AARL

State Library of New South Wales: stories and strategies

Dagmar Schmidmaier

Abstract The planning and implementation of Project 2001-2010 at the State Library of New South Wales is an example which shows the influence of story telling on organisational development. Telling stories is one way of harnessing an organisation's knowledge. By encouraging the organisation to review, evaluate and develop these stories it is able to test and explore new services and methods of operation.

Project 2001-2010 is a wide ranging project to celebrate the world class heritage collections of the Mitchell and Dixson Libraries, which are part of the State Library of New South Wales, in the lead up to the centenary of the Mitchell Library in 2010. As part of the planning and implementation strategy for Project 2001-2010, public 'story telling' highlighting significant parts of the collection, has led to the development of new synergies within the library.

The project grew out of the need to review and reshape the services provided by the State Library of New South Wales, in particular the information services, so that the library would have a clear direction for the future and one that could be communicated easily and clearly to all stakeholders, both internal and external.

This particular story began in 1998 with the implementation of a quality improvement program. This program was based on the belief that much of the library's organisational knowledge is embedded in processes and in order to define and then harness this knowledge the library needed to understand and document these processes. The aim of the quality program was to extend our reach to existing and new clients, to identify the best way to do things and to ensure resources were allocated to priority areas.

The process was designed to be consultative, involving staff, clients and the board. It provided the opportunity to discuss issues and identify solutions across organisational hierarchies, a strategy that was uncomfortable in the first few years. Now five years on it has allowed the library to enter into the next phase of planning with a much clearer understanding of the need for further in-depth analysis of its processes.

This year, with a new strategic plan approved by the council, the library is developing models of service to meet changing client and environmental needs, in particular the electronic environment. The review and development of new service models will represent a significant change in the way the library has approached service provision. In order to assist with the review and planning of new service models the library has been working with Professor Robert Hayes[1] and Dr Carol Kuhlthau[2], both of whom spent time at the State Library of New South Wales in 2003.

Successful organisations tell stories to develop and shape organisational culture and work to ensure that these stories encourage growth and opportunity.[3] However, Davenport and Prusak also warn of the danger of old stories that can trap and constrain an organisation so that it finds it difficult to deal with the issues of the future.

The State Library of New South Wales introduced a research program in 1998 to gather current information which would allow us to test existing stories and to discuss new stories that emerged from our research. The program was also designed to encourage the assessment and evaluation of new information and stories as an essential component of the ongoing planning process.[4]

Another factor essential for successful organisations is the affirmation of worth and value by external parties. Our research showed that clients, friends and supporters as well as staff want public affirmation of the value and importance of the library. They also want this affirmation from the state government. At the same time the state government, as our major stakeholder, also wants public affirmation of the value of our work. One way in which all of these groups measure value is by public story telling, that is, through stories told by the media. The ability to tell our story publicly, in particular through a range of media outlets, is one strategy which the State Library has continued to develop and to build on the initiatives undertaken by the former state librarian, Alison Crook.

Project 2001-2010 is an organic plan that will culminate in the centenary of the Mitchell Library in 2010. The ten-year timeframe has provided a realistic framework to develop, plan and implement the range of activities and major works essential to position the library as a relevant and dynamic organisation for the 21st century. This ten-year vision has provided a strategic focus, shaping the corporate plan for 2003-2005 as well as a new organisational structure to support the plan.

One strategy to communicate the vision and the ten-year plan was through the publication of a book, Celebrating 100 Years of the Mitchell Library.[5] Each of the ten chapters of the book, which were sponsored prior to publication, highlights one of the collection strengths of the library and provides the strategic focus for the year. Each year the chapter sponsor will be invited to work with us during 'their year' to further highlight the value and contribution of the library to the community and to the sponsor's own stakeholders. The chapter sponsor received 200 copies of the book for their own use as well as individual copies of their own chapter to support this objective.

The library's vision and ten-year plan are based on the collection as the core of our business and the book serves as the symbol for what the library aims to achieve over the next ten years. The book was launched at a gala dinner in the newly refurbished Mitchell Library Reading Room in May 2001 prior to its reopening for public use. This refurbishment was the first phase of the library's building refurbishment plan to upgrade both buildings by 2010.

The scope of activities during the first two years highlights the breadth and depth of the program. The exhibition Matthew Flinders: The Ultimate Voyage began the program in 2001 and shows the library's commitment to make these unique historical treasures available as widely as possible. This exhibition will conclude its two-year tour in late 2003 returning to the State Library for a final showing. It has toured to five states and two territories and a replica version of the exhibition has toured to thirteen country areas. It has travelled to some remote places such as Sweers Island, Gladstone and Phillip Island.

Planning for this exhibition began in 1998. As well as sourcing selected items from overseas collections, including Flinders' hand drawn original map of Australia held by the Hydrographic Office in London, the library established a Crewing for Flinders Club to provide advocacy and financial support. The club also provided an opportunity for the 'crew' to see an exhibition in the making.

