Pete Elderkin at LIANZA2023 with from left: Pete Elderkin, Mark Crookston, Allison Dobbie and Vanisa Dhiru
Kia ora koutou,
Commencing my appointment at LIANZA 2023 Conference at Te Pae in Ōtautahi Christchurch was a great introduction to our members from all the different sectors that LIANZA represents. I built some valuable connections in my first week and thank you all for your warm welcome.
In this update you can read about my first five months as the LIANZA executive director, the stakeholders I am working with, the projects we have under way, the advocacy we are undertaking and my vision for how we can together create a thriving library and information sector.
STAKEHOLDER MEETINGS
Meeting so many of our members and stakeholders across Aotearoa has been a privilege and I appreciate your patience if I’ve asked too many questions! I’ve spent a lot of time connecting with organisations and individuals in the wider library and information sector to understand their many perspectives. Productive meetings with for example: Te Rōpū Whakahau, SLANZA, PLNZ, NZLLA, National Library, Coalition of books, NZ Book Awards Trust, PANZ to name just a few.
Internationally, I met with ALIA online to discuss potential areas we can work together for the benefit of both countries. We discussed workforce capability and an initiative around a hybrid regional professional development event involving both online and in-person participation in both Australia and New Zealand. There are areas of joint interest and their team have been knowledgeable and positive. I also met with Ann Rossiter from SCONUL in the UK in relation to their survey for the UK tertiary sector.
Internally, I’ve met with LIANZA’s climate action, copyright and freedom of information standing committees as well as the Professional Registration Board and Tertiary Grants Project. We appreciate all the hours of volunteer support and time that these committees need. Please consider volunteering to help a committee if you can find the time.
SEEKING OUR MEMBER'S FEEDBACK
To create a thriving sector, we need to collaborate with other associations and increase our membership both in terms of numbers and diversity. This will directly strengthen us because it will allow us to deliver more services for our members.
In January, we sent out a survey to members to better understand your thoughts on key issues and how we can communicate better with our members. We are now using that feedback to drive how we deliver some of our communications, professional development and operations. We will issue the survey results to members soon.
Moving forward, I'm also aiming to improve our members' benefits and looking into what further discounts and offerings can be made available to you.
Thank you for the input we received in our separate March conference format survey. We know how LIANZA conferences have traditionally been held, where, and with what frequency. Your feedback will inform the future of our conferences and how it may be possible to include more members from across Aotearoa. There will always be financial constraints, but I do believe we’ve identified areas where we can be more accessible in person and online. Watch this space, and we’ll advise you of some interesting options in due course.
NEW PROJECTS UNDERWAY
In March, we were excited to employ Annemarie Thomas as Te Tōtara Workforce Capability project manager. We have already begun the discovery phase and will keep you up to date with progress on this project. We are establishing the composition of the full advisory group and will be talking to all stakeholders in our library sector. Thanks to Ian Littleworth, Amanda Bond, and Denise Wilson for their assistance on the project thus far. Thanks to our volunteer advisory group members for all their hard work.
The Indigenous Workforce Survey project is a proposal that aims to understand the current indigenous staff profile in the sector and their experiences. It’s a project we’d like to progress in 2024 and I’m working on our next steps. I was assisted by Council members Tracy Maniapoto and Troy Tuhou and have since met with some key stakeholders including Kim Tairi, Michelle Blake, Rachel Esson and members of Te Rōpū Whakahau to date.
The Freedom-to-read toolkit has proven to be very useful. Recent events over the country on Rainbow Storytimes have meant these tools are timely and I would encourage members to use this information and share it widely. These are a ‘living tool’ and will be updated regularly. Webinars to support you in these areas have been popular and a further workshop on disinformation is scheduled for May.
ADVOCACY
LIANZA has advocated in the media on topics including Wellington Libraries on RNZ. Our briefing paper provided advice on the pressing issues for our sector to the new government, and we will meet with Brooke van Velden later this year.
We issued a press statement last week stating LIANZA’s support for safety at Rainbow Storytimes, events in the headlines currently.
I have met many of you already and my learning curve will continue as I visit other library and information services. I'm looking forward to that. Upcoming later this year I am going to enjoy the mini-conference in Matamata, in the mighty Waikato, and the PLNZ Forum in Wellington.
