Developing a Library Technology Plan

(An Infopeople Online Learning Course)
November 13, 2007 - December 11, 2007

Technology is an integral part of every library environment. Whether your library is big or small, computers are a fact of life. In order to effectively and efficiently manage and use technology, the library must have an up-to-date technology plan. A technology plan is much more than a technology inventory. It is a living document that helps the library continually evaluate their use of technology to ensure that technology investments are in line with the library's service goals.

• Does your library have a technology plan? If so, when was it last updated?
• Are you responsible for developing, updating, or implementing a technology plan for your library?
• Have you ever wondered whether your technology plan includes everything it should?
• Do you wonder why you should bother developing a technology plan when technology changes so fast that you can't possibly keep up with the changes?

Technology plans help ensure that your library is ready to migrate and upgrade technology when necessary. Once developed, the annual process of reviewing and modifying the technology plan provides a basis for long-term planning and strategic decision-making.

This online course will help the student develop their library's technology plan and establish a work plan for regularly evaluating the use of technology in the context of the library's service goals.

Workshop Description: This four-week online learning course will provide templates and tools for developing a library technology plan. Students will be introduced to TechAtlas, a free online tool for developing some aspects of the technology plan. Students will see other library's technology plans and use them as a jumping off point for developing a technology plan suited to their own library.

In addition to the course material, students will participate in online discussion forums as part of the online learning process.

Preliminary Course Outline: Using your web browser and your Internet connection, you will log in to the Infopeople online learning site and complete the following learning modules:

• Module One: Introduction to Technology Planning
  • Why it needs to be done and how it is connected to library service goals
  • Importance of expressing service goals in terms of user experience
  • Identifying gaps in service areas and preparing for the future
• Module Two: Technology Infrastructure Issues
  • Documenting what the library has and what the library needs in the future
  • Planning for upgrades, maintenance and support
  • Using TechAtlas
  • Evaluating current inventory and level of support against the library's service goals.
• Module Three: Human Resources
  • Importance of training and professional development
  • How better support systems for staff and customers improves the overall library experience
• Module Four: Budgeting and Evaluation
  • How to estimate costs of equipment and services
  • Annual review to address gaps, change priorities and modify long term plans
  • E-Rate and other funding options

Online Learning Details:
This four-week course will be taught online using the web. When you register, you will receive a registration confirmation that will include the URL to get to the course, as well as a username and password.

Every student proceeds through the online learning modules at his or her own pace. Students should expect to commit to spending a minimum of 2 to 2½ hours per week on this course in order to be successful. You can work on each module at your own pace, at any hour of the day or night. However, you will be expected to log in to the course each week to do that week's assignment. We ask that you log in sometime during the first week of the course to begin the course work.

Your instructor will be available for limited consultation support for two weeks after the official end date of a course, and the course material will stay up for an additional two weeks after that, to give those who have fallen behind time to work independently on the course. However, you will be expected to accomplish the majority of the course in synchronization with your peers during the first four weeks.

Who Should Take This Course: Anyone from the library community with an interest in technology planning.

Fee: $75 for those in the California library community, $150 for those out-of-state.

Prerequisites:
This course is taught over the web. You must:

• Have an Internet connection and Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher.
• Be able to save Microsoft Word .doc or Adobe .pdf files to your computer and print them out. (For .doc files, a free Word Viewer is available at http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/search.aspx?displaylang=en. Search for "Word Viewer." For .pdf files, a free Adobe Acrobat Reader is available at http://www.adobe.com/support/downloads/main.html).
• Be comfortable navigating on the web and navigating back and forward on a website that uses frames.

To be most successful in this course you should be willing to share information with your colleagues and be willing to spend time reading and participating in the weekly discussion boards.

System Requirements: The online learning product that Infopeople uses is called Angel. The following are minimum system requirements for using Angel. You will need access to a computer that has at least these specifications to participate in an online course:

• Windows:
  • Internet Explorer 6.0 and above, Netscape 7.1 and above, or Firefox 1.5 and above
• Macintosh:
  • Mozilla 1.4 and above (which is the same engine as Netscape 7.1), Safari 2.0 and above, or Firefox 1.5 and above
  • OS X and above (OS 9 will NOT work with our online learning product)

If you are not comfortable with any of the above, please consider taking this course with a colleague who does meet these requirements.

Course Start: This 4-week-long online learning course starts on November 13, 2007.