Responses to election questions:

Skills and experience in strategic planning and leadership:

I have an understanding of the principles of strategic planning and leadership, having either facilitated or participated in professional development activities including business planning, decision making, critical and creative thinking, visioning, negotiation, building organisational culture and change management.

Within the last decade, I was involved in a consultative review of collection reformatting services, which resulted in improved business procedures, a significant reduction in customer complaints, new fees and charges, and a better understanding of these services throughout the Library.

From 2001-2003, I project managed a full review of the SLV's Preservation and Storage Division with a view to establishing a more effective, efficient and sustainable division that would meet the preservation and physical access challenges of the redeveloped Library.

From 2005-2007, I led a team through idea generation, initiation, investigation, planning, and delivery phases of a project to deliver the ALIA National Library and Information Technicians Conference, which resulted in positive feedback from delegates, sponsors, exhibitors and presenters.
In the non-library arena, I developed my cricket club's strategic and business plans for submission to Council and have led teams to victory and club premierships.

Skills and experience in financial management

From 1998 until 2004, I was a member of the senior management team of the Preservation and Storage Division, facilitating the annual business planning process and sharing responsibility for the management of c.90 staff with a divisional budget of c.A$5 million.

More recently, I oversaw the financial management of the ALIA National Library and Information Technicians Conference 2007, which returned a significant surplus for the Association

Other skills relevant to a potential Board member:

I have a proven track record of being a ‘grass roots’ member who initiates projects and sees them through to satisfactory conclusion through the establishment and maintenance of stakeholder relationships. I am resilient, possess strong business ethics and a positive, ‘can do’ attitude, along with well developed, decision making, influencing and negotiation skills.

Specific issues that interest me:

Sourcing opportunities to partner or collaborate with a range of organisations to market the profession more widely to current and future generations. Establishing and/or strengthening links with stakeholders to ensure that LIS education and continuing PD activities genuinely meet current and future needs of the profession
Development of a framework or training package that could be marketed as
a national work experience program to attract secondary students to the industry

Additional links

http://gail-schmidt.blogspot.com/