If you wish to be commended for your achievements like Sarah, look out for our call later in 2021!
Sarah has been with Yale-NUS Libraries since 2015 and has demonstrated work abilities above her previous job scope and responsibilities. She was conferred her Master’s degree from NTU in 2021 and has been subsequently re-designated as Librarian.
In her previous designation of Assistant Manager, she took on an extra role in Business Continuity Planning. Sarah collaborated closely with the Safe Management Officer as the Library’s representative and ensured social distancing measures and other procedures were adhered to during the COVID-19 pandemic. She took the initiative to ensure that personal protective equipment was provided for both library staff and Student Associates. Sarah also led the Social Media team to release several useful and informative clips on Safety Measures in the Library via Instagram. She worked towards ensuring that the Library’s operations were not affected by the COVID-19 lockdown by formulating and establishing proper guidelines for Circulation and Desk duties. Sarah also redesigned the current operational and circulation structures and processes to align with the College’s initiatives. She communicated this information via various mediums to ensure that the information was disseminated in a timely and efficient manner. She set clear deliverables and expectations for the library staff and student associates.
Sarah is dependable and delivers her work punctually. She advocated for close collaboration between the library staff and student associates whom she mentored. An example of Sarah’s agility and nimbleness was to craft solutions related to the Library’s Circulation matters. The issue of borrowing, returning, and payment of fines during and after the COVID-19 lockdown was handled seamlessly based on her idea of deploying temporary book drops at the Residential College areas. This reduced the potential loss of library assets. As a result of her initiative, the IT department also replicated the same process and procedures for the safe return of IT support equipment.
Sarah also mentored a Senior Executive in covering the library’s circulation work when one of the library staff resigned. Due to her guidance and close supervision, the Senior Executive was able to take on new responsibilities within a short period.
Sarah was also involved in the Library’s Stack Expansion and the Service Desk Redesign projects. She provided valuable inputs during the initial phases of both projects which enabled the Dean and College Librarian to make informed and timely decisions. Sarah’s ability to come up with alternative operational arrangements such as coordinating intra-library work with NUS Central Library due to the University’s zonal movement restrictions was also noteworthy as this allowed the academic community to borrow books from other NUS libraries from the YNC Library without visiting the NUS libraries.
Sarah is a valuable and essential part of the Library team. Her professionalism, agility, and nimbleness have ensured that the Library operations and safety management measures are done efficiently and productively, especially during these challenging times.
Sarah is also involved in the LAS Training and Development Committee. She took part in various programmes such as the LAS-NLB Professional Sharing session and contributed her ideas well and thoughtfully. She is a natural team-player; always dependable and reliable.
In recognition of these achievements, LAS is pleased to honour Sarah Ruslan with the 2020 Library Association of Singapore Outstanding Newcomer Award.