Taipei Public Library

I.Start of Planning
In order to promote lifelong learning, communicate information, preserve culture and advocate proper recreational activities, the library established task forces in 2004 and 2009 to initiate the Taipei Public Library 2005-2010 Strategic Plan and Taipei Public Library 2011-2015 Strategic Plan for future development and management direction. The forces initiated the medium-range development vision and tasks for the future, created future core values, and proposed proper step-by-step action plans to reach the development goals of the organization.
The library is a growing organism which needs to continuously improve and develope according to changes of circumstances, development of information technology, and the diverse needs of the patrons.  Therefore, building upon the previous 2 strategic steps, the library established a task force in April 2015 to evaluate and review the operation strategy actively and systematically, and to grasp the possible external opportunities in the future and overcome current internal weaknesses through a SWOT analysis of the environment. Under this framework, the Taipei Public Library 2016-2020 Strategic Plan was formulated to continuously provide reading resources and improved services.  The hope is that the public library will become an effective support for reading in the community as well as a comfortable and convenient “large study” for Taipei residents.

II. Procedure of Planning
1. Establishing the task force
Since April 2015, the Director has convened 7 force meetings.

2. Analysis on the current status of the library
Analysis of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats through a SWOT analysis to act as a point of reference when making strategic plan.

3. Analysis of the environment of Taipei
Evaluate and analyze the future trends of Taipei’s demographic, transportation construction, urban development, finance, book publishing, educational environment, and information technology that will affect the information needs of the residents.

4. Trend Analysis of the professional librarianship
In the digital age, when society and information technology change rapidly, patrons’ needs and expectations for the library similarly change. For this reason, a library development trends analysis was carried out of the tasks, roles, operation management, technical services, patron services, facilities and environment of the library, as well as the professional competencies of the librarians themselves to plan for the future and provide quality services.

5. Consultation
On May 20th and June 10th, 2015, the library held 2 votes among librarians for the vision of the strategic plan and widely consulted the advice of the staff on the current situation and future development. This is to be an important reference when formulating the strategic plan.

III. Contents of the Plan
1. Vision
Promote universal reading and urban competitiveness.

2. Values
(1) Value knowledge preservation, freedom to read, and equal access to information.
(2) Value patrons’ individual and diverse needs for information.
(3) Value the use of digital technology and provide a convenient information service.
(4) Value research, innovation and continuing professional development.

3. Missons
Provide a diverse collection to enrich learning resources; information technology to promote digital reading; quality staff to develop value-added services; creative marketing to establish the brand image; and solid bases to build a literary city.

4. Objectives, Strategies and Action Plans
Objective 1: Provide a diverse, high-quality and sufficient collection for patrons’ information need.
Strategy 1-1: Balance the development of the collection on items, numbers, languages, types and needs of various patrons.
Action plan 1-1-1: Obtain and appropriately distribute allocate annual book purchasing funds.
Action plan 1-1-2: Actively apply for central government subsidy and collect books from other organizations or civil groups to enrich the collection.
Action plan 1-1-3: Raise purchasing funds for audio-visual and electronic resources, as well as enrich the genres and contents.
Action plan 1-1-4: Collect books of South-East Asian nations for the reading needs of new immigrants.
Action plan 1-1-5: Collect and produce audio, and braille, and print braille books for both visually-impaired people and people without visual impairment to fulfill the needs of the visually impaired or those with a learning disability.
Strategy 1-2: Fulfill and promote the collection highlights of branch libraries.
Action plan 1-2-1: Review collection development policy, and continuously revise the depth and breadth of collection characteristics highlights.
Action plan 1-2-2: According to the theme collection highlight of each branch of the library, plan purchasing or accept book donations to enrich collection characteristic collections.
Action plan 1-2-3: Hold promotions for characteristic reading collections to increase the use of resources.
Strategy 1-3: Establish activation mechanism for the collection.
Action plan 1-3-1: Construct stacks of rarely borrowed books to liberate the open access areas.
Action plan 1-3-2: Review and discard weed collections regularly.
Action plan 1-3-3: Gather statistics of usage on paper books and digital electronic resources to evaluate the efficiency of collections.
Action plan 1-3-4: Exhibit new and themed collections materials to market and activate the collections.

