Technology and Communication (Part II): Techie to Non-Techie

As promised last week, we've got more quotes and advice on the communications conundrum. This time, we've got some advice for library tech gurus who occasionally have to struggle to make themselves understood. Following are some ideas from librarians and library techies across the country. Look for these quotes, along with other tips and techniques in the next Cookbook!
Do you:

Approach each tech support event as a training opportunity?
Develop tools that facilitate communication?
Have a sense of humor about tech problems? Avoid the blame game?
Remember how complex and confusing technology can be?
Listen carefully to non-techie librarians and front-line staff?
Approach each tech support event as a training opportunity
“In the long run, I try to be more of a teacher than a doer. If somebody has a problem doing something, I’ll go downstairs, even if they call me on the phone, to show them how to fix it or show them what happened or why it happened. That way, it won't happen again. That prevents a lot of repeated issues….I have one branch that has connectivity problems periodically, and they're a pretty busy branch, and now they know how to reset their network equipment, and they just do it every morning to deal with the fact that their lines go down all the time. So, you go show them and you give them written instructions, and now they just do it.”
Eric Brooks
Placer County Library, Auburn, CA
Develop tools that facilitate communication
"A problem I have here is constant, absolutely constant, interruptions with minor computer questions that they won’t put in writing. They just walk into my office and want to take up half an hour of my time. And I don’t have the time. So I developed a form, a very simple form. Make it easy for people, make it simple to click, make it as automated as you can, and put it on their desktop. They just have to fill it in and click on “email” and it’s sent to me by email."
Alice Weiss
St. John the Baptist Parish Library LaPlace, LA
Have a sense of humor about tech problems and avoid the blame game
“Yeah, and then I think from the geek end, from the technology side of this whole communication process, try to use consistent language and have a sense of humor. And don’t get into the blame game. I think there's nothing that will more quickly shut down an end user than if they start feeling that they're being held accountable for something. For the technology person to start saying, you know, "This was done wrong and that was done wrong," well, boy, forget it, all communication is gone at that point. So everybody needs to stay away from the blame game.”
Paul Ericsson
Bemidji Public Library, MN
Remember how complex and confusing technology can be
“The communication issue is always going to be something that's challenging just because a lot of times you forget, especially after you've been doing this for many, many years, how confusing this can be. So that naturally has to be kept in mind when talking to people who don't use technology on a regular basis.”
Robin Hastings
Missouri River Regional Library, MO
Listen carefully to non-techie librarians and front-line staff; they often know a lot about technology and they usually know the public better than you do.
“Do your best to keep open relations with the front-line staff. Let them know that you and systems people are there to serve them. We talk about having internal and external customers. So we serve both the staff and the patrons. When it comes to things like what you need for new computers, where you need them, what your plans are going to be; it’s really the front-line staff who are going to be driving that. I never want to start with technology and then find a use for it afterwards. Because it’s not about the technology; it’s about the people and it’s about the public.”
Aimee Fifarek
Scottsdale Public Library, AZ
“Our non-tech staff, especially the front desk staff that are working with the patrons, they’re the ones that the patrons come up to tell if a computer’s not working. Because they see the public so often they sometimes through process of elimination end up with a really good idea of what a problem might be but they don’t necessarily know how to explain it in tech terms but their input can solve the problem for the tech if they just have good lines of communication.”
Lorene McCrory
Yuba County Library, CA
“It’s something I found online that was cheap, and it was so funny because they [the county IT folks] finally came back to me well, maybe six months to a year later saying, “Well, I guess we’ll go with this one that you showed us initially. I guess it’ll work.” And that was back when I used to get frustrated by those things. I’m now used to that kind of process. It takes a little getting used to ‘cause they don’t expect librarians to know. That’s part of the problem and why I was saying that you really do have to keep up with stuff in order to talk with the IT staff because if you’ve got ideas about things they’re not going to believe you the first time you tell them anyway. “
Loren McCrory
Yuba County Library, CA
Thanks again to all the librarians quoted above, and to all the others out there who've shared their great ideas with us. If you have some stories to tell about technology in your library and you have an hour to spare, send us your contact info and we'll set up an interview.

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