The 2011 PLA “Results” Boot Camp took place October 18-21, in Nashville. Designed to help attendees get their libraries in strategic shape and prepared to meet any challenges, the PLA Boot Camp program is led by Sandra Nelson and June Garcia.
We asked Boot Camp attendees to tell us about the experience. Here are some of their observations:

I just returned from the Public Library Association (PLA) Boot Camp that was held in Nashville, Tennessee. This is a weeklong strategic planning and implementation session that is intended to provide the basic knowledge and skills to begin working with the community and to begin working internally with other managers and staff. Sandra Nelson and June Garcia are dynamite facilitators. Both are very dynamic and they work together just about seamlessly.

From: Jeff Martin, Acting Library Development Program Manager, Washington State Library,

So what did I take away from PLA Boot Camp?
• The world continues to rapidly change. New technologies are released constantly. Changes in technology and many other factors are changing consumer’s preferences and the way people desire to find and use information. This has many implications for the library “brand.”
• The library needs to plan with their community and align themselves to the community’s priorities. Only then will the library remain truly relevant.
• The library cannot be everything to everyone. Especially in current times, trying to do everything for everyone likely means the library is doing little as well as it should. Focus energies where the library can make a difference in serving the community.
• In these times of declining revenues, it is not a matter of adding or enhancing services or programs when library revenues finally increase. It is a matter of re-allocation of staffing and other resources. You have to give up some things to do others.
• Setting library goals and objectives after aligning library service priorities with community priorities is not as hard as it seems. Easy to use templates were provided to support the setting of goals and objectives.
• Integrating numerous other templates and models that were provided throughout the course should serve us well as we move toward the future.
Final note.
 Nashville is a fun city with lots to see and do.
 Be sure to visit the Nashville Public Library when in town. At a minimum, take the self-guided tour. Ask for the brochure. It is well worth the time. The library is only ten years old. It looks like it only opened yesterday. It is immaculately kept. Its architecture makes it seem as if it’s been there for a hundred years. The building is magnificent.

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From: Gregg Grisa,Adult Services Librarian, District of Columbia Public Library,
Trying to summarize my Boot Camp experience in 300 words is a bit like trying to cross the Pacific in a canoe. I suppose it could be done, but I don’t want to attempt it! Boot Camp was one of the most intense learning environments I’ve ever encountered. Both leaders Sandra Nelson and June Garcia were knowledgeable and approachable. Possibly the most memorable exercise of the week occurred when the Camp was split into two factions to discuss the issue of public library budgets, one side arguing that public libraries are a great value to taxpayers, the other that public libraries are a terrible waste of scarce tax dollars. Then three members of each side were selected to participate in a “debate” about this issue. I couldn’t believe that I was standing in front of a room full of public librarians arguing that public libraries are a tremendous waste of tax revenues! Having worked as a public librarian for over 25 years, I felt terrible about my “performance” (but I guess my bachelor’s degree in theater wasn’t as useless as I thought). Another especially challenging module involved trying to decide how to allocate the budget of the mythical Anytown Public Library. In the scenario, money was tight and the budget could only stretch so far. Programs and services would have to be either reduced or (gulp!) eliminated entirely. The previous day, this process of prioritization to meet goals had been discussed on a more theoretical level, and the general level of anxiety in the room was low. Trying to put it into practice turned out to be an entirely different matter. I think many of us enrolled in Boot Camp really enjoyed the “Sacred Cows” exercise–identifying outdated practices that libraries keep in place despite their obviously dated nature. [One of my favorites--does your library still affix Cutter numbers to each nonfiction item?] Other interesting questions raised–can you think of any titles that should be in the collection of every public library? Although I would have argued for a Random House, Webster’s, or American Heritage English Dictionary before the discussion, I’m not so sure now. However, I left thinking that perhaps the titles in the Results series (Managing for Results, Strategic Planning for Results, etc.), many authored by Sandra and June, might indeed be a valid answer.

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From: Brenda Branson, Director, Chesterfield County Library, SC,
Over the past few days, a group of over 50 library professionals deliberated over the logistics and means necessary to extend the life of public libraries by aligning services and resources to specific needs in our communities. Knowing that a “strategic plan” was the most efficient and effective means of aligning these components, I delved into the process eagerly. Under the influence of the “June and Sandra Show,” I quickly discovered my weaknesses, discovered strategies to break though situational roadblocks, accepted my stubborn reluctance to change – I am a life-long professional, and finally began to embrace the urgency of serving as the token pioneer in the necessary move towards a 21st Century public library that has value in today’s society. Being pretty confident under June and Sandra’s guidance, I took a deep breath while leaving Nashville, yet more determined to tell my story, influence my staff and colleagues, and discover exactly where the CC libraries need to go. For some us, the first step will be to discover and accept where we currently are, so that when we take the significant step into the future, we can plant both feet firmly on the road to success. Many thanks to Sandra and June, for your patience, wisdom and a wonderful week in Nashville. Country music never sounded so good!

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