My concern is libraries
A local, national and global view
Welcome!
Jan Richards Consulting offers practical, tailored solutions to assist libraries in realising their potential. I believe in conversations and I recognise that every library and every project is different. I will work with you to get the best outcome for your community.
With an in-depth knowledge across the sector and strong professional networks, I specialise in being honest, realistic and getting the job done.
Yes, everybody loves libraries! But if we are to remain relevant, we need to be agile, adaptive, accountable and collaborative.
Jan Richards
Engage
Let’s engage with your internal and external stakeholders to undertake library reviews, develop strategic and marketing plans, evaluate organisational structures and staffing, develop policy and procedures, contemplate new initiatives and conduct community consultations and surveys.
Enhance
Together we can enhance your service offer: explore opportunities for partnerships and collaboration; creation of communication and advocacy strategies including branding and collateral; tweaking what you’re already doing to maximise the impact. Sometimes you have the skills but you just don’t have the time – researching an issue, writing a report, developing a policy. Here and happy to assist.
Enable
Increasing the capacity and capability of your team through their involvement in any project is key to the JRC philosophy. Building skills and confidence enables them to undertake similar projects in the future – doing myself out of a job I know! Follow up is included in all consultancies and mentoring and coaching is an option.
Little Gems
I’ve spent the last week reviewing the findings of community survey I undertook for a cultural facility in NSW. We had an excellent response and people gave us detailed, well thought out answers which included suggestions, niggles and compliments. Something we can work with. When we know our service well we can often predict theContinue reading “Little Gems”
PLOTY
Entries for PLOTY, or to give it its full name the 2022 IFLA/Systematic Public Library of the Year Awards are now open. Applications close on 29 April. Established in 2014 these Awards were developed to celebrate libraries which have been built in new or re-purposed buildings in the preceding 12 months. For the 2022 AwardContinue reading “PLOTY”
Library Lovers Day – the accidental campaign …
Today is Library Lovers Day here in Australia, a time to reflect on the myriad of ways that libraries contribute to our lives and to say out loud how much we love them. Library Lovers Day (or LLD) holds a special place in my heart as it was something that I helped develop with aContinue reading “Library Lovers Day – the accidental campaign …”
Testimonials
‘Just wanted to let you know that this was the most important, useful and practical PD! Will definitely be going back to school on Monday to start those conversations.’‘Thank you Jan, your depth of experience and expertise was great to see’. Teams: the hard conversations Presented for ALIA Schools as an online workshop in MarchContinue reading “ALIA Schools PD participant”
‘The content reminded me of the importance of considering the implications of healthy membership statistics and the strategies to achieve them’. ‘Jan’s way of looking at membership campaigns. It was inspiring’ Members: engaging, retaining and growingA workshop series for the NSW Public Libraries Association presented during April and May 2021 with 150 participants from 57Continue reading “NSW Public Libraries Association – Membership Campaign”
‘Brilliant! Quick, complete and accurate! You are a perfect professional librarian’. I love working with my friends in Iran. I had the thrill of being able to visit them in 2019 but I’ve also done a number of video presentations for their conferences. The Iranian Library and Information Science Association (ILISA) together with the NationalContinue reading “Iranian Library and Information Science Association (ILISA) and the National Library (NLAI)”
I acknowledge the Nuenonne people of Bruny Island, and all the Traditional Custodians of the Land on which I work. I acknowledge all elders past and present and extend this respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Jan Richards Consulting 