I recently read an article from Fast Company – Why you should make the library a model for your business – and thought it was a good one!
I like how the author flipped a thing that libraries often say. We tend to suggest running a library more like a business. But his article flipped that and talks about how a business should be operated a bit more like a library.
Pulling out this quote: “What if long-term success is more about building environments where people feel inspired, curious, and connected? That’s what libraries do. And that’s what the best organizations of any kind are learning to do, too.”
Yep – that’s pretty much libraries in a nutshell!
Here are some main points in the article:
Let People Dream. Libraries don’t justify anyone’s interests. In fact, we encourage exploration in order to find and develop interests. The author then jumps from that to show how a good company can do a similar thing. They use Google’s “20% time” initiative, and how Google built some big things out of that exploration time.
Focus on More than Transactions. Libraries don’t monetize, but we do have value in our communities. Some companies (ie, Patagonia is mentioned) focus on helping their communities too, and it helps them resonate with their community.
Support the whole person. The article says this: “Libraries recognize that people are more than readers or borrowers. They offer after-school programs for children, job training for adults, and social services for those in need.” I definitely agree with that … I also think it’s hard for a library to shift from thinking about reading and books as our main thing (it’s not – that’s the vehicle, not the destination). But still…cool thought!
Be a platform, not just a point solution. Stop thinking of a business as offering a single product or service. Instead, think of it as a platform that you build things on. It’s a jumping off point. Good libraries do that well, and some companies can learn from that.
So – that was the article (go read it!). What can libraries learn from this? Well … we can definitely make sure that we are, in fact, doing the things the article writer thinks we are doing!
Are we:
- Letting people dream? Do we actively help our customers explore? Not our collections and services, but explore the things they are interested in (and then support those interests with collections and services)?
- Focusing on more than transactions? This one’s easy. Look at your monthly reports. Is it focused on door counts and checkouts? If so, you might want to figure out different ways to show the value of your library to your community beyond the traditional.
- Supporting the whole person? Where’s your focus? Teens and kids? The local business community? The underserved? Busy soccer moms? Figure that out, and then figure out what those groups need … and work on meeting those needs.
- Focusing on a platform, not just a point solution? Is your focus primarily on books? I mean … we are libraries, right? See how you can switch that focus from a thing (i.e., a book) to an experience, or to story (in all its forms) or to impacting your community (through literacy and learning), etc. You can still use the same stuff (collections and services) … you just need to think of those things in a slightly different way.
Libraries have the potential to impact our communities in a huge way … we just need to tweak what we do so it matches the needs of our community (not just our voracious readers). Work on some small changes, and then measure the impact of those changes to see if it moves the needle. If it does … do more of that!