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Internal Library Audit

Introduction & Index

Introduction:



A library's environment has two faces: external and internal. The previous Pathways module, Profiling Your Community addressed a portion of the library's external environment through the assessment and profiling of the library's community. Now we turn to an assessment of the library's internal environment which we call an "Internal Library Audit". This internal audit will look at the library's staff, managerial structure, resources, and activities.

The library's environment.



The internal library audit will enable you to begin to match the interests and needs of your library community with the capacity of your library. This analysis will move you logically towards a consideration of your vision and the goals and objectives you will employ to work towards that vision, all of which will be considered in the following module, Visions, Goals and Objectives.

A thorough and systematic audit of your library's internal system would include consideration and assessment of all of its components. This module includes 2 activities to help you begin the process of your internal library audit. Instructions for each of these activities and a link to the worksheets for each activity are provided below. Before you begin these activities, however, browse the following questions intended to help you determine what further internal areas or components you may need to examine during your audit:

Role and Purpose:

  • What is the role of the library in the community?
  • What is the libary's purpose?

Organizational Structure:

  • How are decisions and policies made?
  • How does the staff work together and communicate? What are the library's lines of communication?
  • What is the library's technical structure (processes, procedures, and techniques).
  • What is the library's informal staff structure (leadership style, politics, status, rewards, ideologies)?

Staffing:

  • How many people, including volunteers and board members, work for your library?
  • What are the strengths and weaknesses of your library staff? What special areas of expertise does your library staff possess?
  • What types of training and education does your library staff need? What training and education resources are available and accessible by your staff?

Fiscal Resources:

  • What is the library's annual budget?
  • What are funding sources for the library?
  • What is the process for creating the budget? Who is responsible for creating the budget?
  • Are there any potential funding sources that have not been tapped?
  • What are library's expenses?
  • Does the library budget accomodate growth?

Physical Resources:

  • Describe the condition of the library's buildings and facilities.
  • Is there adequate space and appropriate configuration for the library's materials and programs?
  • How would you rearrange the library's physical facilities to enrich the library's internal environment?
  • Does the library have the necessary wiring, telphone lines, electrical outlets to provide for its services?
  • Do you have enough furnishings and are they comfortable and attractive to your library users?
  • What technology and equipment does your library have? Is it updated and adequate for your library community's needs?
  • Does your library have access to adequate technical support and technology training and education?

Activities--Programs, and Services:

  • List and describe all of the library's services and programs. Include who is responsible for each activity and what resources are dedicated to each.
  • List and describe your library's marketing activities including public relations, promotion, and advertising.
  • Does your library maintain circulation and in-house use statistics? Are these statistics itemized (i.e. adult, youth, children, business, reference, etc.) in any way?

Image:

  • What is image of the library within the community?
  • What do your library users feel about the library? What do your library users see when they visit your library?
  • What are the staff, volunteers, and board perceptions of the library?

You may want to skip ahead to Worksheet 6B-2 (Visions, Goals & Objectives) which is a planning grid intended to help you organize your data about the percentage of your library's resources (materials, physical space, staff time, collection, and resources) assigned to services for various population groups (children, adults, etc.) Keep this worksheet handy and you work through the Internal Audit activities. It will help you make a comparison of certain library resources to the corresponding circulation figures for each population group as well as to their demographic percentages. This comparison will help you build a profile of your library that will will lead you into the development of your vision, goals, and objectives.

Index:

Library Walkabout Worksheet
Instructions:

Use this worksheet to record your impressions and observations as you through your library. Try to see your library as your users see it, in other words, try to see your library with fresh eyes. Start at the street or in the parking lot. Note the exterior aesthetics, signage,and condition of your library. How are library users greeted when they enter the library? Is the library arrangement attractive, convenient, easily accessible? Is your library signage adequate, attractive, noticeable? Is it easy to spot library staff? Are the staff members approachable? What barriers to the library's staff and materials do library users face? Have 2 or 3 of your planning group members conduct a walkabout and then share and compare your observations, impressions, and perceptions of the library.

