I provide direct consulting to librarians, boards, foundations, and ballot committees, offering strategic, tactical, and operational support on voter awareness campaigns. I also work with state associations and state libraries providing strategic support responding to challenges related to harmful legislation. I develop and grow coalitions and partnerships while providing direct coaching, mentoring, training, and ongoing support to grassroots groups advocating for libraries. I have cultivated many relationships in the media and frequently speak with journalists as a trusted library expert and advocate. I facilitated EveryLibrary’s strategic plan and led the creation of our professionalized fundraising operation which has resulted in a significant increase in donations and sustainable revenue streams.

I am an experienced coach, public speaker, and workshop developer and facilitator. I have received consistent positive feedback on my ability to present inspiring and motivating keynote addresses to diverse audiences.My areas of expertise, experience, and interest are:- Strategic Planning- Advocacy- Inspirational Keynotes- Emotional Intelligence- Leadership- Executive Coaching- Customer Experience- Customized Learning- Managing Change- Personal and Organizational Effectiveness- Communicating for resultsI am available to speak or present on these topics, or provide inspiring keynote talks customized to your needs and objectives.Specialties: Strategic Planning, Advocacy, Leadership, Customer Experience, Effectiveness, Coaching, Visioning, Customer Service, Presenting, Supervising, Training, Problem Solving, Change

Working closely and collaboratively with a nine-member appointed Board, I was responsible for the operations and financial management of a multi-branch system. In addition to leading a nationally recognized, innovative approach to strategic planning, countering years of siloing from city officials, I cultivated productive intergovernmental and community relations, which helped put the organization on firm financial footing by securing the approval of an historic 23.5% budget increase, while also eliminating late fees, restructuring the budget, and adding a new revenue stream to address long-term capital needs. I worked closely and collaboratively with our Friends Board to professionalize the organization, leading to increased contributions and transforming it into an effective support organization. Under my direction, SLCPL became a national leader in digital equity as I applied an equity lens to board and policy development, organizational structure, and operations, garnering a Distinguished Service Award from the American Society for Public Administrators for eliminating inequitable barriers to service.

Served as a member of the executive management team of an eighteen-branch system, guiding the overall direction of the library system by continually assessing and leading areas of planning, staffing, program development, budgeting, and library operations. Directly supervised twenty managers including hiring, promoting, orienting, training, assigning work, and reviewing performance. Coached, mentored, and trained employees in order to foster cooperation, performance, and job satisfaction. Collaborated in planning, implementation, and assessment of long-range goals for the library. Fostered a service-focused environment based on the principles of human-centered design and promoted greater awareness of trends that enabled staff to dynamically respond to the needs of the community.

Oversaw all aspects of the library including coordination of services to children, teens and adults, programming, and oversight of information technology. Worked with staff to efficiently provide exceptional customer service. Participated in the preparation, justification, and administration of the library’s operating and capital budgets. Acted on behalf of the library director in her absence in public relations and liaison relationships, and at public events. Acted in as Director during Director's extended medical leaves, liaising with library Board, Friends and Foundation, government officials, and community organizations and stakeholders. Helped staff and team leaders transition to a team-based model built on collaboration and trust, and individual empowerment. Evaluated and updated library services and programs to respond to the changing needs of the community. Participated in organizational strategic planning, and planning for building modifications, remodeling, and other physical improvements.

Oversaw all aspects of the library including coordination of services, programming, and information technology. Participated in the preparation, justification, and administration of the library’s operating and capital budgets. Acted on behalf of the library director at board meetings and other governance situations in her absence (including multiple extended sick leave absences,) representing the library in public relations situations, liaison relationships, and at public events. Appeared before the municipal governing council at meetings and hearings on matters pertaining to the library. Collaborated with human resources manager to interview and screen prospective employees, and make recommendations to the director on the employment, development, discipline, and discharge of employees. Worked with our Director of Development, Friends Council, and Foundation Board to develop and grow new external sources of funding. Developed a new team-based organizational model built on collaboration, trust, and individual empowerment. Participated in organizational strategic planning, and planning for building modifications, remodeling, and other physical improvements to our facility. Developed excellent working relationships with local businesses and organizations. Served on executive board of downtown merchants association.

