Social and e-presence census• 29 (i.e. 9%) did NOT have a website;• 2/3 (i.e. 19) of those libraries without a website were

identified as First Nation libraries;• 3 of the 29 without websites were FOPL members.

0(n = 318)


#1 - Census – Adoption of Social networkingTool Yes % Notes

Social Networking:

Facebook 144 45% Large urban (including TPL) have adopted at 100%; Small medium = 85% (55). Of the non-FOPL libraries, only 24% (29) used FB.

Twitter 106 33% Caucus members with T: 1 FN; 1 Franco; all the Lg Urban (including TPL); 10 North; 6 Rural; 43 Sm-Med.

Blogs 48 15%

Google+ 2 0.6%

LinkedIn 2 0.6%

MySpace 0


#1 - Census – adoption of media sharing and otherTool Yes % Notes

Media Sharing: Uptake of media sharing tools was not as robust as the social networking tools. Distribution of uptake was spread across the library types as defined by the FOPL caucuses.

YouTube 39 12%

Pinterest 25 8%

Flickr 20 6%

Other:

Good Reads 6 2%

Delicious 4 1%

Reddit 0

Tumblr 0


Wordcloud from ON Public libraries


#3 – Research on public library impact

0 So Much More: The Economic Impact of the Toronto Public Library on the City of Toronto. University of Toronto – Martin Prosperity Institute. Dec 2013.

0 How Americans Value Public Libraries in Their Communities. Pew Research Center. Dec 2013.

0 Perceptions of Libraries, 2010: Context and Community. OCLC. 2011.

0 How Canadian Libraries Stack Up. OCLC. 2012.


Done0 Establishing the Context:Conduct brand and channel census of public libraries across

OntarioReview best branding practices in public libraries in North AmericaSynthesize research conducted on the impact of public librariesConduct focus groups across stakeholders ‘in’ librariesPerformed interviews with municipal funders

NEXT0 Branding campaign financing and development0 Test social media strategies0 Update and improves the FOPL 2003, 2006, 2010 public opinion

polls

Stats and Measurements

The Triggers

0 Whisper conversations – the malaise0 Toronto Public Library Martin Prosperity Institute report

(Dec. 2013)0 LJ rankings0 Circulation drop, DVD issue, …0 Royal Society testimony0 Grants0 CLA Stats Task Force0 Diffused efforts0 Counting Opinions – client work, PLDS, etc. Collaboration

The Issues

0 Innumeracy0Maturity of Analytical Skills0Value versus Activity0Fetishization of Circulation0Hybrid use and Complex value proposition

The Opportunity

0Comprehensive Ontario Public Library data collection0Open government and open data0PDF versus database versus .csv files0Usefulness – overwhelming and irrelevant?0Dr. Robert Molyneux, MLS, PhD

Core Statistics (CLA Draft)

1. Service points and visits2. Reference questions3. Circulation (of particular item types)4. Population served5. E-resource holdings6. Children’s membership and services7. Staffing8. Internet/PAC/WiFi9. Programming10. Total operating expenditures

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Core Measurements (FOPL Draft)

1. Overall value of a library membership (usage not cardholders)2. Value of an 'open hour' (new metric unique to MPI TPL study that aggregates cost + value)3. Economic impact (vs. ROI) (Households and Population)4. Per Capita 'Usage" comparison across systems, groups (like small, medium. large, urban, suburban, rural, remote, FN, etc.), and jurisdictions (province/state)5. A 'new' usage algorithm to modernize the old circulation stat and combine digital and print usage into a standard, comparable metric6. A metric for technology access tied to the digital/economic divide(s)7. A standard operational effectiveness metric (Value for Tax Dollars)8. Average cost per household (taxes are based on household rather than population and better reflects funding models)9. A metric for Use of Space (meetings, study, rooms) which was new for the MPI study and hadn't been done before 14

The Insights

0Measurements versus Stats0Social media census (audit)0Rankings on data0Rankings on measures0Longitudinal0e.g. member growth versus population growth0Effectiveness, efficiency0Role of visual and infographics

The Action

0Management tool0Communication tool0Advocacy and influence tools0Elections0Training tools

The Plans

0Full report0Wednesday blog

0 Primer0 Indices primer0 Summaries of raw data0 Ranks based on measures0 Cohorts based on measures

0FOPL Index of Community Engagement0Regional Cohort Analysis (e.g. Waterloo, Niagara)0Vibrancy Reports

Why Measurements?

With nicely crafted visuals libraries could do the following:1. Communicate effectively with their trustees to get their advice on strategy as well as support.2. Communicate budget 'asks' effectively that place the library in the community value delivery context.3. Position budget growth (or at least lessen cuts) for community goal alignment and strategic impact.4. Explain why technology and community room spaces are as valuable (maybe more) than books.5. Position hybrid collection use properly in ‘circulation’.6. Justify restoration or extension of library hours.7. Show that your library either performs as well as or better than others or justify investments to perform to provincial, national or sectoral norms.

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I have a dream . . .

0 Standard our sector on impact metrics that lend themselves to the communication, influence, and financial challenges faced by public libraries to communicate their value in the 21st Century context.

0 Build a set of standardized core statistics that build up to these measurements so we could lead most libraries to start working with a new program to communicate value (and build on their strengths in communicating pure 'usage').

0 Ultimately create a tool such as a specially designed spreadsheet or dynamic website where you input the numbers based on the standards and advice from some group (us?!) that spits out decent data, information and visuals easily on the other side.

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Introducing the OLA Personas

Marie Multitasker 0 Marie represents the library workers in small, rural and remote libraries (+FN).

Haley New Professional0 Haley represents library workers in the early stage of their careers.

Jennifer Passionate Advocate0 Jennifer represents the people (librarians and, trustees, library supporters) who

advocate for libraries, reading, education, and the role of information in a knowledge society.

Michael the Talented Specialist0 Michael represents the library worker who dives deep into a technical or specialized

information discipline. Emma Educator0 Emma cares about education at all levels (not just LIS) and its role in society.

Margaret the Leader0 Margaret represents those director and managerial library staff who specialize in

leading larger institutional and urban settings. Dewey Learner0 Dewey represents students in library education of all types.

Marie Multitasker Marie represents the library workers in smaller, rural, and remote

public, native and French/bilingual libraries.

Biggest Challenge: Time Management

Haley New ProfessionalHaley represents library workers in the early stage of their careers.Biggest Challenge: Making Personal Professional Choices

Jennifer Passionate AdvocateJennifer represents the people (library workers, trustees, and library supporters) who

advocate for libraries, reading, education, and the role of information in a knowledge society.

Biggest Challenge: Influence with Power

Michael Talented SpecialistMichael represents the library worker who dives deep into a technical information

discipline. Michael could be a library programmer, reference librarian, instruction

specialist, learning or website designer, or any library worker on the professional technical ladder.

Biggest Challenge: Keeping Current

Emma EducatorEmma cares about education at all levels (not just LIS) and its role in society. Biggest Challenge: Proving her Value and Impact

Margaret the LeaderMargaret represents those directors and managerial library staff teams who

specialize in leading larger institutional and urban settings.

Biggest Challenge: Leadership and Priorities

Dewey LearnerDewey represents students in library education of all types

Biggest Challenge: Commitment to a Satisfying and Successful Career

IDEA

0Do Ontario Public Libraries need an employee climate audit?

0Where are we now?

Thank youFOPL.ca

[email protected]

Documents

Framing new measurements flat army