{"id":806,"date":"2016-09-28T16:00:22","date_gmt":"2016-09-28T16:00:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.oclc.org\/next\/?p=806"},"modified":"2019-06-26T14:22:19","modified_gmt":"2019-06-26T14:22:19","slug":"a-five-step-cycle-for-strong-library-programs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.oclc.org\/next\/a-five-step-cycle-for-strong-library-programs\/","title":{"rendered":"A five-step cycle for strong library programs"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"five-steps\"<\/strong><\/p>\n

Strong libraries are the heart of thriving communities.<\/strong> At OCLC, we don\u2019t just believe that, it\u2019s at the heart of our WebJunction program. It also informs the model we see forward-moving libraries using to drive an ongoing cycle of success.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The cycle of your work is our work<\/h2>\n

What is a \u201cstrong library?\u201d It can actually be defined by this cycle:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \"five-steps-blog\"It starts with understanding and identifying the needs<\/strong> of your community.<\/li>\n
  2. Next, you have to build the capacity<\/strong> to serve those needs, which, yes, involves making choices and defining priorities.<\/li>\n
  3. You then design and deliver<\/strong> the services that meet the needs.<\/li>\n
  4. Those services aren\u2019t successful if they don\u2019t reach your target audience<\/strong>, so outreach and communication is essential.<\/li>\n
  5. Finally, you evaluate the effectiveness<\/strong> of your services and their impact on local priorities, such as lifelong learning, health and economic success.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Communities shift over time and external factors\u2014whether crisis or opportunity\u2014can rise up unannounced, so this is a cyclical process, not a one-off exercise.<\/p>\nLibrary success is a cyclical process, not a one-off exercise. <\/a><\/span>Share on X<\/a><\/span>\n

    The same model applies to us<\/h2>\n

    You can see this same cycle in the work WebJunction has done since its 2002 birth out of a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to OCLC. We launched in order to \u201cprovide training, content and a supportive community for the staff of libraries that manage computer and internet technology for public use.\u201d In more recent years, we\u2019ve applied the same cycle to help design programs that connect what people do inside<\/em> the library to their lives outside<\/em> the library. In essential areas, such as lifelong learning, health and employment, we were able to \u201cevaluate service outcomes\u201d from library programs around the world on behalf of others. In this way, successful, strong libraries become models and their results replicable.<\/p>\n

    This cycle applies to all our work across the board at WebJunction. We seek to understand library<\/em> needs, build capacity to meet those needs, design and deliver services to meet those needs, reach the libraries that have the needs and evaluate the outcomes. To do this:<\/p>\n