Another priority strategy for each year is to digitise a selection of these unique resources so that they are freely accessible on the web. The James Fairfax Matthew Flinders Electronic Archive was made possible through the sponsorship of Mr James Fairfax AO. His support means that the library has been able to digitise the total Flinders Archive. A supplementary component to the electronic archive has been the development of an education kit for teachers and students, providing a permanent resource for schools, a strategy that will be incorporated into the plan for each year. Finally the book Matthew Flinders: Personal Letters from an Extraordinary Life[6] edited by Paul Brunton, curator of the Exhibition, published in March 2002 and sponsored by Mr John Reid AO, was the final component of the first year of Project 2001-2010.

During 2001 the State Library of New South Wales Foundation made contact with the Nelson Meers Foundation which was interested in the library's vision and ten year plan and after some months of negotiation the Nelson Meers Foundation agreed to support the library in the creation of a permanent gallery, the Nelson Meers Foundation Heritage Collection. The synergies created by telling the story of Project 2001-2010 have allowed the library to further extend its scope and the reach of its collections. The financial support from the Nelson Meers Foundation will allow the library to conserve, digitise and display treasures from the collection over the next ten years in a new space designed by Jon Hawley. The digitised manuscripts, pictures, realia, maps and books may be viewed at http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/heritage/.

The second year, 2002, focused on highlighting the library's Antarctic collections through a digitisation, exhibition and conservation program, special film screenings and talks. An 'auction' was held to raise funds for the conservation of Antarctic materials, followed by a special viewing of the conserved items for the successful bidders.

In addition, the library hosted a Colloquium, Research Library Futures: Strategies for Action[7], in May 2002. The Colloquium brought together senior academics, researchers, policy makers and librarians in the fields of social sciences and the humanities with a view to sharing issues and solutions in the provision of library and research services. Papers from the Colloquium are available at http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/about/project2010/colloquium/. The importance of the specialist and unique collections of the state libraries and the National Library for the economic and educational development of our society was emphasised during the Colloquium. At the State Library of New South Wales the establishment of a Centre for Collections Research will seek to further highlight the importance of the research function.

In 2002 the State Library of New South Wales held the inaugural David Scott Mitchell Memorial Lecture with Clive James[8] as guest speaker. The lecture was given to a full house at the Sydney Town Hall on 18 November 2002 and at the State Library of Victoria on 19 November 2002.

At the beginning of this paper the ten-year plan was described as organic. When the book and the plan were launched in May 2001 we had envisaged the major activities relating to digitisation, preservation, exhibitions and the Colloquium. However, two additional and very significant opportunities arose, the Nelson Meers Foundation Heritage Collection and the David Scott Mitchell Memorial Lecture. The library was able to accommodate these into an already tight schedule and it is this organisational agility based on organisational knowledge, which will be a critical element in sustaining the vitality of the plan and the ability to drive it forward.

In 2002 a new plan for the State Library Foundation was approved by the trustees as another critical element in ensuring the success of Project 2001-2010 through consolidation of the library's financial position.

The achievements of the first two years of the plan are due to a commitment to planning, creativity and disciplined management on behalf of the staff involved. A level of confidence in the process has developed and has led to successful bids for additional funding for co-operative digitisation initiatives being undertaken with other government agencies in NSW, as well as providing a new impetus to co-operate with public libraries, other state libraries and the National Library.

The development and implementation of Project 2001-2010 is an example of the creation and nurturing of a knowledge culture within an organisation. During the first year ensuring the integration of all the disparate components was challenging and meant that new systems and procedures for working across the organisation were developed. During the second year improvements were made both to procedures and technology and in the third year many of the processes are embedded in normal operations. The encouragement to work across organisational boundaries on new high profile projects has enriched staff networks and encouraged more effective communication, co-operation and the sharing of knowledge.

Notes

1. R M Hayes Models for Library Management, Decision-Making, and Planning San Diego Ca Academic 2001
2. C C Kuhlthau Seeking Meaning: A Process Approach to Library and Information Services Norwood NJ Ablex 1993
3. T Davenport and L Prusak Working Knowledge: How Organizations Manage what they Know Boston Mass Harvard Business School 2000
4. K Burgess 'The Mitchell Library: Finite Spaces Infinite Demands' LASIE vol 30 no 4 pp68-77
5. Celebrating 100 Years of the Mitchell Library Sydney Focus Publishing 2000
6. P Brunton Matthew Flinders: Personal Letters from an Extraordinary Life Sydney Hordern House 2002
7. LASIE vol 33 no 1 August 2002 (Special Colloquium issue)
8. C James 'Our First Book' Australian Book Review no 247 December 2002/January 2003 pp32-40

Dagmar Schmidmaier, state librarian and chief executive, State Library of New South Wales. E-mail: dschmidm@sl.nsw.gov.au.nospam (please remove '.nospam' from address).