Case Studies
Mid-Columbia Libraries:
How a regional library system created a long-term
strategy addressing changing community needs
Solution
Community needs assessment
Vertical
Nonprofit
Research Tools
Focus groups
Surveys
Town halls
Secondary research
“We wanted our strategic planning to be grounded in community needs, but we also wanted to address the needs of groups we felt were previously underserved. Sonar Insights gave us in-depth feedback from customers across our library system to make strategic decisions with confidence.”
Kyle Cox
Executive Director,
Mid-Columbia Libraries
Client Story
Mid-Columbia Libraries operates 12 branches across Benton & Franklin counties in Washington. They have served these communities for the past 75 years.
Goals
Target traditionally marginalized groups, 2,500 surveys, and community engagement.
Methodology
- Internal workshops and interviews with leadership, board, and staff.
- Focus groups for qualitative insight into community needs to create the survey.
- Town halls for insight from other organizations and to gain traction with others for future partnerships.
- Surveys for quantitative data to identify the impact of needs across the community.
Overview
In 2022, Mid-Columbia Libraries wanted to conduct a Community Needs Assessment to understand the changing needs of the communities they serve, especially historically marginalized groups, to ensure that their services addressed their unique needs. Sonar Insights was hired to conduct the research and facilitate a strategic planning session based on the study’s results. The strategic plan was to be grounded in relevant needs and help identify the right programs and services to provide across the urban and rural communities that Mid-Columbia Libraries serves.
Research
Research by Sonar Insights includes:
6
On-site focus groups English & Spanish
3
Town halls – People serving marginalized groups
2.5K
Completed surveys – 2 counties, 10 cities
Outcomes
Surveys were translated into English, Spanish, Arabic, and Russian. The community submitted surveys digitally, physically, and orally. Special attention was given to elicit responses from marginalized groups to ensure the library continued to serve the needs of the entire community. After the survey, Sonar Insights led a planning session with Mid-Columbia Libraries to share the study results. The result is a 3 to 5-year strategic plan focused on serving the community with a better understanding of marginalized groups and data to serve others according to income, age, ethnicity, gender, language, family status, and location.
42
Needs tested with the community
4
Languages survey was available in
5
Focus areas prioritized for 3 3 to 5-year plan