Developed and provided continuing education opportunities for library staff at over 600 member libraries. Promoted the development of professional communities and sharing of professional knowledge and best practices through effective blended use of websites, blogs, wikis, listservs and chat. Worked with Advocacy team to market and advocate for South Jersey Library services through attendance and presentations at a variety of business and community events including the South Jersey Business Expo. Oversaw managing and marketing of QandANJ.org, New Jersey's collaborative virtual reference service (www.qandanj.org). Worked with Executive Director to develop and manage a variety of regional and statewide, projects focusing on transformative library services, including, QandANJ.org, "Trading Spaces" (http://www.sjrlc.org/tradingspaces), Wireless Connectivity in South Jersey Libraries, Audiobooks Consortium, and "Get a Library Card Online.

Head of Reference, Periodicals and Interlibrary Loan services. Supervised a staff of fifteen professionals and eleven support staff, ensuring quality reference service to all patrons. Developed a strong, customer service oriented reference team, bringing in technology to improve skills and streamline workflow, delivering service on two busy public service desks. Participated on Strategic Planning Team that used PLA’s “Planning for Results” model. As Grant Coordinator, oversaw the provision of twenty Internet classes per year to colleagues throughout South Jersey. Oversaw customer education training program that provides Internet classes to over one thousand patrons per year. Developed and taught various information literacy Internet classes. Oversaw all content and design of library website (http://www.camden.lib.nj.us). Designed and implemented a web-based periodicals database and a web-based version of popular print and electronic, “Guide to Elected Officials”.

Provided reference and information services, and developed and taught information behavior classes (i.e. constructing complex boolean search strategies to yield highly relevant results from poorly designed, clunky government databases) to a mix of environmental scientists, attorneys, GIS professionals, and students. Helped EPA scientists and attorneys, United Nations staff, and members of the public find and understand highly technical scientific information, research reports, government documents, as well as relevant laws, statutes, and regulations. Managed the EPA Law Library and acted as library liaison to EPA attorneys. Maintained EPA Library webpage. Responsibilities also included management of reference statistics, interlibrary loan services, collection development, and adding metadata to catalog records. Supervised one part-time library associate.

Reference Librarian, Teen Librarian in a busy resource library and large branch. Supervised, trained, and evaluated ten library Pages. Provided reference services. Implemented a new, efficient shelf-reading system ensuring that the entire library collection was shelf-read four times per year. Selected materials for young adult, adult, and reference collections. Created homework center for teens at branch library. Ran teen book discussion groups and offered a variety of other teen programs. Developed and conducted Internet and online search trainings for staff and public. Was honored by library leadership with annual “Outstanding Employee Award” in 1995. My supervisor later commented that, “You help people work well together, and feel happy doing it.”

Supervised student staff. Trained staff in use and maintenance of an innovative, cutting-edge, hyper-card based, online housing availability database. Provided service to both landlords posting vacancies and students navigating the off-campus housing market. Counseled patrons in need of landlord-tenant conflict resolution. Contacted attorneys who were Rutgers alumni and helped set up a free legal clinic with three attorneys who offered students landlord-tenant legal counseling. Partnered with the Middlesex County Housing Authority to crack down on racial discrimination in the rental market.

Interned under the President of the New Jersey Law Library Association who provided opportunities to apply my legal research training. Received additional valuable in-depth training in how to effectively research cases and legal news in Lexis/Nexis and Westlaw, and how to format and present the results of the research to internal clients. Completed a detailed annotated bibliography on antitrust law that was presented at the Practicing Law Institute Seminar. Researched and compiled sources for attorneys.

Taught students how to prepare for college admissions test, teaching SAT level math and offering coaching on testing strategy. Taught high school juniors how to succeed on the SAT Math test and how to use understanding of the test design and scoring algorithm to develop an effective test-taking strategy and optimize their time-management. Scored a perfect 1600 twice under real-life timed conditions as part of the rigorous training process. This position required a not only a keen understanding of mathematics but also required the ability to teach complex concepts in an engaging and entertaining manner. (Note: exact dates of employment are best estimate based on recall.)

Provided outstanding customer service across multiple departments. Recognized by HQ for a perfect score in telephone customer service as a result of corporate “secret shopping” exercise. (I was one out of three people, among over 200 secretly shopped nationwide, to receive a perfect score.) Was one of two employees selected to have private lunch with Regional Manager (and future President of Nordstrom) Blake Nordstrom to provide feedback and suggestions for improving staff and customer experience. (Note: also worked at Nordstrom from October 1992 - February 1993.)