Frequently individuals or groups in the Libraries request or are requested to meet with the Library Executive Council (LEC) to review an activity, program, policy or process – actual or proposed. As a rule, LEC schedules two to four major topics for its two-hour meetings. Thus, time is limited to discuss particular topics in detail. Further, any item under discussion can be complex and/or controversial. To make discussions as effective as possible LEC encourages you to be conscientious in preparing for meetings and for managing the time allocated to your issue during the meeting. LEC recommends the following practices:

• Each LEC topic is assigned a leader from among LEC members. Review in advance with the topic leader the amount of time needed, the desired outcome, who needs to be present, what advance documentation needs to be provided, etc. If the topic leader is unavailable, the guest/s can consult with the director of Planning and Administrative Services.


• Provide prework in electronic format to the topic leader several days in advance of the meeting – preferably no later than the preceding Thursday. The prework can be a report, a proposal, a summary of issues, or other document that will aid discussion of the topic. The topic leader will post the prework on the LEC directory for retrieval by LEC members.


• If prework has been provided in a timely fashion, embark directly on the discussion assuming that LEC members have read the prework. Plan to spend most in-meeting time in questions and answers, discussion of problematic points and identification of and agreement on next steps.


• If there is no prework or if documents are handed out at the meeting, strive to minimize the time spent reviewing the topic to allow as much time as possible for questions and answers and definition of next steps.


• Where an individual or group is initiating the discussion, it important for you to come to the meeting with clear, useful outcomes identified before the LEC discussion commences. In other words, know what you want.


• Expect to work with LEC to identify and seek agreement on specific next steps, which could include assignment of responsibility for communicating the discussion/decision with other groups or individuals (if other than communication via the LEC minutes is desired) or referral to another individual or group for answers, additional work, etc.


• If a topic requires more than one visit with LEC, identify prework and outcomes for the next discussion and be clear about the appropriate timeframe. The Planning and Administrative Services director is responsible for putting the item back on LEC’s list of pending topics.

return to top