When my secondment started in March 2025, I thought I was stepping away from Brackenfell Library for three months. Instead, I stepped into an entirely new way of seeing Library and Information Services and that three-month window soon stretched all the way to December.
From what I know of our department, I am the first librarian to be seconded to the Marketing and Communications unit within Specialised Operations. That knowledge sat heavily on my shoulders in the first week. I was not only representing myself and my home branch but carrying the experiences of front-line library staff into a space that shapes how the world sees us.
This article is my attempt to capture that journey.
Crossing the floor from branch to Marketing and Communications
When I walked into the Marketing and Communications office on my first day, I felt both excitement and quiet fear. At Brackenfell I knew my patrons, my shelves and my statistics. In Specialised Operations, the work is about whole systems. It is about the stories we tell, the partnerships we build and the evidence we use to show that libraries matter.
What helped most in those early days was the spirit of openness in the team. Nothing was hidden behind closed doors. I was invited into planning sessions, strategy conversations and campaign debriefs. Information was shared freely. People took the time to explain why certain choices were made, how media timelines work and what our colleagues in other City departments needed from LIS.
That is what Openness and Transparency looks like in daily practice. Not a slogan on a wall, but colleagues who let you sit at the table, ask questions and learn.
Work that stretched my skills and my imagination
My calendar from March onward read like a tour through the beating heart of LIS.
There were South African Library Week activations at Muizenberg Beachfront and Tygervalley Mall organised by COMMA Member then Librarian, Chantelle Conradie now Senior Librarian at the same library, coordinating with branches and partners to take the library out of the building and into public spaces.
There were community reading competitions, digital literacy working group meetings, LIStener planning sessions, TikTok working group workshops, Science Week planning as an area coordinator, Public Library Seminar working group meetings, Career Expos, display competition judging, library birthday celebrations, the Service Recognition Awards craft days and set up, and later the Cool Spaces and City Heat Energy initiative work with other City directorates.
Alongside that calendar, Specialised Operations trusted me with real responsibility.I helped to manage The LIStener and supported its move from a static pdf into a living WordPress space. I coordinated South African Library Week activations, tracked numbers and feedback and learned how much work sits behind a single campaign tile.
I worked on Comms toolkits and assets for campaigns like Fine Free Week, Science Week and Career Expos and saw how a single clear mailer or poster can make the difference between a flat programme and a full hall. I learned to think about brand alignment, image rights, word counts and how to balance creativity with City standards.
I helped plan and script video productions, coordinated shoots at Central Library and branches and even sat in on sessions where the Mayoral Committee Member recorded voice overs. Suddenly, I was looking at libraries through camera angles and storyboards.
I was also part of building and managing the Public Library Seminar WhatsApp Business “Leading Lounge” channel and group journey, using quick replies, catalogues and QR codes with Ashleigh Wessels, Librarian, Fish Hoek Library at my side to guide staff through the programme. That work brought together my love for digital tools and my belief that librarians can learn to use these platforms confidently.
I worked closely with Fabio Yslie, Administrative Officer 2 at Registry and Support Services to profile their work in The LIStener, helped promote the new Registry submission process and saw for myself how vital these behind-the-scenes functions are for keeping our service honest and accountable.
Later in the year, I joined conversations on LIS identity on the CityHub, the Cool Spaces pilot and the City Heat and Energy programme. Those meetings showed me how LIS is increasingly seen as a key partner in resilience work, not only as a place for books.
The TikTok day that changed how I see libraries
One day stands out very clearly in my memory. Our TikTok working group had planned a filming day that would take us to four libraries in a single day. We filmed at Kuyasa, Athlone, Bridgetown and Kensington, moving from one community to the next with cameras, ideas and an evolving shot list.
At each stop, I was reminded that although our branches share the same policy framework, they each have their own heartbeat. Kuyasa had a particular energy and sense of youth presence. Athlone carried layers of history. Bridgetown had a welcoming intimacy. Kensington offered scenes that felt cinematic without us even trying.
Filming across four branches in one day showed me the power of short form video as a tool for telling library stories. It also showed me how important it is that people who understand library work are part of the creative process. We are not only content subjects. We can be content creators.
