Advocate For Your Library!

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Advocate For Your Library!

• Outcome Based Evaluation (OBE)

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What can we evaluate?

• How Much We Do Statistics
• How Well We Do It Customer Satisfaction,
  Quality Benchmarks Standards
• What We Are Worth ROI, Cost Benefit
• Why We Matter Outcomes Measurement, Assessment
  of Impact

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Why evaluate?

• A desire to expand services.
• A desire to improve management and prioritize
  services.
• An interest in knowing the impact of services and
  programs.
• Being responsive to a grantor/funder.

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What is OBE?

• Outcome based evaluation focuses on the impact on
  the recipient of a service or program.
• OBE is favored by the Institute of Museum and
  Library Services so it is important in relation
  to federal grants.

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What is OBE?

• IMLS definition Your target populations
  changed or improved skills, attitudes, knowledge,
  behaviors, status, or life condition brought
  about as a result of experiencing your programs
  services/activities. Benefits or changes can
  occur either during the service period and/or
  after the service period is completed.

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What is OBE?

• It is a systematic way to assess if a program or
  service met its goals.
• It does so by answering two questions
• How has this program/service made a difference?
• How are the lives of participants/recipients
  better?

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What is OBE?

• The focus is on
• Need A condition, need or deficit common to a
  group of individuals
• Solution A program that will change attitudes,
  skills, behavior, knowledge or condition
• Results The change or improvement that is
  expected (outcome)

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Why outcomes?

• It makes assumptions explicit
• It promotes collaboration with users/stakeholders
• Milestones can be identified for long range plans
• It focuses staff/stakeholders on the goal of the
  work, not just the work.

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Why outcomes?

• It helps staff innovate and improve by consistent
  examination of results.
• It provides insight into why a program is used by
  some and not others.
• It is a vehicle for demonstrating the
  contributions a library makes to patrons and
  communities.

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What the issues with outcomes?

• You must survey or test users, sometimes both
  before and after.
• Relevant data may be not available due to privacy
  concerns.
• If you cant locate patrons, long-term results
  are difficult.
• It may be difficult to isolate the librarys
  impact from the contributions of others.

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How do we do OBE?

• So how do we prove the following question?
• We do what, for whom, for what benefit
  (outcome)?
• Hint Its all about the user.

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How do we do OBE?

• Identify a community need
• Develop a goal to meet the need
• Design an objective to accomplish goal
• Identify inputs
• Plan implement activities
• Measure outputs
• Assess outcomes
• Did you meet the goal?

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Community Need

• Children in the community need to maintain
  reading levels over the summer.
• Number of kids in that age
• Research on reading skills and summer break

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Goal

• The library maintain or improve childrens
  reading levels over the summer through Summer
  Reading programming.

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Objectives

• Develop a Summer Reading program with marketing,
  evaluation, activities, etc.

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Inputs

• Staff time
• Materials
• Performers
• Initial evaluation of children

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Activities

• Buy materials
• Hire performers
• Contact schools
• Put up marketing materials

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Outputs

• Number of books read
• Number of children participating
• Number of events

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Outputs

• How many children maintained their reading level?
• Interview parents of participating children?
• Work with day care providers who participate to
  do a brief assessment of participating children?

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OBE Resources IMLS sites

• IMLS information on OBE
• www.imls.gov/applicants/obe.shtm
• OBE Purpose
• www.imls.gov/applicants/overview.shtm
• Webography
• www.imls.gov/applicants/learning.shtm
• Resources
• www.imls.gov/applicants/resources.shtm

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OBE Resources - Books

• Demonstrating Results Using Outcome Measurement
  in Your Library / Rhea Joyce Rubin, American
  Library Association, 2006.
• Outcome-Based Evaluation / Robert L. Schalock,
  Plenum Press, 1995.

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OBE Resources - Classes

• Shaping Outcomes Making a Difference in Museums
  Libraries by Indiana State University
• shapingoutcomes.org/

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Why evaluate?

• What does this mean in advocacy?
• Data can prove need for or the success of a
  program or service.
• A quality evaluation can be used to prove to
  funders you can make good use of their support.

