Simplicity, the art of maximizing the amount of work not done

Of the 12 Agile principles, one of my favorite is: “Simplicity, the art of maximizing the amount of work not done.” Another way this is sometimes states is, “Just enough, just in time.” How does this principle apply in libraries? At the Whistler Public Library, I can think of three ways we apply this idea.

1. Just in time learning
   Have you ever been to a training, and not been able to apply the skills you learned before you forgot them? One of our coaches from Agile42 talks about this as “the half-life of knowledge.” You can expect to forget half of what you learn about something within two weeks of having learned it. I know this is true for me; for example, I recently researched and compared different scheduling platforms for our teams. I put all of my thoughts and recommendations as to which product would be best for our team in an email and hit send. By the time we got around to discussing this as a team, I couldn’t recall any of my takeaways! I’d have saved myself time if I’d waited until the day of our meeting, or just a few days prior, to do my research.
   
   Another way that just in time learning applies in library settings is to staff training. The traditional way to approach staff training could be described more as “just in case.” This could be something like attending a class to learn all the ins and outs of Excel. If you are not going to immediately be putting these lessons into action, they will not stick with you by the time you need them, unless of course you are investing in time to practice. But that is not realistic in our bustling environments! Rather than providing tech training all up front and hoping we can recall this information at the point of need, a “just in time” approach looks like doing the best you can in Excel, and then when you bump up against something you don’t know, taking in a short online course specific to the skill set you’re in need of, or just Googling your query at the time of need. Because it is immediately applicable and solves a problem, it’s more likely to stick with you!
   

2. Just in time inventory
   I was recently involved in a discussion about doing away with classic, hulking circulation desks. We could never do that, someone suggested, it’s full of stuff! Just in time inventory challenges you to keep only what you need at hand. If it doesn’t come into play on a regular basis, it’s not exactly necessary. Take for example some of the handouts you likely have at your desk, describing how to load electronic materials onto eReaders and tablets. Is that information available through your website? Why not access it just when it’s needed? You can print a copy for your customers on demand if they would like a paper copy, and they’ll feel like you did something special just for them! I like this approach because beyond reducing clutter, it also saves paper.
   
   Just in time inventory can also apply to collections. Especially if your library is short on space for human bodies to sit and read, study, or relax, it can be good to reduce your collection size. Just in time thinking leverages inter-library loans and inter-library connect to encourage patrons to request items from other libraries. A trimmer collection can improve the patron experience since there is less cognitive overload, and you’ll likely get rid of old, tired, and obscure materials, thus making new and popular items more attractive.
   

3. Keep it simple!
   Keep it simple is one of our team agreements, and a guideline for any project or process. Here we can think of the Agile phrase, “minimum viable product,” aka MVP. What are the bare minimum requirements for your project or process? Get those into place before giving time and attention to all the bells and whistles. This relates also to the idea of “delivering value early and often,” another favorite tagline of mine I will surely share more about, soon!