Objective 2: Expand upon domestic and international library exchanges and cooperations, as well as the library’s visibility and influence.
Strategy 2-1: Strengthen exchanges and cooperations with domestic libraries.
Action plan 2-1-1: Hold educational training and promotion with domestic libraries to improve librarians’ professional knowledge and ability competencies, as well as extend its services.
Action plan 2-1-2: Assist patrons in accessing other domestic libraries’ collections through inter-library cooperations.
Action plan 2-1-3: Develop Carry out the function of Public Library Regional Northern Region Resource Center to promote the resources sharing of book resources.
Strategy 2-2: Strengthen exchanges and cooperations with international libraries.
Action plan 2-2-1: Actively hold exchanges of books and staff with international libraries to enrich the collection, and promote cultural and experience exchanges.
Action plan 2-2-2: Assist patrons in accessing collections of the Shanghai Library and other international libraries through inter-library cooperations.
Action plan 2-2-3: Join international organizations and internationalize the catalog.

Objective 3: Provide different patron communities with resources to raise lifelong learning abilities.
Strategy 3-1: Hold lifelong learning activities as a lifelong learning center for communities.
Action plan 3-1-1: Hold lifelong learning activities such as city life lectures.
Action plan 3-1-2: Collect and arrange lifelong learning resources and provide relevant information for residents.
Strategy 3-2: Increase services for elderly patrons.
Action plan 3-2-1: Continuously hold learning activities such as lectures and seminars in Senior Active Learning Centers.
Action plan 3-2-2: Plan proper learning activities and provide special service facilities according to the interests and needs of the elderly.
Action plan 3-2-3: Recruit elderly volunteers to serve elderly patrons.
Strategy 3-3: Promote reading for multi-cultural patrons to assist new immigrants with integration into the local environment.
Action plan 3-3-1: Hold reading activities programs and institutes for multi-cultural patrons to assist new immigrants with easier integration into the local environment.
Action plan 3-3-2: Introduce different cultural connotations to local people through multi-cultural activities such as cultural lectures.
Action plan 3-3-3: Hold storytelling activities in foreign languages.
Strategy 3-4: Provide educational resources of information literacy to the residents.
Action plan 3-4-1: Promote library-user education instruction and provide customized programs on information on literacy institutes.
Action plan 3-4-2: Hold computer and internet training lessons to reduce the digital divide.

Objective 4: Promote patron services and universal reading.
Strategy 4-1: Revise and optimize the patron service policies to establish flexible service models.
Action plan 4-1-1: Convene the patron service committee regularly to review and revise the library policies.
Action plan 4-1-2: Deliberate over the quality service, librarian opinions and patron feedback of domestic and international libraries to establish a proper service models.
Strategy 4-2: Improve the reading ability and information literacy of infants, children, youth and adults to develop good reading habits.
Action plan 4-2-1: Expand the efficiency of Bookstart programs for the infants and pre-school kids.
Action plan 4-2-2: Continue and expand reading festivals in summer and winter vacations, and reading activities on different themes and for children in winter and summer vacations.
Action plan 4-2-3: Promote Hold reading programs for youngsters and increase their motivation to go to libraries.
Action plan 4-2-4: Hold various reading events and provide reading resources for the needs of adults.
Strategy 4-3: Provide the required patron services to vulnerable social groups.
Action plan 4-3-1: Provide patron services to the visually impaired and those with learning disabilities, and actively offer information on services.
Action plan 4-3-2: Cooperate with organizations representing the visually impaired, social enterprises and art groups to hold reading and promotional activities for the visually impaired.
Action plan 4-3-3: Provide a proper reading guidance service to students without resources in vulnerable families of mid or low income, those who are raised by their grandparents, indigenous ethnic groups and new immigrants, etc.

Objective 5: Strengthen the connection between library services and people’s lives; establish the brand image through marketing.
Strategy 5-1: Innovate or provide services for patrons’ needs through civic or patron participation.
Action plan 5-1-1: Connect with the concept of patron participation to hold various reading promotions and provide participant feedback mechanism.
Action plan 5-1-2: Hold regular satisfaction surveys for patron and petition cases.
Action plan 5-1-3: Provide paper or introduce and online book recommendation systems to enrich the collection.
Strategy 5-2: Promote reading programs to the whole city to improve the impact of library services and build brand image.
Action plan 5-2-1: Hold relevant film exhibitions, lectures, institutes and themed reading activities programs that correspond to festivals or themes like World Book and Copyright Day.
Action plan 5-2-2: Hold reading activities for the whole programs across the city to increase the diversity of activity.
Strategy 5-3: Improve the marketing of the library through effective advertising.
Action plan 5-3-1: Communicate services information and market the library actively through internet social media and video platforms.
Action plan 5-3-2: Issue news releases, interviews and press conferences effectively to increase media exposure.

