Idea A: Matrix organizational plan.

Shirien Chappell (date)

In general, work places are organized by functions, divisions, or matrices

The library has been organized by divisions, with cross-divisional groups (such as Initiatives) being appointed as needed. As I think about the merger of AcS, ILL, and LCS, it seems that a matrix organizational structure might be a good fit.

A matrix organizational structure assigns everybody to a line supervisor and a permanent responsibility for a functional duty, and then each person also has responsibility for a team or project duty. Those projects or teams change as the needs of the organization change. The projects or teams are not permanent: they spring into existence as they are needed, and die when their work is done.

A light-weighted matrix organizational structure places the emphasis on the line supervisor and permanent functional duties, and less emphasis on the team duties. A heavy-weighted matrix organizational structure places the emphasis more on the team projects.

The benefit of a matrix organization for Access Services is that it emphasizes the department's mission by

• incorporating flexibility of assignments into each position,
• placing an emphasis on understanding and then meeting the needs of our patrons (all staff regularly work at public service desks, all staff shelve, page, and scan materials as needed,)
• encourages staff to take responsibility for the success of the department rather than for only their assigned job.

(While the mission statement hasn't been written, I think it will include statements about providing speedy access to known items in a welcoming manner, all with the aim of enriching the student learning experience, encouraging exploration and research at all levels, and contributing to advancements in access to scholarly resources…)

The following idea uses a somewhat modified matrix plan: it contains the line/functional assignment, and instead of a temporary project assignment, it uses a permanent community pool assignment. (I define a "permanent community pool" as a work unit which has only one permanent staff assigned to coordinate the work of other staff who regularly visit the pool to work there.) The idea also allows for a temporary project effort to spring up only as long as it's needed.

Each staff has three equally important parts of her/his job: a. regular line/function work, b. regular community pool work, and c. as-needed special project work. These three portions of each job are not necessarily divided into equal parts, time-wise: on average, some jobs may have more focus on the line/function portion while others may spend more time in the community pool portion. The as-needed special project portion depends on the project.

Matrix Organizational Model for Access Services:

1. The department consists of:
   1. Two work units which are line/functional units. Each is supervised by an OA and has several classified staff permanently assigned to it. Example names of work units: External Library Lending, and Support Functions
   2. Two community pools, each of which is supervised an OA, and which have only one Classified staff assigned permanently to it, whose major responsibility is to coordinate the work of classified staff who work there regularly, and student staff who work there permanently. (Example names: Service Desk Pool and Shelving/Paging Pool) (The Classified staff permanently assigned to each pool treats the pool as her line/functional work unit).
   3. Temporary Assignments: as needed, staff may be assigned to a temporary project (such as helping get scanning done, or a one-time data entry push, or a team to analyze a specific workflow or procedure).
2. Functional work units and Community Pools:
   1. Each OA (and maybe the Dept. Head) is responsible for the management of their assigned functional work unit and/or community pool: they do the interviewing (with the Dept. Head), training, supervision, scheduling, and evaluations for the Classified staff permanently assigned to that functional work unit or community pool. However, the OAs and the dept. head also form a management team and since staff perform work for more than one OA, they consult with each other before evaluations are written or other needs (training, reassignment to a different functional work unit or community pool, etc.) are addressed.
   2. Each Classified staff in the functional work unit is responsible for one job, and his job title reflects that specialty. Examples of Clerk titles in functional work units: Billing Clerk, Paging Clerk, Summit Clerk, ILL Requests Clerk, Photocopier Maintenance Clerk, Scanner Clerk, E-Res Clerk, Shelving Clerk. Examples of Clerk titles in community pool (which treat this assignment as their functional work unit, and are probably LSA IIIs: Shelving/Paging Clerk, Service Desk Clerk.
   3. Each day each Classified staff spends her time split between doing the duties of her job title and working in a Community Pool. (The split is not necessarily 50/50)
   4. Also, as needed, clerks are given temporary assignments in other functional work units. The Temporary Assignment works this way: as the workflow changes through the term, a clerk can inform her OA that she needs X hours of assistance for a few days. The OA talks with the OA Team and they direct other clerks to report to the clerk needing help. Example: The Scanning Clerk reports that there is more than usual scanning to be done . The OA sends message to other OAs, who direct their clerks to report to Scanning Clerk for x hours/day until the work is caught up.
   5. The Shelving/Paging Community Pool has a greater percentage of students assigned to it and fewer permanent Classified staff working in it; the Service Desk Community Pool has all Classified staff working regularly in it and some student assistants (night-time closure, etc.)
3. Cross training: Each Classified staff is also responsible for being cross-trained into at least one other clerk's duties (either in her own functional work unit or in another one).
4. Student workers:
   1. The Support Functions work unit is responsible for general orientation of all student workers (hazcomm, how to fill out timesheets, sexual harassment, expectations for their performance, public service attitudes, and basic departmental core competencies)
   2. Students are permanently assigned to functional work units. Those working in the Shelving/Paging or Service Desk Pools treat those pools as their functional work unit. That is, not every student in the department works at the desks, but every student does spend some time in the stacks.
   3. Other functional work units can ask the OA team for temporary student assistance as needed.
   4. Functional work units or Community Pools which have students permanently assigned do their own training on specific skills.
   5. I don't know who does timesheets and evals: probably the permanent functional work unit.