Lessons I am taking back to the branch
This secondment has changed me as a librarian.
I have learned that data is not just a report at the end of the month. It is a story builder. Member signups, Fine Free Week, views on videos, responses to WhatsApp polls are all pieces of evidence that help us argue for resources and shape better programmes.
I have seen how a clear message, a strong visual and the right channel can multiply the impact of the work that staff are already doing on the ground.
I have gained a new appreciation for timelines and lead times. At branch level we sometimes feel that things arrive too quickly from “Head Office”. After sitting inside the process, I understand how much must happen before a tile lands in your inbox. There are partners to coordinate with, legal checks, brand sign offs and City-wide calendars to consider.
Most importantly, I have learned that communication is a form of care. When we communicate well with staff, we honour their time and effort. When we communicate well with communities, we make it easier for them to find the services that can change their lives.
What this opportunity means for LIS
Being seconded from a library into Marketing and Communications has not only been personal growth. It has also sent a message about what can be and signals our LIS values encompass the City.
Firstly, it signals that our department is serious about Openness and Transparency. Allowing a branch-based librarian into spaces where strategies, campaigns and risks are discussed requires trust. It says that we have nothing to hide from ourselves. It also shows that leadership is willing to let skill flow in all directions, not only downward.
Secondly, it shows that there is room for movement and experimentation in our career paths. My journey has been a reminder that a librarian can contribute in many spaces, including communications, digital projects, research and programme design. That kind of mobility is healthy for an organisation. It breaks silo thinking and creates staff who understand more than one part of the system.
Thirdly, this kind of secondment builds bridges. I have been able to carry branch realities into Marketing and Communications conversations and take a better understanding of M&C back to colleagues in libraries.
The power of support and permission
None of this would have been possible without people who said a very important word. The word “go”. My LIC, Sunell Lotter, did not hold me back in fear of losing an extra pair of hands at the branch. She released me so that I could grow, trusting that the branch would cope and that I would bring something valuable back.
That is leadership in action. Sub Area Head 5 Linda Ntaka and Area East Manager Dr. Flippie van der Walt for opening the door for me to go. And for Support Services Manager, Rudlyn Barnes-Rossouw for helping me understand the process of secondment as a learning development opportunity as a staff member.
For, The Marketing and Communications team welcomed me fully. They did not treat me as a visitor who must sit quietly in the corner. They gave me projects, listened to my ideas, allowed me to make mistakes and guided me firmly but kindly.
Our Head of Marketing and Communications, Merle Collins, modelled what it looks like to lead a specialised team with clarity and care. She balanced strategic direction with space for creativity and allowed this secondment to be more than a nice idea on paper.
Specialised Operations led by Manager: Akeela Gaibie as a whole showed me the depth of skill that exists in LIS beyond the branch network. From Registry and Couriers to Professional Services and Programmes, from Collection Development to ICT, I saw a chain of work that makes it possible for a child to walk into a library and find a programme that ignites their imagination.
Looking ahead
As my secondment draws to a close in December, I find myself holding two strong feelings at the same time.
The first is gratitude. I am grateful for the chance to learn a new language, the language of campaigns, metrics, design briefs and city-wide partnerships. I am grateful for every colleague who took time to explain, to brainstorm and to laugh in corridors after long events.
The second is responsibility. I now carry stories, skills and insights that I must share. Whether I am back at a branch desk, presenting at a seminar or writing internal articles, I want to keep opening windows between M&C and the rest of LIS. And grateful for colleagues within LIS for their continued support from Sub Area heads to LICs, to library staff at levels.
If there is one message I would leave with colleagues, it is this. Your work at the circulation desk, at the programme table, behind the registry counter or in a tiny office with a flickering light matters more than you know. When those everyday actions are lifted into the light through good communication, they become part of a much bigger story about what public libraries can do for a city.
My secondment has shown me that stories do not only live in books, they live in campaigns, tiles, videos, media releases, WhatsApp messages and newsletters. They live in the way we speak about one another.
I am proud to have spent this year helping to tell our story.
Lonwabo Joseph Mabele
Reference Librarian
Brackenfell Library
Currently seconded to Marketing & Communications