Objective 6: Extend IT application level and develop a friendly environment for mobile reading and multimedia e-learning.
Strategy 6-1: Provide a quality and comfortable multimedia service.
Action plan 6-1-1: Provide convenient cloud multimedia circulation service.
Action plan 6-1-2: Provide high-quality audio and visual facilities.
Strategy 6-2: Provide fast and convenient online services.
Action plan 6-2-1: Establish an online application service system to shorten procedures.
Action plan 6-2-2: Establish a convenient online loan service in response to the circulation policy.
Action plan 6-2-3: Provide online services like extending waiting periods for borrowing reserved books, extending library card validity periods, etc.
Action plan 6-2-4: Provide an online reference service.
Strategy 6-3: Develop a friendly environment for mobile devices and digital learning.
Action plan 6-3-1: Provide a timely mobile notice service.
Action plan 6-3-2: Improve the iRead App.
Action plan 6-3-3: Promote a mobile loaning system for electronic collection.
Action plan 6-3-4: Provide intimate and interactive digital reading facilities.
Strategy 6-4: Improve self-service loaning and returning system through development of technology.
Action plan 6-4-1: Initiate RFID technology to provide a more popular self-service loaning and returning system.
Action plan 6-4-2: Plan and initiate self-service area for reserved books.

Objective 7: Expand the library network and benefit community resources to improve service effectiveness.
Strategy 7-1: Build a new capital main library.
Action plan 7-1-1: Collect widespread public opinion on the new main library through World Café, municipal forum or other means.
Action plan 7-1-2: Establish a new main library building advisory committee.
Action plan 7-1-3: Promote and prepare to build a new diamond class main library.
Strategy 7-2: Combine social resources with library management to strengthen the connection of community service with the neighborhood.
Action plan 7-2-1: Combine resources of schools and libraries to hold library-user instruction or reading promotions.
Action plan 7-2-2: Combine resources of civil organizations to hold various lectures or reading promotions.
Action plan 7-2-3: Actively recruit community volunteers to assist library services in their specialties.
Action plan 7-2-4: Actively connect the village offices to understand residents’ needs and promote relevant services.
Strategy 7-3: Increase service bases and facilities to fulfill residents’ reading needs.
Action plan 7-3-1: Revise the principles for a new branch library construction and staff allocation.
Action plan 7-3-2: Increase intelligent library and FastBook service base.
Action plan 7-3-3: Actively apply for building service bases in unqualified administrative districts.

Objective 8: Provide quality software and hardware for a barrier-free reading environment.
Strategy 8-1: Provide a safe and friendly accessible environment and facilities.
Action plan 8-1-1: Continuously improve the accessible environment and facilities of each department in the library.
Action plan 8-1-2: Improve the safety and security of the library environment.
Action plan 8-1-3: Maintain a multiple language environment and web accessibility.
Action plan 8-1-4: Update bilingual signs over time depending on users’ needs.
Strategy 8-2: Improve the convenience and accessibility of service resources.
Action plan 8-2-1: Improve software, hardware and bandwidth to ease access information.
Action plan 8-2-2: Provide smooth user traffic flow; establish a clear sign system; and increase reading seats and seats for notebook users.
Action plan 8-2-3: Maintain the website of the digital library for the visually impaired.
Action plan 8-2-4: Plan and develop the mobile application to provide a good mobile service and resource for the visually impaired.
Action plan 8-2-5: Provide a diverse borrowing and returning system, as well as information access means such as a book returning system in convenience stores, home delivery, interlibrary loan, etc.
Strategy 8-3: Establish a warm and comfortable reading environment.
Action plan 8-3-1: Improve old library facilities and buildings with aesthetically-pleasing modern interiors.
Action plan 8-3-2: Improve illumination, energy consumption and air conditioning to provide a more comfortable and energy-efficient environment.
Action plan 8-3-3: Revise regulations on metal and wooden facilities to design modern library furniture.

Objective 9: Build a professional, helpful and efficient service image of librarians.
Strategy 9-1: Establish internal knowledge management and sharing mechanisms to deliver experience and good organizational culture.
Action plan 9-1-1: Establish and update quality documents in due time.
Action plan 9-1-2: Share knowledge, experience and organizational culture among departments through discussions and workshops.
Action plan 9-1-3: Improve the staff’s website.
Strategy 9-2: Improve librarians’ ability to communicate and establish a high-quality service image.
Action plan 9-2-1: Hold lessons on service etiquette and communication skills.
Action plan 9-2-2: Hold user vote on courteous staff.
Action plan 9-2-3: Test staff’s telephone etiquette.
Strategy 9-3: Hold relevant educational training to improve professional competencies and service quality.
Action plan 9-3-1: Plan annual educational training and hold professional lessons on library and information science.
Action plan 9-3-2: Increase the content of the digital learning system.