Angela Galeotti – seconded to Hume Global Learning Village Library Service from Darebin Libraries Judith Oke – seconded to State Library of Victoria from Geelong Regional Library Corporation Natalie Brown – seconded to West Gippsland Regional Library Corporation from City of Greater Dandenong Libraries Angela Galeotti Angela Galeotti was seconded from Darebin Libraries to Hume Global Learning Village Library Service for 12 months. Mieke Mellars, Library Operations Coordinator, was Angela’s supervisor at Hume while Katrina Knox, Manager Darebin Libraries, is her supervisor at Darebin. Angela Galeotti says: ‘Until you really immerse yourself in a different organisation in a position of responsibility and representation, you really do not understand the differences between library services.
‘The secondment proved it was not about learning new tasks – although I did things I had never tackled before – but was about exploring different ways of getting the job done. ‘My placement involved partnerships with other council departments; partnerships where there was less certainty in regards to the how and what but focused on the responsibility of evolving the organisation. Although challenging at first, I soon realised that all staff were empowered to contribute and in facing these new challenges, were very supportive of each other.
‘My experience of thinking more conceptually and holistically during my secondment translated into an acting management position when I returned to Darebin. It also translated into a Hume City Council Valuing People and Diversity Award for my involvement in The Disability Expo Working Group. I strongly encourage anyone to take on a secondment especially if they have worked in the one organisation for a few years. I have returned to my home organisation revived and focused and ready to challenge what I previously thought was the best way of going about things.’
Mieke Mellars, Library Operations Coordinator, Hume Global Learning Village Library Service, says: ‘Angela was approached by us and encouraged to submit an expression of interest, which she did. We then approached Katrina Knox at Darebin, who kindly allowed Angela to come to Hume for 12 months, even though this presented her with a staffing shortage, the need to advertise, etc. We arranged for the Darebin HR department to invoice Hume due to pay rate differences; this way Angela could remain on her hourly rate and also keep her leave entitlements. During the 12 months, if and when she took leave, I just let Katrina know, who would then advise the Darebin HR department and leave entitlements would be adjusted.
‘All in all it’s been a really positive experience; Hume got an experienced, passionate librarian who fitted really well into the team, didn’t need inducting and who hit the ground running, so to speak. For Angela herself, it has meant enormous professional development, lots of experience in a unique community, acquisition of transferable skills and the opportunity to extend her network. Darebin might initially have thought they were drawing the short straw. However, the public library world is quite small; everyone knows one another, so Angela’s skills were always going to be transferable and this is exactly what has happened. Toward the end of Angela’s secondment, a position became available at Darebin at a higher banding level and Angela was successful in obtaining this. We like to think that we have played some small part in her climb up the public library ladder!’
Katrina Knox, Manager Darebin Libraries, says: ‘I found it interesting that there is a general perception with staff that secondments will not be supported. Council sees secondments as beneficial (assessed on an individual basis) as they can bring enhanced skills to the organisation. In addition to this benefit, Darebin Libraries is committed to developing their staff through a range of options (i.e. training, internal secondments and study) as part of our staff retention strategy.
‘Replacing Angela was not particularly easy, finding a qualified librarian (Adult Services) who has interested in a 12 month, 0.5 position was a struggle. We finally temporarily replaced her with a librarian (recently retired) from our casual pool. ‘However, on the other side, when we had a temporary 12 month vacancy for a Band 6 Customer Service Manager (Branch Manager), Angela applied and was by far the best applicant, primarily due to the additional skills and knowledge that she picked up from her Hume experience. The growth in her maturity of understanding of operating at a Band 6 level was significant. She has brought back new ideas and skills to Darebin which have added value to our organisation. ‘I am also of the opinion that the secondment assisted Angela greatly in determining a future career path.
‘The secondment may mean Angela moves to another library service if we cannot provide this career path, but I would not regard this as a failure but rather a success and a contribution to the overall development of the public library sector.’
