I just returned from a vacation at the ocean. It was relaxing, calm, and rejuvenating. I always enjoy the renewed perspective that the vastness of the ocean horizon brings me. 

Ironically, when I returned to PPLD, I was still immersed in the blue ocean. That’s because PPLD has embarked on an effort to do some planning based on Blue Ocean Strategy. This strategy is a perfect topic for our July newsletter, actually, as independence is its big theme. Blue Ocean Strategy encourages an organization to seek independence from its competitors, to break away from its traditional mindset, and to let loose its best innovative ideas. 

Our staff has been immersed in Blue Ocean Strategy since February, and perhaps we ‘reeled’ some of you into this effort as well. Many of our staff interviewed residents in our libraries as well as in other public places in El Paso County, in order to get a sense of if, how, and how best we meet (or do not meet) our residents’ library needs. These interviews, as well as a public survey we conducted during National Library Week in April, gave us valuable insights to needs and trends that we might better respond to in the future.

Through your input, our observations, and usage and demographic data, PPLD staff is developing great suggestions for improvements to make our materials, services, processes, facilities, and technological innovations more responsive. In the meantime, if you have a concern, a compliment, or a suggestion you would like to share, I encourage you to e-mail it to us, fill out a comment card that is available in all our facilities, or phone us at 531-6333. 

Our library system is here for you and your family, and we value your input. We look forward to sharing the results of our planning with you, once the process is complete and we have better defined what our blue ocean future, right here in the Pikes Peak region, will look like.