May 2016 Staff Meeting Notes

Meeting Notes

Kashmere/Lakewood Grouping

May 06, 2016

In attendance:
Melissa Ryans (Manager)
Jose Santoyo (Assistant Manager)
Dionne McLaughlin (Senior Library Service Specialist)
Juan Lopez (Senior Customer Service Clerk)
Twanna Wade (Senior Customer Service Clerk)
Linda Adams (Customer Service Clerk)
Ann Perry (Customer Service Clerk)
Karl Beck (Library Assistant)
Dee Hunter (Library Assistant)
Joseph Asberry (Customer Service Clerk, Part-time)
Alena Lee (Customer Service Clerk, Part-time)
Ana Santana (Customer Service Clerk, Part-time)
Pedro Fonseca (Senior Manager)

Topics of Interest:
Icebreaker
Managers Meeting
Staff Discussion
Training

First Topic: Icebreaker
J. Santoyo and L. Adams created a list of common scenarios and distributed one scenario to each staff person. Staff was encouraged to explain what they would do and provide feedback to each other's answers.

Second Topic: Managers Meeting
Link to April 2016 Managers Meeting Notes
Handouts: iSpeak Language & Phone at Work Policy

• There is a new senior manager of International Services, Helen Chou. She has taken over Shammi's old position.
• iSpeak: As part of the iSpeak Houston initiative, there is a new language line that staff can call that would assist them in assisting someone that speaks a language. 
• Prior to calling the line, staff should seek in-house assistance first, especially for Spanish assistance. If you know someone in the system that speaks a different language, reach out to them if you can.
• This line is not free and HPL is charged per minute, with rates varying depending on the language.
• This line should NOT be given out to the public. Citizens can still call 3-1-1 for public interpretation services.
• A handy flowchart with pertinent information can be found here.
• A copy of the Language Identification poster can be found here. Both locations have this poster displayed in-house in a flyer holder at the CSD.
• New Reservation System: Robert Bliss sent out an email regarding the new ITeam Reservation system. Right now, they are test-piloting it at Central. In the interim, please watch the video during your off-desk time as instructed. The blog post with relevant links can be found here.
• Employment Application Issues: Administration wants staff to be aware of the following issues in regards to applying for HPL positions;
• Applications need to be filled out completely.
• Supplemental questions need to be answered, and they need to be answered correctly:
• Education Question: If you don't see your degree on there, you should select the highest degree you have attained (e.g., you have an Associate's but don't see it listed; select High School Diploma). DO NOT select "None of the above."
• Experience Question: You should count all the years of customer service experience - or any experience - when answering this question. This includes part-time, full-time positions; it includes experience whether it was at HPL or anotherjob.
• HR will not send applications through if the application does not meet minimum requirements. Supplemental questions are also scored, and applications with low scores will not be sent through.
• Resignations: If you resign, you must do so in writing. The document should be sent to your managers, Sharon Alvarez and Susan Lopez in HR, your senior manager and Liz Sargent in CE Administration.
• If you need assistance writing a resignation letter, you can use the Letter of Resignation template that HPL has provided on the Intranet. Look under Forms, then the H.R. tab. (Submitting this form is preferred.)

Third Topic: Staff Discussion

• Discards: We are implementing a new discard procedure. Starting today, there will be a discard log next to where the discard boxes are. When you do discards, you need to mark the date, your initials, and record how many Friends boxes you processed and how many Discard boxes you processed.
• Remember that you should be using the Friends stamp for items going to Friends and the Discard stamp for items that are to be discarded.
• This sheet will aid us in keeping a more accurate count of how much we are processing. It has also been added to the Workflow Procedures section of the blog under "Discards and Damaged Items."
• The form can also be found here.
• Meeting Room Reservations: Remember that when inputting any meetings into the calendar that you need to record your initials and the date of entry. You also need to add whether or not an application has been turned in for the meeting. 
• When receiving applications, you need to update the entry to reflect that an application is on file. The application itself needs to be signed and dated (the date the application was received) by the person receiving the application. This is necessary so that we can follow up with staff regarding any issues with bookings.
• Desk Behavior: Remember that you should be monitoring not only the volume of your voice at the desk but also the conversational topics. If you need to discuss customer issues (e.g., giving another employee a head's up about a customer issue), please stick to the issue and not any personal comments about the customer.
• Cell Phones: There is a debate regarding whether to ban them completely from the floor allow staff to carry them on their person but require that they not pull them out while on the floor. We'll do the latter. Be mindful, though, that not every call or text requires your immediate attention. If it does, you probably should take some time off to deal with the situation. Administration nor your supervisors want to receive any complaints about staff being on their cell phones while at the desk or on the public floor.
• Remember that once information is conveyed to you that you are accountable for following through with it. Failure to do so leaves you open to reprimands, including formal disciplinary action.
• If you need to call or text due to an emergency, please let a supervisor know so that they can assist.
• If a supervisor is not present, the expectation is that all staff will help each other out. So please be kind if a staff person asks you to cover for them while they handle a personal matter. 
• If you are requesting assistance, you should be considerate and wrap things up as quickly as possible and return to the floor.
• WPRs/HEAR: All WPRs have been completed. HEAR reports are due in June. Training numbers for the last WPRs were not updated, but as soon as Leilany returns, we will update the training hours for staff.
• IT Issues: There are still issues with YouTube not loading on the public computers, and the airport website - the one used for employment testing and registration - is not loading either. Please be sure to communicate these issues to customers needing assistance.
• YouTube seems to work on Chrome, but there is a one to two minute loading delay> IT does not work in Internet Explorer or Firefox.
• Summer Food Program (hosted by J. Santoyo): This program will run from June 1st until August 11th. All full-timers were scheduled to attend training so that we are adequately covered for receiving lunches.
• When signing for food, staff must make sure the date, time, and number of items received are correct.
• Our number per meal and snack is 25.
• Summer Intern: The branch will be hosting a summer intern, Saliamah Johnson. She will work from June 13th to August 5th.

Fourth Topic: Summer Reading Training (hosted by T. Wade)