Judith Oke Judith Oke was seconded from Corio Library, Geelong Regional Library Corporation, to the Genealogy team at the State Library of Victoria (SLV) for three months. Anne Burrows, Genealogy Librarian, was her supervisor at SLV while Anthea Taylor, Library Operations Co-ordinator, is her supervisor at Geelong. Judith Oke says: ‘Selection for a short-term period of employment at SLV has been a fantastic professional opportunity and a tremendous personal thrill. ‘During the time of employment, the exposure I have had to different styles of staff supervision, team dynamics and services to the public will certainly influence, in a positive way, my own future supervisory and team leadership role. Also, during this time, my existing computer skills have been expanded and polished.
‘A short-term position will not be successful unless the participant is prepared to be open to new knowledge, to leave all preconceived work patterns, etc. behind and to fully concentrate on the new position. In this case, you can take on work practices and information much easier than if you dwell on the previous job. I came to SLV with an enthusiasm to learn and preparedness to concentrate on the task of fulfilling the requirements of the position. It was certainly helpful to me to have a solid background in public library service with experience in a variety of library areas and some previous experience in short-term appointments. My personal interest in genealogy proved to be an advantage to me in working with the public and certainly added a special zest to my time at SLV. ‘My personal experience has been a positive one as I have participated in the different library environments. It has been a refreshing break from my usual public library environment, and has given me valuable networking opportunities.
‘A major influence on the success of a short-term position is the attitude of the team to the incoming staff member. Existing team members are in a position to offer a knowledge base which the newcomer does not have time to learn, and this contributes to the newcomer’s ultimate productivity in this short-term environment. I found the Genealogy Team to be very welcoming and supportive. Their willingness to share their expertise and offer their friendship had been an extremely positive part of my whole SLV experience, and I am very thankful for that.’
Anne Burrows, Genealogy Librarian, State Library of Victoria, says: ‘From a Genealogy Team and a State Library of Victoria perspective, Judith’s secondment from the public library environment has been of considerable organisational benefit. ‘Judith has been able to bring her public library perspective to the State Library and, in particular, to the Genealogy Centre and Genealogy Team activities. What emerged is an extremely useful two-way flow of information and communication on a wide range of collection and service issues. ‘I believe that Judith will take back to her library first-hand knowledge about the State Library she has gained during the three months, knowledge that cannot be replicated by meetings or training sessions.
‘Judith’s personal enthusiasm for the development opportunity no doubt contributed to its success, along with her subject and reference expertise and communication skills. She quickly became an invaluable member of the Genealogy Team and was able to participate in all team activities. Judith is correct that a team needs to be very positive and welcoming to ensure the success of a short-term placement. All members of the Genealogy Team are flexible and were keen to make the secondment work.
‘I can only congratulate Judith on her work in the Genealogy Team over the three months and wish her well on her return to the Geelong Library. We will miss her both personally and professionally! ‘Given the success and ongoing developmental benefits of this temporary placement both from a personal viewpoint as well as State Library of Victoria and public library perspectives, we would like to recommend that secondments to short-term positions in the Access and Information Division be offered to other public library staff as suitable vacancies arise.’
Anthea Taylor, Library Operations Co-ordinator, Geelong Regional Library Corporation, says: ‘Working at the State Library of Victoria was a career aspiration for Judith. The opportunity arose and I felt it was important to support her, as I felt that both she and Geelong Regional Library Corporation (GRLC) would benefit from the experience.
‘At no time did I think it was going to create problems at our end, and at no time did it, even with the short notice. I was able to offer her position within GRLC as an internal secondment, therefore, providing an opportunity for another staff member. From an HR perspective, while Judith was at SLV, she was on Leave Without Pay from GRLC. As noted, the notification time was short, however, to my way of thinking, this is not that much different to a staff member suddenly being on extended sick leave. Superannuation was really the only issue that had to be sorted. As Judith was on defined benefits, she was still required to continue with her contribution. GRLC would not cover her specified contributions under the defined benefits conditions. Judith understood and accepted this.
