Scheduling Using a Web-Based Calendar: How Teamup Enhances Communication

Abstract

Proper leadership in a public service department begins with effective and meaningful communication. Oftentimes the most important piece of information communicated in a library stems from the daily scheduling of events within a department. The Lending Services department at William Paterson University’s David and Lorraine Cheng Library piloted a new method of tracking staff scheduling and daily events at a service point location to enhance internal staff communication. The department shifted away from a paper-based monthly calendar and weekly email, and moved towards using a free cloud-based online platform called Teamup. The new calendar compiles daily staff shifts, changes, such as modified library hours, staff vacation and sick days. This facilitates service desk coverage, meetings, and more. The user-friendly calendar offers searchable and color-coded calendars, provides multiple views by day, week, and month, and is embeddable as a stable URL. Other advantages include having an historical record, being able to visually identify gaps in coverage, and above all, enabling communication or events within the department and library in one simple calendar.