One of my buddies has recently begun working as the director of a medium-sized library system. She says that she's begun making a circuit of the libraries she manages, working on the circulation and reference desks.

In most public libraries, the three most heavily-used service points are circulation/library card registration, children's services, and adult reference. (Some libraries have others. In my library, we have service points at audio-visual and serials/documents whose staff face the public each day.) What's particularly helpful about my friend's library circuit-riding is that she learns what kinds of issues front-line staff face every day. Each library - be it a small one with only one outlet or a large one with nearly 100 outlets - serves a unique clientele with varying needs and interests.

Example: I worked at a branch of the Los Angeles Public Library. The majority of our users were children, and adults who used the branch were not readers of genre fiction. The adult services coordinator would announce that every library should order the latest Danielle Steel (or other hot author). At the branch where I worked, those titles circulated once (if ever).

As a substitute in the system, I watched the senior librarian at one branch tear out handfuls of hair because the library's administrators insisted she buy materials in Spanish. That would be fine, except for two problems: The branch was housed in such a small building she almost literally had to withdraw a book to make room for something new, and the majority of foreign language speakers using that branch were Armenian.

Fortunately, the director in the library where I work now has come up through the ranks. He understands our clientele and library culture. He is not averse to working a desk if need be, so he sees the kinds of problems our staff deals with.

I salute my friend for opening lines of communication with her new library staff!