I’m always interested in your feedback, contact me on [email protected]
Commencing my appointment at LIANZA 2023 Conference at Te Pae in Ōtautahi Christchurch was a great introduction to our members from all the different sectors that LIANZA represents. I built some valuable connections in my first week and thank you all for your warm welcome.
In this update you can read about my first five months as the LIANZA executive director, the stakeholders I am working with, the projects we have under way, the advocacy we are undertaking and my vision for how we can together create a thriving library and information sector.
STAKEHOLDER MEETINGS
Meeting so many of our members and stakeholders across Aotearoa has been a privilege and I appreciate your patience if I’ve asked too many questions! I’ve spent a lot of time connecting with organisations and individuals in the wider library and information sector to understand their many perspectives. Productive meetings with for example: Te Rōpū Whakahau, SLANZA, PLNZ, NZLLA, National Library, Coalition of books, NZ Book Awards Trust, PANZ to name just a few.
Internationally, I met with ALIA online to discuss potential areas we can work together for the benefit of both countries. We discussed workforce capability and an initiative around a hybrid regional professional development event involving both online and in-person participation in both Australia and New Zealand. There are areas of joint interest and their team have been knowledgeable and positive. I also met with Ann Rossiter from SCONUL in the UK in relation to their survey for the UK tertiary sector.
Internally, I’ve met with LIANZA’s climate action, copyright and freedom of information standing committees as well as the Professional Registration Board and Tertiary Grants Project. We appreciate all the hours of volunteer support and time that these committees need. Please consider volunteering to help a committee if you can find the time.
SEEKING OUR MEMBER'S FEEDBACK
To create a thriving sector, we need to collaborate with other associations and increase our membership both in terms of numbers and diversity. This will directly strengthen us because it will allow us to deliver more services for our members.
In January, we sent out a survey to members to better understand your thoughts on key issues and how we can communicate better with our members. We are now using that feedback to drive how we deliver some of our communications, professional development and operations. We will issue the survey results to members soon.
Moving forward, I'm also aiming to improve our members' benefits and looking into what further discounts and offerings can be made available to you.
Thank you for the input we received in our separate March conference format survey. We know how LIANZA conferences have traditionally been held, where, and with what frequency. Your feedback will inform the future of our conferences and how it may be possible to include more members from across Aotearoa. There will always be financial constraints, but I do believe we’ve identified areas where we can be more accessible in person and online. Watch this space, and we’ll advise you of some interesting options in due course.
NEW PROJECTS UNDERWAY
In March, we were excited to employ Annemarie Thomas as Te Tōtara Workforce Capability project manager. We have already begun the discovery phase and will keep you up to date with progress on this project. We are establishing the composition of the full advisory group and will be talking to all stakeholders in our library sector. Thanks to Ian Littleworth, Amanda Bond, and Denise Wilson for their assistance on the project thus far. Thanks to our volunteer advisory group members for all their hard work.
The Indigenous Workforce Survey project is a proposal that aims to understand the current indigenous staff profile in the sector and their experiences. It’s a project we’d like to progress in 2024 and I’m working on our next steps. I was assisted by Council members Tracy Maniapoto and Troy Tuhou and have since met with some key stakeholders including Kim Tairi, Michelle Blake, Rachel Esson and members of Te Rōpū Whakahau to date.
The Freedom-to-read toolkit has proven to be very useful. Recent events over the country on Rainbow Storytimes have meant these tools are timely and I would encourage members to use this information and share it widely. These are a ‘living tool’ and will be updated regularly. Webinars to support you in these areas have been popular and a further workshop on disinformation is scheduled for May.
ADVOCACY
LIANZA has advocated in the media on topics including Wellington Libraries on RNZ. Our briefing paper provided advice on the pressing issues for our sector to the new government, and we will meet with Brooke van Velden later this year.
We issued a press statement last week stating LIANZA’s support for safety at Rainbow Storytimes, events in the headlines currently.
I have met many of you already and my learning curve will continue as I visit other library and information services. I'm looking forward to that. Upcoming later this year I am going to enjoy the mini-conference in Matamata, in the mighty Waikato, and the PLNZ Forum in Wellington.
I’m always interested in your feedback, contact me on [email protected]
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