Functional Work Units:

1. External Library Borrowing/Lending:
   • All incoming materials (not brand new books, etc.) are brought from the mail room (from the courier, campus branch run, mail, etc.) to the External Unit. Staff check them in and put them on trucks to be taken to final destination (stacks, branches, hold shelves, etc.)
   • Items returned to the Checkout Desk by patrons are brought to the External unit for check in item.
   • Processes UO items going out to all extermal libraries: ILL, Summit. Does the Janus work, and packages them (puts in courier bags or affixes labels, etc. for the Mail Room staff to package)
   • Processes UO items coming in from external libraries: (checkin, any record manipulation, and them puts them on trucks to be shelved)
   • Processes incoming non-UO returnables: checks in, makes bib/item records, etc. and places on trucks for hold shelves.
   • Processes incoming ILL requests for non-returnables: prints notices, does record work, etc., and gives slips to Stacks Pool for paging.
   • Processes nonUO items being returned to external libraries: checks in, packages, etc.
   • Processes UO returnable items going to to UO libraries or departments (docdel) - receives items paged from UO stacks by Stacks Pool, checks them out, and puts them in intra-library bags, etc.
   • Prints paging slips for UO electronic docdel (articles/chapters of UO materials to be scanned and sent to UO patrons)
2. Support Functions:
   • billing, invoicing, (patrons and other libraries)
   • reserve processing (traditional and e-res)
   • processes search packets: does all Janus work pre and post. Just doesn't search stacks.
   • Janus table/loads maintenance
   • Copiers: deal with money, in-depth maintenance, vendors, replacements, etc. routine copier maintenance
   • equipment in 101
   • relables

Community Pools:

1. Service Desks Pool:
   • Checkout/Information
     • checkout, holds, renewals
     • creation of patrons records, OR Cards
     • routine ILL questions
     • $ on copy cards
     • sell products (discs, overheads, etc.)
     • evening building closure/emergencies
     • hold shelf maintenance
     • scan and send items to patrons (bothUO and non-UO)
   • Reserves/Videos
     • checkouts/shelving reserves
     • does bookings
     • checkout video collection and viewing stations
     • scanning amd send items to patrons (both UO and non-UO)
2. Stacks: (Shelving/Paging) Pool:
   • Shelving
   • Shifting
   • Searches stacks (formal searches) and returns packets to Support Function Unit.
   • Paging for Summit, ILL, distance ed, DocDel
   • Student basic training, so that each unit doesn't have to do the same training: orientation to the building, to our services, to our public service attitude, to the catalog and its contents and to the basic structure of records…
   • Student paperwork? Timesheets?

Conclusion:

While we have been organized primarily by division (Circ/Res & Videos, and Current Periodicals &Stacks), we do have experience helping out other work units either permanently or on an as-needed basis. We have a .5 FTE position in CPS dedicated to performing ILL duties. Other AcS staff members work in ILL and MDLS on a permanent and regular basis. LCS staff scan for ILL. In addition, staff are asked to help shelve as needed, help input data for special projects, or work in other departments during library-wide projects.

This new matrix plan isn't as radical as it might seem: perhaps the most important benefit it gives is the institutionalization of these ideas:

• increased flexibility of work assignments: rather than owning a specific task and belonging to a specific work unit, staff have primary responsibility for a task and equally important, responsibility for work in various community pools or for helping other staff with their primary responsibilities as needed.
• increased sense of responsibility for the success of the department and library: sharing work throughout the department can increase staff sense of ownership of the success of the whole.

These new attitudes will enhance our ability to add new services and remove old ones. We need to see ourselves as continually providing the services that the patrons want, not continually providing the services we're used to providing.