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Suggested Webinars for New Directors
We know you have a lot going on, you’re the director of a library! Continuing education is important and extremely beneficial, but while you’re learning your new job, time for CE may be limited. Below is a curated list of webinars that may help you as a new director to understand your role, learn new skills, and gain ideas.
Financials
- Where Does the Money Come From? Public Library Funding in Wisconsin
- Presented by IFLS System Director John Thompson
- Slides & Resources / Activity Report
- Thompson talks you through how public libraries are funded in Wisconsin, including Act 150, county reimbursement, municipal funding, and other revenue sources. With an extensive Q&A portion, you should come away with a greater foundational knowledge of what affects your library funding and ideas on improving or maintaining the budget.
Human Resources/Policy Development
- Respectful Human Resources for Rural Libraries
- Presented at the Wild Wisconsin Winter Web Conference 2022
- This webinar gives valuable starter information on hiring, firing, evaluations, and creating a fair and accessible workplace. Also discussed are applicable laws for cultivating interview questions, ADA requirements and accommodations, and more.
- A Step-by-Step Guide to Library Hiring
- Presented at the Wild Wisconsin Winter Web Conference 2019
- Hiring for the first time or looking to improve your library’s process? This webinar shares best practices to adopt in your hiring procedure and includes topics from developing a posting, selecting interview questions, setting the stage for a successful interview, addressing internal politics of candidates, to making an offering and sealing the deal.
Management / Staff & Work Culture
- Beginner’s Guide to Being In Charge
- Presented by Suzanne Macauley for the Indiana State Library in 2022
- Link to Webinar on YouTube / Presentation Slides
- Moving into a new leadership role can be overwhelming and intimidating. This presentation goes over some dos and don’ts to help new leaders feel more confident and become more effective in their currenet and future roles. Participants will learn some common mistakes new leaders make (and how to avoid them), how to conquer feelings of doubt or imposter syndrome, and practical leadership techniques.
- Building Respect Inside the Library Walls
- Presented at the Wild Wisconsin Winter Web Conference 2018
- This presentation is geared towards all staff, not just directors, and can help demonstrate the importance of the tone of the workplace. It can also help to learn about how to establish feelings of respect within the library workforce.
Time Management
- Library Director Jenga: The Perpetual Challenge
- Presented at the Wild Wisconsin Winter Web Conference 2021
- This presentation offers useful and applicable strategies for prioritizing the numerous tasks of a library director.
- Overcoming the Email Avalanche: Three Steps to an Empty Inbox
- Presented at Tech Days 2022
- Presenter Doug Crane is fun and engaging as he teaches participants how to: clear out inbox backlog, no matter how large; identify different types of actionable email and respond accordingly; create an efficient organizational structure to their email client; reliably locate archived email; and celebrate the joys of an empty inbox!