Leaders’ Tour

1. Leaders’ Tour

2. PerfectStorm

3. Why,WhatandHow?

4. Why?

5. Genesis?

7. Library administrators can create a public relations coup by making "insiders" of community leaders.

8. Showing influential community members the complexity and sophistication of the library's behind-the-scenes operations can be a good first step to making them loyal supporters.

9. In the process, board members, Friends officers, school and academic administrators, etc. can learn about the institution they hold in trust.

11. What?

12. Public, Academic,SpecialandSchool

13. Adaptable to specific situations

15. Frequently community leaders may have little or no connection with the library or even use it

16. Provide a "leaders' tour" through areas of the library that are frequently “off-limits” to non-employees.

18. How?

19. Easily adapted to individual circumstances

20. Select InviteesInputfromStaffandBoard Members

21. Send out invitations, six weeks in advance of the selected evening, to 25 community leaders.

22. Each invitee and a guest are asked to join the director, trustees, and key staff members for a buffet supper and tour.

23. Put together a good mix of guests Our experience shows that, of the 25 leaders invited to each tour, 10-15 will be able to attend. About half bring a guest, resulting in an average of 15-25 attendees.

24. Leaders of civic organizations, youth groups, political clubs, the chamber of commerce, fraternal organizations, volunteer fire and ambulance departments, senior citizen organizations, school and PTA officials, local editors and reporters, religious leaders –Every community is unique

27. To prepare, identify interesting tasks, processes, and/or equipment as features of the tour (the features selected vary from tour to tour). After the choices are made, the staff members who regularly perform these tasks or work with the equipment outline a presentation, receive input from colleagues.

31. At this point, if possible, board members observe the presentations. Their questions frequently mirror those of the invitees, and help the staff prepare an effective presentation.

33. Guests arrive in the library's meeting room at 6:15 p.m. for refreshments. At 6:30, they are formally greeted by the library director and then seated at tables, where they sit with a board member and a staff member. The buffet dinner lasts until about 7:15 p.m.

34. during which a slide show featuring scenes of people using the library is projected as a background.

37. After dinner the guests are given an agenda for the tour and are split into five groups, each led by a trustee-guide. The tour is broken into 12-minute segments, with three minutes allotted to move to the next station. Keeping to this schedule ensures that there is only one group at a station at any time and that our guests have a clear view of each presentation. That is why it is important to PRACTICE to get the time down beforehand.

38. Save questions to the end – to keep to schedule

39. Although 12 minutes may not seem like a long time, it is sufficient for carefully structured and rehearsed presentations. Community leaders are extremely busy people; many leave the library immediately following the tour to attend other meetings. Providing supper and ending the program before 9 p.m. are two factors that have contributed to the tours' success.

40. Our guests have displayed interest in a wide variety of activities

41. A few ideas –but you need to choose your own

47. RFID

49. Anonymous -- respect privacy -- examples of real reference questions and interloans were a big hitGuests were impressed by ingenuity required to track down answers