[Baynet] Infopeople's "Measuring Library Costs and Benefits" workshop

[Linda Rodenspiel]

Since some people who may be interested in participating might not 
receive this notice directly, we would appreciate it if you would 
print and post or route this announcement to staff and colleagues. Thanks!


Title:  Measuring Library Costs and Benefits

Dates and locations:

Tuesday, January 22, San Francisco Public Library
Monday, February 11, San Diego County Library Headquarters
Tuesday, February 26, Alameda County Library (Fremont)
Wednesday, March 12, Los Angeles Public Library
Wednesday, April 2, Fresno Woodpark Library
Monday, April 14, Sacramento Public Library - Galleria
Wednesday, April 30, Buena Park Library District

To register for this workshop:  Use the online registration form at
http://infopeople.org/workshop/360

Fee:  There is a $75.00 fee for this workshop.


Skill in measuring and expressing library costs and benefits can be 
the key to sustaining your services and moving both your ideas and 
your organization forward.

--Do you want to convince management to fund new services or provide 
new resources for your department?
--Do you know how to develop case statements and cost analyses for 
grant proposals?
--Do you know how to identify and describe how your library or 
department helps your community achieve its goals?
--Have you been challenged by your administration, local officials, 
or budget officers to quantify or "prove" the value of your current 
operations?
--Do you know how to use management language (such as cost/benefit 
analysis or return on investment) to describe what your library or 
department does?
--Do you know how to find and use comparative data effectively to 
highlight what you do, how much it costs, and the value your users receive?

In this course you will learn how to "make the case" for continued or 
increased funding support in today's competitive environment.


Workshop Description: This all-day workshop will provide you with an 
array of tools that you can use to express the value of library 
activities, using the same business and social impact language that 
administrators, decision-makers, and community leaders use. Examples 
and exercises will provide hands-on opportunities to begin using the 
concepts and techniques presented immediately. Interactive exercises 
and discussions will allow participants to share their experiences 
and learn from what others have done. The instructor will provide 
methodologies, model studies, and sample ROI (return on investment) 
calculators, as well as a bibliography and webliography, glossary, 
and handouts.


Preliminary Course Outline

Why it's smart to use business/management language in competitive 
funding environments
--Accountability and value issues
--What funders and administrators are looking for

Basic definitions
--Return on investment
--Cost/benefit ratios

Types of costs
--Identifying costs

Types of benefits
--Measuring benefits

Finding and using peer comparison tools
--Why comparison is important

Benefits Analysis Studies
--Effectiveness and credibility
--Values propositions

Social Return on Investment
--Expanded value propositions

Communicating Costs and Benefits Effectively

Instructor:  Jeanne Goodrich.  Jeanne has over thirty-five years' 
experience in public library administration, in five western 
states.  She has been working as a library management consultant and 
trainer for the last eight years. Throughout her career Jeanne has 
been interested in how libraries as organizations can continue to 
grow and change in order to respond to the needs their communities 
have and in how technology can be used to provide responsive 
services. As demands grow and resources remain flat or decline, 
accurately measuring the services libraries provide and being able to 
quantify the value and benefits that libraries provide is vital.

Who Should Attend: This course is designed for anyone who designs, 
proposes, evaluates, or justifies library programs, services, or 
budgets, anyone who has an idea they would like to develop into a 
successful grant or funding proposal, or anyone who has to talk about 
library services and programs convincingly to non-library audiences. 
This could include current or aspiring library leaders, committee 
chairs, managers, grant writers, budget preparers, program 
evaluators, business office staff, administrative board members, 
literacy program staff, regional system/network consultants, and 
outreach personnel.

Prerequisites: None

Other Logistics:

*On-site check-in is from 8:30-9:00 AM;  instruction is from 9:00 AM-4:30 PM.

*Maps, directions, and parking information are available on the 
Infopeople Web site at http://infopeople.org/workshop/location.
  Infopeople does not validate or pay for parking.

*Infopeople does not provide refreshments or lunch.  Since some 
training locations do not have in-house or convenient food service, 
Infopeople recommends that participants bring a sack lunch.

To view a complete list of Infopeople workshops and for general 
information about Infopeople training opportunities, go to the main 
Infopeople Workshops page at http://infopeople.org/WS/workshop

If you have questions about registration or scheduling of workshops, 
please contact Linda Rodenspiel, the Infopeople Project Assistant, at 
assist at infopeople.org or by phone at 650-578-9685.