it’s gettin’ hot in herre

for all the olds like me who may not have been paying close attention to pop music in the turn of the century or watch Ellen

But I’m in my office in the library, so I’m not gonna take my clothes off. Also, this happens every year, so I’ve kind of come to expect it. Summer rolls around and our aging chiller just can’t take it and breaks. This year they seem to be taking it more seriously, but it might be too little too late for the thing. We’ll see.

Meantime, it’s busted again, and the original projection was that it would be out for the rest of the week, in part due to the holiday interrupting the repair schedule. Thankfully, that has been ramped up, and the word is that temperatures in the building should be returning to office normal by tomorrow evening. Those of us who can were already making plans to work elsewhere when the UL decided to close the building during the repairs, which was a sensible move.

However, until I chanced on a conversation with a colleague in ILL, it hadn’t occurred to me quite the level of privilege my job function provides me when it comes to doing my work outside of my assigned office space. My colleague felt her only options were to come to work in a building with internal temperatures in the upper 80s (30+ C) or take a precious vacation day she hadn’t planned to take. She didn’t have any of her day-to-day work to take home because all of it is location-based.

My other colleagues in access services were in similar binds. However, this isn’t the first time their supervisor has faced this issue before, and she quickly organized some online training module assignments for them to do remotely tomorrow while the building is closed. Smart! I will tuck that one away for when this (inevitably) happens again.

ER&L 2013: Internal and External Clients — Why Do We Treat One Better Than the Other?

Speakers: Dawn McKinnon & Amy Buckland, McGill University

someecards.com - Since it's difficult to infer tone in an email, you should assume all mine are sarcastic or bitchy.

We have pretty good outward-facing communication and support, but internally, we’re not so polite or explanatory.

Always reply to an email if a reply is needed, even if it is to say you can’t do it right now (or ever). Use the same pleasantries you would with an external client.

One solution is to make everyone give a job talk, which helps everyone understand a little about what each other is doing. Another solution is to provide topical workshops and general updates to help everyone understand workflow and impact on other departments.

Committees that combine staff from different departments/areas can help make sure that all the bases are covered.

Communicate! You cannot communicate too much, especially if it is important. Email lists, blogs, weekly meetings with management, regular open office hours, bimonthly recorded talk with the Dean, etc.

Pitfalls to watch out for: spreading negative misinformation, public shaming, and shoveling crap (i.e. typical librarian passive-aggressiveness, or passing the buck).

Libraries are about community. Service levels should be the same for students, donors, colleagues… anyone who is part of the community!

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