Staff Development Day (SDD) 2015

Staff Development Day (SDD) is Monday, April 20^th, 8:30 am to 5:30 pm in the Main Library Conference Center (breakfast and registration begin at 7:30 am).

As we announced on March 2^nd, we are eager for staff to share stories (or pictures, videos, and artwork) about their JPL experiences.

Take a look at the "Stories" tab on the JPL Training Blog to see what folks have sent in so far. 

- Stacey Humphrey

- Valencia Kidwell

- Tammy Crotts

- Noah Thomas

- Mike Shell

- Jane Harris & Nanette Holt

- Keli Likins

Here are some questions to consider for your own stories:

- Why did you come to join JPL and what has kept you on?

- What was one customer experience that really stuck with you?  Has that experience changed how you do your job and if so how?

- Is there a fellow staff member who has altered your way of seeing JPL and if so how?  And how has that affected you moving forward with your career.

- How long have you been with the library and in your time as part of the JPL family, how many branches have you worked at?  If possible, please provide a list of branches.

- Do you have an idea for the library but you have always been unsure if or how to share it?  If so, take this chance to share with us all, just don’t forget how this will benefit staff or customers.

Send your story to the JPL Training Blog at jpl.staff.training@gmail.com, using the Subject line “Stories.” Or, if you prefer, send your story anonymously through Delivery to John Carter at Webb-Wesconnett.

Staff Development Day 2015

“Team JPL: Tell Us Your Stories”

Since we last met for Staff Development Day, two years of challenges and change have required all of us to reclaim and reinvent our work as library professionals. As a team and as individuals, what we have accomplished is remarkable.

This year we would like to gather once again to celebrate our outstanding work and share with team members our stories of determination, inventiveness and “stick-to-it-iveness” in dealing with the day-to-day challenges of helping our customers and co-workers.

We want you to tell us those stories.  

In fact we are counting on your storytelling and have planned Staff Development Day 2015 (SDD15), Monday, April 20^th, to be built around your stories.

You may not realize it, but your stories of success can serve as a source of inspiration for other team members, positive messages to help us all to grow and learn.

Think about JPL situations over the past two years, large or small, where you have gone beyond the routine—to help a frustrated customer, to improve a work process, to find new or better resources and methods for doing a task, to help a co-worker get past a challenge on the job.

Write an informal 300-400 word story about this experience—or, if you prefer, create an art work or short video.  Use the following questions as examples to guide you:

- Why did you come to join JPL and what has kept you on?
- What was one customer experience that really stuck with you?  Has that experience changed how you do your job and if so how?
- Is there a fellow staff member who has altered your way of seeing JPL and if so how?  And how has that affected you moving forward with your career.
-  How long have you been with the library and in your time as part of the JPL family, how many branches have you worked at?  If possible, please provide a list of branches.
- Do you have an idea for the library but you have always been unsure if or how to share it?  If so, take this chance to share with us all, just don’t forget how this will benefit staff or customers.

Send your story to the JPL Training Blog at jpl.staff.training@gmail.com, using the Subject line “Stories.” If you prefer, send your story anonymously through Delivery to John Carter at Webb-Wesconnett.

We will share these stories with JPL staff in a number of ways:

- On the Staff Development Day 2015 page of the JPL Training Blog
- During the Kickoff and Keynote events on SDD15 on April 20^th
- In posters and displays during that day
- During a full staff storytelling event at the end of the day.

Remember, you can write about difficulties and failures, but keep it friendly.  We are sharing stories to encourage and to celebrate, not to criticize or blame.

Contact Mike Shell at mshell@coj.net if you have questions or suggestions.

Thanks, folks!

2913 Staff Development Day Slide Show

As you requested, the SDD slide show is posted to the right. You can use that "small rear view mirror" Dr. Bertice Berry spoke of to see what you might have missed April 15, 2013, on the big screen.

A big thank you to Ayshea Golden for posting this and, again, a huge HURRAH! to all of you who make every day successes SOP at JPL.

Staff Development Day Banners in LIVING COLOR

If you didn't get a chance to view all the creative SDD banners, or look as long as you would have liked, we have added a slide show to the right for your viewing pleasure. (You can click on the picture on the screen and it will bring up an enlarged version, and then click the right arrow above the picture shown to proceed and see enlargements of each banner.)

Worth An Encore - "The River Dance" Video from Class at Staff Development Day

This brief video--with Josh Jubinsky, Keli Likins and Susan Mankowski--was used in a Staff Development Day class, "Don't Roll Your Eyes at Me". It is a humorous reminder how important it is to listen intently and ask necessary questions until we have the input needed to give customers accurate information.

