Bringing in a Speaker at Your Library

Bringing in a Speaker at Your Library: Planning for Safety, Security, and Success
A Library 2.0 Service, Safety, and Security Webinar with Dr. Steve Albrecht

OVERVIEW:

A 60-minute training webinar presented by Library 2.0 and hosted by ALA author and library service, safety, and security expert, Dr. Steve Albrecht.

Library programs with presentations and speakers can excite audiences and help grow the public’s perception of the value and worth of their connected communities. They can range from seemingly drama-free topics to speakers, people, and political issues that bring angry crowds, the media, and safety and security concerns to your event.

Bringing in the president of the local gardening club (extremely low risk/not much pre-planning required) is certainly not the same as bringing in a controversial author (Salman Rushdie’s horrible attack at an event in 2022). When stakes are low, we can follow a standard, informal plan to create a safe event for visitors, the presenters, and the library staff. When stakes are high (which may not always be fully known when you book the program), we need a formal, structured, discussed, and practiced event plan.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

This session covers the do’s and don’ts of bringing in speakers relating to:

Controversial books or topics.
Debates that may turn hostile.
Religious-themed events.
Elected officials (popular or not) or those campaigning to become one.
Hot-button topics for the local community.
National political issues.

We will discuss:

Parking lot security or traffic direction;
An ingress/egress, entrance/exit plan;
The safety of people with mobility, age, or disability limitations, who may need to be moved to safety, or evacuated quickly and without harm;
Collecting fees at the door; selling books before, during, and after the session; autograph table security;
Allowing food and beverages (including alcohol sales);
AV equipment installation and support;
Speakers who are used to controversy may have their own security details and work with their protection teams;
Getting help from your local police or Sheriff’s Department, who can be a good source of intelligence information, as to potentially problematic people or groups who could cause a significant disruption.

Each participant will receive a PDF copy of library security manager Chet Price’s event action plan from Dr. Albrecht’s The Safe Library.

DATE: Thursday, November 12th, 2026, 2:00 - 3:00 pm US Eastern Time

COST:

$99/person - includes live attendance, anytime access to the recording and presentation slides, and a participation certificate.
To arrange group discounts (see below), submit a purchase order, or ask about registration questions or difficulties, email admin@library20.com.

TO REGISTER:

Use the payment box above to register and pay. You can pay by credit card. You will receive an email within a day with information on how to attend the webinar live and how you can access the permanent webinar recording. If you are paying for someone else to attend, you'll be prompted to send an email to admin@library20.com with the name and email address of the actual attendee.

If you need to be invoiced or pay by check, if you have any trouble registering for a webinar, or if you have any questions, please email admin@library20.com.

NOTE: Please check your spam folder if you don't receive your confirmation email within a day.

SPECIAL GROUP RATES (email admin@library20.com to arrange):

Multiple individual log-ins and access from the same organization paid together: $75 each for 3+ registrations, $65 each for 5+ registrations. Unlimited and non-expiring access for those log-ins.
The ability to show the webinar (live or recorded) to a group located in the same physical location or in the same virtual meeting from one log-in: $299.
Large-scale institutional access for viewing with individual login capability: $499 (hosted either at Library 2.0 or in Niche Academy). Unlimited and non-expiring access for those log-ins.

DR. STEVE ALBRECHT

Since 2000, Dr. Steve Albrecht has trained tens of thousands of library employees in 28+ states, live and online, in service, safety, security, and leadership. His programs for both staff and library leaders are fast, entertaining, and provide tools that can be put to use immediately in the library workspace. His books include:

The Library Leader’s Guide to Employee Coaching: Building a Performance Culture One Meeting at a Time (in-press, Bloomsbury, 2026)

The Library Leader’s Guide to Human Resources: Keeping it Real, Legal, and Ethical (Rowman & Littlefield, 2025)

The Safe Library: Keeping Users, Staff, and Collections Secure (Rowman & Littlefield, 2023)

Library Security: Better Communication, Safer Facilities (ALA, 2015)

Steve holds a doctoral degree in Business Administration (D.B.A.), an M.A. in Security Management, a B.S. in Psychology, and a B.A. in English. He is board-certified in HR, security management, employee coaching, and threat assessment. He has written 28 books on business, security, and leadership. He provides a loving home for four rescue dogs.

More on The Safe Library at thesafelibrary.com. Follow on X (Twitter) at @thesafelibrary and on YouTube @thesafelibrary. Dr. Albrecht's professional website is drstevealbrecht.com.