Susan Grant (Tidd)
ILS565
In-Basket Exercise
This is a Public Library
Order of importance:
#5 Toilet overflowing
Call Town Maintenance/plumber – done in 3 minutes. Write email to Administrative
Assistant to follow-up immediately. CC Hector Muki
Rationale: Facilities problem that affects everyone – easy to resolve. Have to have
functioning plumbing.
#3 Search & Screen Committee decision to hire Jane Anne Scronski.
Send a reply to the Committee that you will meet with them Tuesday afternoon directly
after the workshop. They will review Jane Anne and the other candidates and make a
decision.
I would then draft a document stating the most important qualifications for the job and
give it to the search committee apologizing for not being clear enough in what it was they
needed to look for and redirect their efforts. If necessary reopen the job to get more
qualified candidates. Take full responsibility for not being clear on what this position
requires. I would not let them railroad me into hiring Jane Anne. If there was a lot of
dissension, I’d ask the trustees to form another committee, or replace the trouble-makers.
Hiring well is the most important job at the moment.
Rationale: Sending a memo that you do not want them to hire Jane Anne would
create big problems. This is a task that has to be done face-to-face. If Jane Anne
isn’t the right candidate and they don’t want your choice, then the search should be
reopened which is what should be communicated in the meeting Tuesday. Jane
Anne can then be notified that the search is going to be reopened and she is still a
candidate.
#4 Phone call from Hector re: Newspapers in the hall.
Call Loiale and tell her to leave a message for the custodian to get rid of them tonight.
Rationale: The boss often comes first and this one takes a minute to resolve.
#11 & 12 The Technical Services temperature wars.
Write a memo/email to Sylvia and authorize her to purchase a space heater for under $50
and ask her to keep the thermostat to 70 degrees for now (as a stop/gap measure.) Also
tell her you will be scheduling a meeting with her to discuss the department and her
concerns.
Write memo/email to Mia and tell her Sylvia will be purchasing a space heater and to
leave the thermostat at 70 degrees and tell her you will schedule a meeting with her to
discuss her concerns later in the week.
Sylvia obviously has issues with seniority in the absence of a department head. Schedule
a meeting with her to discuss her issues and the type of atmosphere that supports the
mission of the library. Hold her to it. Reinforce that when there is no department head, all
decisions will be made by the director. If she balks, write it up and keep a file on her. She
could be trouble.
Rationale: This is a power struggle and has less to do with thermostats as it does
with hierarchy and personalities. Sylvia sounds like old dead wood that may need
firing (pun intended). There needs to be some leadership for this department and
without a department head it falls to M.B.
#8 Computers n the Fritz
Memo to Loiale. Ask her to check the budget and see if there is money to replace the
PC’s if they are due to be replaced or if they can find someone who will do in-house
analysis and fix them. If not tell her to get either Merle or Al to take the computers in
right away.
Rationale: Computers run the place and need attention immediately.
#9 Ad Hoc Task Force of Personnel Recision
I’m not sure about this one. I think maybe he should ignore it and answer Tuesday
afternoon telling Hector he was away and will begin working on this Tuesday afternoon
and have something by Wednesday to discuss.
Rationale: Better to deal with this when he gets back than tell Hector he can’t work
on it right away. He needs to go over budgets and other personnel files too. He may
be able to find a way to cut the trouble-makers or re-create the budget so he doesn’t
have to cut personnel.
#10 Internet Abuse?
I’d leave this one until after the conference. Al doesn’t want to be mentioned and Merle
is knotting her own noose by working on her personal business. Leave it until later and
then talk to Merle. Hector wants house-cleaning done and Merle will have to shape up,
but Weds. M.B. can talk to her before he makes his list of people to cut, if necessary. He
will have some cause to put her on the list as well as Sylvia if needs be.
#6 Deadbeats #7 Porn – both from Merle
Merle has some attitude issues it would seem. I’d deal with these after the conference too.
Get out the library policy regarding late materials and fines. Hold Merle to it. She sounds
like a Public Relations nightmare. As for reporting them to Mr. Muki—the director
should deal with this and make it clear to her you will, according to policy.
Merle needs to understand the laws regarding porn and filters. If the library has a policy
that prohibits porn on the public computers, then the library needs to devise a way to
identify those violating the policy and suspend privileges. Merle needs to understand that
filters are not the answer. Include her in a discussion that will allow her to be part of this
solution if she chooses, but my guess is, she won’t. Merle may be on that list to Hector
on Weds. afternoon.
#1 Late employee
Shoot off a quick email to Al telling him you’d like to discuss this further on Weds.
Perhaps Ralph will be on the recision list as well. Al needs some direction on how to deal
with his department. He should be firm and confident and needs some guidance. Check
policy before the meeting with Al to see if there are guidelines regarding lateness.
Establish what the pattern is if there isn’t a guideline and get the trustees approval and tell
Al to go from there and document Ralph’s tardiness.
#2 Hector’s House in Order memo
Table it until Tuesday afternoon and include a response with the other email about your
list for Weds. I think Hector doesn’t necessarily expect a reply immediately.