New Jersey State Library

Developing a technology plan allows a library to specify what technology-based library services it would like to provide and to relate these services to its overall service program. A plan provides a clear statement of both short and long term objectives. It assists a library in determining what your library should do, what your library shouldn't do and how your library should allocate its resources. Many libraries try to do too many things and end up doing many things inadequately instead of doing a few things well.

The Plan provides a vision for staff as to what services are planned for the future which can be communicated to patrons and friends groups. The plan can be used to gain consensus among Library Board members to support these expenditures for the library's technology initiatives.

Technology planning should not be viewed as an exercise dealing primarily with hardware and telecommunications infrastructure. These hardware elements must be tied in with the information technology services that the library will offer and an assurance that training will be provided so that librarians and patrons will be able to use these services.

The following factors are critical to effective library technology planning:

1. Involvement of library staff in the planning process: No planning effort will succeed without the full support and commitment of all library staff and management. Include library staff in the planning process. The level of involvement will differ with some being part of the decision making team while others may be included only in informational meetings.
2. Direct involvement of other parties in the planning process: The development of a technology plan should be undertaken not by library staff alone but with the active participation by the library's trustees and involvement of other parties such as the local schools, the municipal/county technology department and the library consortium.
3. Emphasis must be on service-based technology goals and initiatives: Technology is not an end in itself but a means to an end. Technology must be viewed as a vehicle to offer more efficient and effective delivery of current services and to add new services to help carry out the mission of the library.
4. Staff development and training: Without a firm commitment to initial and continued staff training and development the benefits of technology will not be fully realized.
5. Identification of funding and development of a budget: Any technology plan must address the need for funds to implement the plan. Funds must be budgeted annually to maintain existing technology, to update or replace obsolete technology on a regularly scheduled basis and to provide necessary staff support.

Due to the fast pace of technological change, most technology plans are written to cover a 1-3 year cycle. Technology Plans require frequent review and revision. It is important to set up a process that can be used to review and update the plan as needed.

Know the demographics of the community that the library serves. The critical factor in writing your plan is your local situation. What will be most helpful to the patrons you serve? Tailor a service to your community's needs and target audiences for services.

Make a technological assessment of the community, answering such questions as:

• % of households owning personal computers
• % of people with PCs having access to the Internet
• % of children using PCs at school
• What segments of the library's population have the greatest demand for technology-based services?
• unemployed looking for jobs and preparing resumes
• adults needing PCs for word processing, spread sheets, etc.
• students doing homework assignments and research
• children using educational and recreational software
• senior citizens using the Internet for travel, medical, etc. information

Learn about municipal, county and state government agencies' plans to dispense government information and participate in these plans.

Investigate partnering with schools, social agencies, and business technology initiatives and using Internet services that may be provided by your local cable company.

When reviewing plans for technology-based library service the library should answer the following questions and incorporate the responses into the plan:

• How is technology integrated into the daily functions of the library?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the library's current technology environment?
• What problems/issues does technology help to solve and what problems/issues does it cause?
• What information resources do the patrons use via technology?
• Does the library have the facilities it needs to provide this service?
• Does the library staff possess the skills needed to provide this service?

Make your selection of hardware based on the planned use for equipment, patron needs and the library's finances. For example, purchasing one top-of-the line 4xx PC may not be the best choice for a library with limited finances that needs to meet high patron demand by purchasing multiple pieces of equipment. Also don't get stuck in the trap of delaying the implementation of a service because newer or better PCs will be available in the future.

* Think about computer equipment and services as an evolving cycle. Quote: "Buy something, use the hell out of it, don't ever regret it, improve service and begin planning to buy again."

The State Library developed instructions for developing a technology plan. This document builds from a description of current services and equipment to a plan for implementing services and acquiring equipment over a three-year period. The plan addresses current staff and patron training and the training that will be necessary to implement the new services. The plan also contains a section on evaluating the effectiveness of patron and staff use these services.

The library can use this template to prepare a concise, easy to understand document. The document describes where the library is today and how it proposes to implement and expand new services in the next three years. It can be used to disseminate this information to the Board of Trustees, funding agencies and other supporters of the library.

Keep the document concise and place the emphasis on briefly describing major projects that will be undertaken in the next three years. More detailed plans for implementing each one of these projects and the responsibilities of various staff members or departments in the library should be incorporated into a separate document for staff use. This document can provide details for each step of the implementation process with a time line and the person or persons responsible for its implementation.

Libraries may use the format provided in this template and prepare responses to each of the nine sections. This is the easiest way to meet the requirements for preparing the plan. If a library chooses to prepare the plan in another format, all the information outlined in the template's components must be included in the plan.