This document discusses seven tools for highly effective librarians: telephone, discussion lists, smart phones, Doodle polling sites, IM/chat reference, Jing software, and mobile optimized tools. It provides examples for each tool and how librarians can use them, such as using telephone to gather information, discussion lists in specific subject areas, and embedding quick videos in chat reference using Jing. The document also includes bonus tools for collaboration, communication, and management.

1. P A R T T W O : S E V E N T O O L S F O R H I G H L Y
E F F E C T I V E L I B R A R I A N S
A N D R E A T W I S S - B R O O K S
C O - D I R E C T O R , S C I E N C E L I B R A R I E S
U N I V E R S I T Y O F C H I C A G O
( I N C L U D E S B O N U S M A T E R I A L , I N C L U D I N G T O O L S N O T
P R E V I O U S L Y R E L E A S E D A T T H E C H A R L E S T O N
C O N F E R E N C E L I V E L Y L U N C H ! )
Seven and Seven: Seven Habits of Highly
Effective Publishers and Seven Tools for
Highly Effective Librarians

2. Highly Effective Librarians Learn from One Another
 Pick up the telephone!
Despite all the other
communication tools out
there, this is still one of the
most effective ways to
gather good information in
a profession that shares
information readily.

3. Highly Effective Librarians Learn from One Another
 Discussion lists
 CHMINF-L
 GEONET-L
 AAHSL
 LIBLICENSE-L
 MEDLIB-L
The more focused on your subject or interest area, the better.
The community has a shared sense of trust and there is usually
quid pro quo, making for a great resource

4. Managing Time and More…
 Smart phone
 E-mail, calendar, maps, address book, password keeper*,
etc., etc.
 This is not just a tool, but a toolkit!
 More productive in intervals between
meetings
 Doodle polling site
 Schedule meetings and more…
 http://www.doodle.com/
* Essential when you have a bad memory!

5. Embrace technology and be where your patrons are
 IM/Chat reference
 http://libraryh3lp.com/webchat/
 Jing (make quick demos and
videos and embed into chat)
 http://www.techsmith.com/jing/

6. 2:24 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com Hello
2:24 plb4uc@libraryh3lp.com Hi
2:24 plb4uc@libraryh3lp.com what's up?
2:24 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com I would like to ask your opinion on using EndNote vs. RefWorks
2:24 plb4uc@libraryh3lp.com sure
2:24 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com Especially for keeping the NIH biosketches formatted properly
2:24 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com and updated regularly (i.e. import new references for a given author from PubMed or
similar online databases)
2:24 plb4uc@libraryh3lp.com concerning the NIH biosketches, you might want to talk to a librarian at Crerar
2:24 plb4uc@libraryh3lp.com I can transfer you to one
2:24 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com That would be wonderful! Thank you so much!
[TRANSFER FROM ONE REFERENCE DESK TO ANOTHER]
2:24 me HI, looks like you have a question about RefWorks and NIH biosketches?
2:25 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com Hi!
2:25 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com I just wanted to ask your opinion on what's the best software to use, e.g. EndNote vs.
RefWorks
2:25 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com We are trying to get a designated person to maintain all of our publication lists
2:26 me Each one has its advantages, but it sounds like you have a very specific "project" in mind
2:26 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com You are right
2:26 me Do you expect different people to contribute references and have them coordinated centrally?
2:26 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com So, there are multiple people, each with many publications and still publishing. The NIH
biosketch requires upto 15 publications
2:27 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com so ideally the software that we use would allow us to (1) keep separate libraries per
author; (2) easily import new publications from online sources; and (3) easily select subsets of publications for the biosketch
and allow easy formatting in MS Word
2:29 me I am primarily an Endnote user/instructor, and I can think of a couple of ways of handling this type of activity, but I'm
not sure whether or not refworks will do the same kind of thing.
2:30 me would you consider having one of us from Crerar come to do a one-on-one consultation (or even for a few folks in
your group) to try and figure out your best option or options?
2:30 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com that would be wonderful!
2:30 guest711746@libraryh3lp.com or we could come to you
[PATRON DIRECTED TO LIBRARIAN WHO SET UP A CONSULTATION]
IM chat also allows for real-time referrals
and a better user experience.

7. Embrace technology and be where your patrons are
 Mobile optimized tools
 http://mobile.lib.uchicago.edu
We also need to know what
mobile options are out there
for our patrons in the
resources we license and
purchase!

8. And a few bonus tools for being effective…*
 Tools for collaboration within and across organizations
 Google Calendar, Google Sites, Google Docs
 PB Works -- https://pbworks.com (web-based Wiki tools)
 Communication and presentation options
 http://prezi.com/ -- alternative to PowerPoint
 Google Chat
 Management tools
 Director’s Station -- http://www.sirsidynix.com/products/directors-
station
*Thanks to colleagues Dana Roth, Laura Briggs, Joshua Wilson, Robert McFarland, and Norah Xiao for contributing
their favorite tools!