‘I believe Judith benefited from the experience by:
- Attaining a professional and personal goal.
- Working in an area of interest (genealogy).
- Working in a different environment.
- Learning new skills and work practices.
- Broadening her professional network.
‘Judith definitely returned to her position at GRLC with a fresh and invigorated approach. ‘As an organisation, GRLC benefited from Judith’s enhanced knowledge and experience, and she came back refreshed, as if from a holiday. ‘Given the suitability of the staff member for the proposed secondment position, and the benefits to GRLC, I would not hesitate in supporting a future secondment.’
Natalie Brown Natalie Brown was seconded from the City of Greater Dandenong Libraries (CGD) to West Gippsland Regional Library Corporation for seven months. Janet Aumann, Manager, Library Operations, was her supervisor at West Gippsland while Karen Ward-Smith, Manager, Libraries, Arts and Heritage Services is her supervisor at CGD. Natalie Brown says: ‘I was seconded to the role of Collection Service Manager. This position offered to develop my skills further in collection development, staff supervision, managing technical services functions, and negotiation with suppliers. ‘I had come from a single municipal library service with two library branches, 8km apart serving 150 different language groups. West Gippsland was a regional library corporation, where it could be a one hour drive between the twelve library branches located in regional centres and pockets of isolated communities. This gave me a different perspective of the different challenges and client needs across Victorian public libraries. ‘While working at West Gippsland, I attended CPLG meetings, and became more familiar with the operational side of country public library services. I was also given the opportunity to visit Wellington Library Service and toured around the various branches of a single municipal country public library service. ‘Working with a regional corporation structure, as opposed to a single municipal operation, enabled me to see how a library board operates. I attended regular board meetings, as well as a strategic planning day and was involved in preparing information for the financial plan. ‘The secondment at West Gippsland was highly beneficial for my professional development in providing me with new skills and an understanding of the different needs of the communities. The support and willingness offered by both organisations and staff was integral to the success of the placement. ‘I returned to Greater Dandenong in August 2005 to an entirely different role, Community Building Co-ordinator.’
Janet Aumann, Manager, Library Operations, West Gippsland Regional Library Corporation, says: ‘This was an informal secondment for seven months. Natalie brought new ideas and fresh perspectives to WGRLC. She took on the challenges of a senior management role as Collection Services Manager. This gave Natalie the opportunity to stretch her skills to accommodate a steep learning curve. WGRLC is a contrasting service to GDC. It is a regional service covering a large non-urban area with twelve branches and mobile services. This enabled Natalie to experience a different type of service with varying demands and priorities. WGRLC staff benefited from a new staff member, from a contrasting library service, providing a different perspective. ‘The secondment was successful due to the positive and supportive approach of both library services, and due to Natalie’s enthusiasm and willingness to learn, contribute and participate. Natalie was able to take new skills and experience back to her home library. The demanding nature of Natalie’s role may have seen even greater benefit from a longer period of secondment. Twelve months is probably the optimum period for a secondment to a management role. ‘This secondment was a successful experience for all parties and demonstrated the value of co-operation between library services.’
Karen Ward-Smith, Manager, Libraries, Arts and Heritage Services, City of Greater Dandenong, says: ‘The secondment provided a good opportunity for a long-term staff member to gain valuable experience at another service to provide her with enhanced and expanded experience as she progresses through her career. A key difficulty for people wishing to take on more senior roles is access to positions external to their own organisation as there is little movement within public libraries. Another key issue is many people are reluctant to take a chance/risk by moving from their own sector, often sectors are also reluctant to take on someone with technical skills but not the experience in a different sector – so part of the issue is staff and management taking the risk. The risk is rarely (if ever) fatal for the library service and the benefits can be surprising to the individual and other members of the host organisation. ‘As a manager, it is a safe way to enable talented staff to expand their capacity and perspective, gain an external view of their home organisation and help provide future managers who are well-rounded and capable of successfully taking a risk and being to analyse a business situation. ‘CGD has participated as a host organisation, as well as providing our staff with development opportunities.’
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