Martha's Duties

Greetings,

As most of you know, Martha has left HPL and joined Municipal Courts.  We will soon be recruiting a replacement.  Until then, there are some major jobs that Martha did that have been taken over temporarily by other staff.  Here is a quick breakdown of who is doing what:

• Meeting Rooms - will be handled by Jennifer Schwartz and her group.  For the time being, continue to refer calls to Martha's number (31367).  We are working on a simplification of internal meeting room booking for Central; stay tuned.
  
• Sprocket Requests and Follow-up - Rachel and Adam will handle these.  When they are gone, as before, these should be completed by Person-in-charge.
• Training Liaison - Daniel Pillow (CLST) will take on the role of coordinating training for all CSV staff.
• Purchases and Travel Approvals and Reimbursements - For the time being, I will be handling and checking all of these. 

These are the major areas that impact Central Services staff.  If you have any questions about another duty, let me know.  And if you know someone who is efficient, organized, customer-service-oriented and looking for an Administrative Assistant position, be sure to encourage them to apply; the position should post this week or next.

Thanks,

Mike VC

Customer Service Reminder

Greetings,

As much as I would prefer not to write this post, I feel it is needeed.  We have had a number of complaints recently highlighting poor customer service delivered by staff at the Central Library.  All of the complaints identify the same issue: unhelpful and unfriendly staff.  To give you an example. words such as "unsmiling", "unwilling to help", "grumpy", "lack of interest", "in a bad mood" have been used in these complaints.  While I know part of this is subjective, I feel there have been far too many similar complaints for this to be the sole issue.  One long time customer, who I talked to at length, had interactions with no fewer than 7 employees (library and security) and all of them, according to her description, demonstrated unacceptable levels of customer service.   

I know that the vast majority of staff here at CEN are delivering exceptional customer service but this rash of complaints concerns me.  I do want to remind everyone that Customer Service is our number one priority and is the heaviest-weighted item in all of our EPEs.  To quote from our EPE, here are some of the expectations: "welcomes customers and staff in a friendly manner", "positive", "treats all persons with respect and courtesy".  My concern is how different these words are from the words in the complaints.  

I want to sincerely apologize for posting this on an all staff blog to those folks who are consistently meeting these expectations (which I think is the majority of staff).  However, given the number and broadness of recent complaints, I feel that it needed to be shared.  I also need to remind everyone that delivering service as laid out in our EPEs and in Customer Service training is the fundamental part of all of our jobs and as expected as showing up to work.   

I am confident that we can deliver exceptional service to all of our customers.    Let's work together to make this happen.

Thanks,

Mike VC

All Staff Meetings, Job Duties, and Working Smarter Group

Greetings,

I regret to say that the all staff meetings for this week will have to be cancelled.  With Thanksgiving on the horizon, there have been a number of meetings, trainings, etc. that are scheduled for this week and holding the all staff meetings and having everyone attend is impossible.  I will share important information on the blog and in out meetings by classification.

I am reviewing what everyone sent about their job duties.  I think there are definite ways in which we can shift and change some duties to help lighten the load on staff.  

Also, I will be convening a meeting of the Central Working Smarter group, the group that will look for ways to streamline our processes and scheduling,  after Thanksgiving.  I am still working on who will participate in this group.  I would like the group to represent all levels of staff and to not grow to large.  I have heard from several folks interested in serving on this group.  If you are interested and have not let me know, please do so by this Friday.

Thanks,

Mike VC

Fire Warden

Greetings,

It occurs to me that the current list of fire wardens does not reflect our reorg.  So, I am reuqesting that we add more than one person to this list.  As I see it, we will need to add one person from the following groups: CPRO, CCOL, and CYOU - one from each room for a grand total of four people.  Please let me know if you are interested by tomorrow or we will have to select some folks to attend the meeting. 

Thanks,

Mike VC

Six Months Out - Working Smarter

Greetings,

As we approach being open for six months, I am interested in a thorough revaluation of our operations. One thing that keeps coming up is the lack of time to complete off-desk duties or too much desk time. While we do have some vacancies in the process of being filled, I do not think it is a surprise that we will not be getting a windfall of staff anytime soon. So, I am forming a working group to examine with me what we can do to work smarter...if possible. Our challenge is to get done what needs to get done while providing excellent service with the staff that we have.

The first thing I would like for this effort is for every reference staff member to make a list of their off-desk duties and how much time per week is needed to work on each duty. I would include on this list any duties that need to be done and may not be getting done...or not getting done adequately and completely. I would ask that everyone try to complete this and e-mail it to me before next Wednesday (November 12, 2008).

I am confident we can work together and deliver exceptional service in the most efficient way possible.

Thanks,
mvc

Paty Bustamante = IT Liaison

Greetings,

In order to make the reporting of IT problems as easy and free of confusion as possible for everyone, we are moving to having a designated IT Liaison, who will report and track any and all IT issues--much like we currently do with Sprocket. This will be Paty Bustamante. The way this will work is that when you notice a problem, you will immediately let Paty know (via e-mail if possible) of the problem. She will report it and monitor the status. You will still need to fill out and place the Out of Order sign, but Paty will take care of all communication with IT. When Paty is out, Saima will be her backup.

Thanks,
mvc

Information from Scheduler's Meeting

Greetings,

Last week the schedulers and some managers met to discuss and resolve some scheduling issues. Here are some of the outcomes from that meeting:

• R3 floater 5-6pm on Fri & Sat as well as other times if possible
  (Also, a reminder to all staff: if you get very busy at any desk at any time you can call up to the workroom (will work best to call Rachel or Adam to find someone in workroom) and have someone come down and assist. Serving the public is our number one job and we are all "on call" during open hours--including managers.)
• We will be moving to scheduling service hours based on classification as discussed in the past (LIV= 1 hr/day; LIII=2 hrs/Day; LII=3 hrs/day; LI/SLSS=4 hrs/day; LSS=5 hrs/day (if needed; rarely more than 4 hrs/day))
• LIC on Saturdays should not be assigned desk shifts 1st hour, one of the lunch hours and last hour so that they can deal with issues/problems during these hours where they are most likely to arise
• Programs & Evening shifts: at least 6 staff are needed to staff all service points in the evenings
• If you work Sundays, you are on a desk four hours; there are no blank hours. As in the past, work out breaks with co-workers
• All changes to schedule (meetings, time off desk, etc.) must be sent in at least 24 hours before schedule begins unless this is not possible (last minute meeting called, emergency, etc.) This is needed because schedulers are spending too much time revising schedules because folks forgot to send in schedule info in a timely manner
• All staff need to follow correct guidelines and be consistent in submitting appointment requests to Cen Ref calendar. Quick tips on this:
• Staff initials should proceed all requests (e.g., MVC - Vac; AB, CD, ED, GH - Planning Meeting)
• Do not include personal notes in the invitation

• Closing time:
• Ensure your floor/assigned area is clear before leaving
  
• Do not leave floor/assigned area until 9:00 PM (or 6:00 PM) even if clear before that time
• Once it is past 9:00 and your floor/area is clear, you can leave once you initial the schedule at the WD, which indicates you have left. You do not have to wait for all staff unless you are in charge
• If you have to stay past closing time, work out with your supervisor when you will be compensated for that time
• We are cutting back on paper schedules; one printed (and updated) in workroom; for the rest staff need to check online

Those of you who attended the meeting: Let me know if I have left anything out.

Thanks,
mvc