SDD Photos + BOBsled Video

Photos from Staff Development Day are now available on the Staff Day teamsite for your perusal. Here's the direct link: http://inside.coj.net/sites/staffDev/SDD4ALL/SDD%2009%20Photos/Forms/AllItems.aspx.

Many thanks to photographer Cranston Burney for the excellent job he did of capturing the whole day in images.

The BOBsled Relay video is also posted on the Staff Day teamsite. Find it in the Shared Docs of the Staff Day Teamsite (http://inside.coj.net/sites/staffDev/SDD4ALL/Shared%20Documents/Forms/AllItems.aspx).

Banners for Staff Development Day Hail JPL Staff Champions of...

The great success of Staff Development Day was framed with 34 colorful banners, designed by staff, heralding individual branches' and departments' focus on what they are
CHAMPIONS OF...
Administration: Innovation
Argyle: Creativity
Beaches: Teamwork
Bradham Brooks Northwest: The Journey Toward Hope and Equality
Brentwood: Customer Service
Brown Eastside: Diversity
Dallas Graham: Teamwork - We Work Hard But Working As A Team Makes It Easier
Facilities: Sustainability - Leeding by Example
Highlands: Reserves
Main - Center for Adult Learning: Adult Learning -
Grammar, Spelling, Pre-GED, Workplace Skills, Computer Literacy, Phonics,
Life Skills, Math, Comprehension, & ESL
Main - Children's - Mirthful Jocosity
Main - Circulation - Circulation Desk Teamwork
Main - Interlibrary Loan: Resource Sharing - Interlibrary Loan & Books by Mail
Main - Popular: District Champs of JPL - POP - 2005-2009 - A Dynasty
Main - Reference: Reference
Main - Remote Reference:
Internet, Email, Ask A Librarian, Chat, Instant Messaging, Call Center & Phone
Main - Special Collections: Accessing Your History
Main - Talking Books: The Underserved
Main Teen: Awesomeness
Mandarin: Group Effort
Maxville: Customer Service - Happily Helping Customers - All Shapes and Sizes - Since 2005
Murray Hill: Diversity
Pablo Creek: Circulation, Customer Service, Technology, Volunteers, & Holds
Partnerships & Communiction:
Promoting Partnerships, People, Places, Communication & Events
Regency Square: Customer Satisfaction...Just Ask Us
San Marco: Customer Service
Southeast: Children's Services - art night, game night, storytime & circulation
South Mandarin: Community - Adults, Teens, and Children
Support Services Team at University Park: Materials and Access
University Park: Customer Service
Webb Wesconnett: Technology - Come And Experience The Wild Wild Webb
80% Self Check - 90% Computer Usage
West Regional: Teamwork - Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
Westbrook: Community
Willowbranch: The Neighborhood

Congratulations to all who worked to make these beautiful banners!

From the Training Office …HELP MAKE STAFF DAY GREAT

We Need YOU. Hard-working, creative souls needed to help plan a most excellent Staff Development Day for 2009. I’ve got some ideas that I think will make next year’s event one of the most beneficial we’ve had in years, but you may have better ones! Would you consider being a part of the Staff Day Planning Committee? It will be your most rewarding experience ever. It will change your life. You will develop bonds that will last a lifetime. You will laugh. You will cry. Field trips include sky diving, deep sea fishing, a Broadway play, and whale spotting. It’s a non-stop thrill ride. What do you say? Get permission from your supervisor, then send an e-mail to jpltraining@coj.net to let us know of your interest (“Cc” your supervisor).

Two Ways to Help. The greatest commitment (the one described above) is to serve on the Committee. We will meet for 2-3 hours monthly between now and April. Some meetings may be held remotely. PLUS you would be committing to perhaps an hour or two of work on average at your location on your specific assignment (some weeks less; some weeks more) and communicating with the committee via e-mail, discussion board, possibly a blog.

The second opportunity demands ZERO time away from your home location. The last couple of years we have assigned location liaisons from every branch & unit and this year we want to expand your role even more. You’ll have two main functions: 1) sharing your ideas and giving feedback on proposals for Staff Development Day; and 2) assisting with communication between the committee and the staff at your location – making sure they meet deadlines, relaying to us their questions, suggestions, and concerns, etc.

As a location liaison you will participate in monthly or bi-monthly one-hour web meetings (We’ll use OPAL, our e-Learning & e-Meeting web application), plus read and respond to e-mails and discussion board postings, etc.

If you are interested in serving in either capacity, please get permission from your supervisor, then send an e-mail to jpltraining@coj.net to let us know of your interest (“Cc” your supervisor).

Thanks!