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Presentation Resources

• Demonstrating Results Using Outcome Measurement
  in Your Library / Rhea Joyce Rubin, American
  Library Association, 2006.
• Outcome-Based Evaluation / Robert L. Schalock,
  Plenum Press, 1995.
• The Evaluation and Measurement of Library
  Services / Joseph R. Matthews, Libraries
  Unlimited, 2007.
• Measuring for Results / Joseph R. Matthews,
  Libraries Unlimited, 2004.

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Advocate For Your Library!

• Quality Service Audit Checklist (QSAC)

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What is QSAC

• QSAC is a set of benchmarks for library
  operation, management and services for public
  libraries. It is a program of the Library of
  Michigan.

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QSAC Development

• Committee was formed in 2002 by the State
  Librarian to investigate library standards. It
  looked at
• Why use quality measures?
• How to administer the measures?
• What will the measures cover?
• What will be the criteria?

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QSAC Committee

• The committee was made up of
• 2 representatives from each size public library
• 2 library trustees
• 1 cooperative director
• MLA director
• 1 Library of Michigan employee

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Why benchmarks?

• To give libraries credibility
• To give libraries a vision of achievement
• To give libraries an educational tool
• To justify current funding
• To leverage increased funding
• To inspire us

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Credibility

• Certification by the Library of Michigan
  demonstrates credibility to a librarys funding
  sources, board and patrons.

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Vision

• Measures that are statewide give the public
  library community a statewide agreement on what
  library services are important.

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Educational Tool

• The measures educate the board, funders, and
  staff on how the library operates and the
  services it provides.

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Current Funding

• A library can justify current funding by pointing
  to its certification level.

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Future Funding

• A library may be able to justify increased
  funding by demonstrating how the increased funds
  will be spent, through achieving the measures of
  the next level.

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Inspiration

• Inspiration from fellow libraries can improve
  services.

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Three Levels of Service

• Essential The basics of service that every
  library can and should attain. Every public
  library should certify at this level.
• Enhanced More of a stretch to achieve, may
  require more funding.
• Excellent Highest level of service, calls for
  commitment to superb service.

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Seven Categories Covered

• Human Resources
• Governance
• Services
• Collection Development
• Technology
• Facilities Equipment
• Public Relations

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Governance

• How a library is organized
• Functions and actions of the board
• Functions and actions of the director
• Funding

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Human Resources

• Personnel issues

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Services

• Services to the public, both in the library and
  out of the library.

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Collection Development

• Materials selection
• Materials access
• Funding for materials

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Technology

• Technology access and services for the public and
  the staff

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Facilities and Equipment

• Building needs and concerns
• Furniture
• Equipment
• ADA issues

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Public Relations

• How the library staff and board shape the
  publics perception of the library.

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Six criteria Chosen

• Customer-Focused
• KISS (Keep It Simple, Sweetheart)
• Measurable
• Incentive-Driven (not punitive)
• Results-Based
• Not So Burdensome That They Crush Good Intentions

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Core and Optional

• In each category, there are core measures that
  are mandatory.
• In some categories, there are optional measures,
  only a certain number need to be achieved.

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QSAC Now

• Out of 385 public libraries
• 137 Essential Libraries
• 22 Enhanced Libraries
• 3 Excellent Libraries

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QSAC Results

• Clear explanation of public services the library
  provides
• Clear explanation of how the library operates
• Independent confirmation of the quality of the
  management and services of the library
• Clear vision of what further services and
  operations can be achieved with more funding.

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Audiences

• Who is the external audience for QSAC?
• Local legislators
• Municipal officials
• Local media
• Local community groups
• Local business groups

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Audiences

• Who is the internal audience for QSAC?
• Library Board
• Staff
• Library Users
• Non-Library Users

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Communication

• When do you talk to an audience? Any time you
  can!
• Millage campaigns
• Staff meetings
• Community group meetings
• Media interviews
• Casual conversations

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Communication

• How long do you talk? As long as you can!
• The 7 categories give a variety of topics for
  articles, press releases, meetings, planning.
• The 3 levels give long-term goals in each area to
  continue to discuss with funders, planners and
  supporters.

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QSAC Information

• www.michigan.gov/qsac

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OBE QSAC Contact

• Karren Reish
• 517-241-0021
• kreish_at_michigan.gov