What do your findings suggest about the internal environment of your library? Make your notes on the Your Own Notes/Thoughts about the Library Worksheet.



S.W.O.T. Analysis Worksheet
Instructions:

S.W.O.T. Analysis is an effective way to identify your library's Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats. Your analysis will help you to focus your library's services and programs on areas where you are strong and where the greatest opportunities lie (see Mind Tool's S.W.O.T. guide for more details.) This is an activity particularly suited for the entire planning group or a sub group which includes both library staff and library board members. You may even want to consider including some "outsiders" or library customers in this process.

This analysis will help you compare your library's strengths and weaknesses (internal assessment) with the opportunities and threats presented by the library's external environment. Begin by making up 4 lists using the S.W.O.T. Anaysis Worksheet to record them. Then match your strengths to your opportunities, discuss ways to reduce or improve your library's weaknesses, and brainstorm about ways to protect your library against the threats you have identified or ways to transform those threats into opportunities for library service.

The National Arts Marketing Project offers these rules for conducting a S.W.O.T. Analysis:

  • Keep lists short - 10 items per list ensures only important factors are considered.
  • Opinions must be supported with facts - One person's idea of a strength may be another's idea of a weakness. Having the facts to back up an argument gives it credibility.
  • Show competitive factors - Perhaps you don't have a direct competitor in your category, but every organization competes for dollars so competition should not be dismissed.
  • Prioritize and weight the factors in the lists.
  • Use language that is clear and relevant to the task - Confusing or obscure language may complicate your ability to execute the strategy.

Once you have completed your lists, Austrainer provides these questions to stimulate your analysis:

  • How can we use our library's strengths to enable us to take advantage of the opportunities we have identified?
  • How can we use these strengths to overcome the threats identified?
  • What do we need to do to overcome the identified weaknesses in order to take advantage of the opportunities?
  • How will we minimise our weaknesses to overcome the identified threats?

Now that you have completed your S.W.O.T. Analysis, what do your findings suggest about the internal environment of your library? How will the library's internal profile affect the services and programs your library will create and deliver? Make your notes on the Your Own Notes/Thoughts about the Library Worksheet.



Bibliography

Activity Cards/Gathering Information: Walk-Abouts." Tools for Life. Johns Hopkins University/Population Communication Services. [http://www.jhuccp.org/africa/tools/activity/ac01.shtml]

Booth, Tracey. Pre-Marketing: Analysis of Information Needs.
Booth's web guide provides a planning process for library marketing, including a discussion of the assessment of the internal environment. [http://www.libsci.sc.edu/bob/class/clis724/SpecialLibrariesHandbook/booth.htm]

Cram, Laura. (1995, Winter). The marketing audit: Baseline for action. Library Trends. 43(3): 326-348.
This article provides an enlightening discussion of the importance of self assessment (internal audit) as part of the planning process.

Danca, Anthony C. SWOT Analysis.
An explanation of the S.W.O.T. Analysis process. [http://www.stfrancis.edu/ba/ghkickul/stuwebs/btopics/works/swot.htm]

McNamara, Carter. (1999). Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats (SWOT Analysis).
A portion of a comprehensive web site, Strategic Planning (in nonprofit or for-profit organizations). This site offers a wealth of information for library planners. [http://www.mapnp.org/library/plan_dec/str_plan/str_plan.htm#anchor954715]

Mind Tools. (2001, Dec.) SWOT Analysis - Understanding Your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats.
A guide to using the S.W.O.T. Analysis tool it provides information about why to use S.W.O.T., provides questions to consider, and an example. [http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_05.htm]

National Arts Marketing Project. (2002, April 10). SWOT: A Planning Tool for the Future.
A concise guide to employing S.W.O.T. Analysis. [http://www.cultural-alliance.org/pubs/swot.htm]

UBC Library SWOT Analysis.
A checklist of questions to consider when participating in a S.W.O.T. analysis for your library. [http://www.library.ubc.ca/home/swot-analysis.pdf]

Weingand, Darlene. (1999). Marketing/Planning Library and Information Services. (2nd Ed.) Englewood, CO: Libraries Unlimited.