Background
The task force discussed at great length the existing dynamic and interrelationships among library staff and operations across all divisions of the Libraries. The range of opinions regarding the existing organizational structure and immense. Some staff are satisfied with the current service model and organizational structure. Others expressed varying levels of need to alter a variety of things that range from cross-training of staff to the practical considerations of responding to malfunctioning computer printers. Consistently mentioned was the need to increase staffing at all levels.
As the task force deliberated, it became clear that no single staffing model would present itself as a simple and easy solution to the complex question of how the Libraries should be organized to provide the best possible service to our users. It became clear, however, that barriers -- both real and perceived -- have been created over the years between library divisions and even with units and departments that have impaired the quality of service provided our users. The task force also noted that while some academic units on campus were being well served, others were receiving minimal attention. The separateness of the collection management and reference service functions in particular has resulted in the unnecessary duplication of expertise for some disciplines while providing scant or no coverage for other areas. Some staff have had to shoulder numerous subject assignments, reducing the level of service provided to some academic units on campus. Admittedly, this has been to some degree a function of the loss of staff earlier this decade.
It is not the responsibility or charge of the task force to evaluate the performance of individual units or staff or to assess blame for problems where they exist. Very much the contrary, many staff have been working diligently and with great commitment, particularly in areas where loss of staff has been more substantial. The task force believes, however, that good intentions and hard work notwithstanding, the existing organizational structure, particularly as it relates to the effective development of library collections and services, has frequently worked at cross-purposes. We believe that a different, innovative, and organizationally integrated model is required in order for the Libraries to be more fully responsive to the needs of its campus and other users, in keeping with the letter and the spirit of a service philosophy.
A statement of "Scholarly Information Service Philosophy" was drafted by the task force. The task force strongly believes that the principles articulated in this statement serves as basis for defining services library wide and should be incorporated into the strategic plan of the Libraries. All of the recommendations of the task force are guided and inspired by these principles. This is a dynamic statement of philosophy that should be revisited and revised as needed in order for the Libraries to remain ever responsive to the needs of our users and the changing landscape of information and scholarship. In addition, the task force strongly believes that there is a need to articulate statements of vision, values, and mission for the Libraries. As with the service philosophy, these statements should be part of the strategic plan and routinely evaluated and revised as needed. The service philosophy, vision, values and mission must be kept front and center in the work of the Libraries -- easily accessible and meaningful on a day-to-day basis to all staff within every single division, department, and unit.
We Are a Service Organization
The work of every member of the staff contributes directly to the service mission of the Libraries. The pursuit of service excellence at all levels requires the ongoing commitment and dedication of all staff. This is truly a collaborative effort that recognizes the need for continuous improvement, innovation and experimentation on behalf of our customers, internal as well as external.
What We Do
The research university is a quintessential information "driven" institution with demanding information needs for all of its functions. Within this broader context, the primary mission of the Libraries is building, organizing, accessing, maintaining, preserving, interpreting, and educating in the use of scholarly information resources which enable the teaching-learning process and research. As the definition of scholarly information broadens to encompass not only the collections we own but collections located remotely to which we provide access and delivery, a close integration of our collections and services will be key to helping our users successfully use the vast range of information.
The rapidly evolving information environment also places critical demands on the University of Maryland Libraries to build a strong user education program that develops and fosters a community of independent learners. This is especially true for our undergraduates who need to acquire the skills and competencies to thrive in a complex information-based society. At the same time, the Libraries must meet the more specialized needs of faculty and graduate students for support of their research and curricular work. The challenge is to balance these diverse needs and effectively marshal resources to meet them.
Who We Serve
The Libraries are committed to serve the students, faculty, staff and administrators of this institution in support of the University's educational and research missions. Our primary service is to those participating in the degree-granting instructional and research programs of the University with ancillary responsibility to individuals associated with university affiliated programs such as institutes and centers. We seek opportunities to develop formal service programs with the academic and administrative offices of the University.
The Libraries also have a clientele outside the University. The University's flagship status and land-grant mission challenge us to serve a wide-ranging community with our available resources which in effect makes us the research library of the state of Maryland. We have responsibilities to other libraries both in the immediate region and beyond; these include but are not limited to our associates in the University System of Maryland. Engaging in a partnership with this wider user community increases the body of resources available to our primary clientele. We must make balanced decisions about priorities for serving our primary clientele while remaining true to our service responsibilities to the larger university community and state.
How We Serve
The Libraries' information services are user-driven and must respond to the needs of various constituencies. These services range from assisting novice users in the use of library resources to providing support for the research needs of the University administration and faculty. Courtesy, thoroughness, accuracy and the provision of alternative resource options underlie information transactions at all levels. An overriding goal is to educate our users to become independent and self-reliant information seekers. Increasingly, this goal implies heavy dependence on and application of information and telecommunications technologies. However, the Libraries are not an IT organization, but use computing and telecommunications technology to deliver scholarly content. This means that the Libraries must support a robust IT effort and at the same time, cooperate closely with IT groups on campus.
Such user-driven services evolve from a continuous assessment of user needs and satisfaction and the concomitant willingness to redesign them when they do not. Ongoing evaluation of our programs and services assures that we are meeting, in the spirit of CQI, high standards of quality and targeting user priorities. Motivated, approachable, knowledgeable and well-trained staff, who are committed to facilitating access to information and creating a pervasive instructional environment for users, contribute to the overall quality of our services.
The library organization and its individual members must create a culture that fosters innovation, flexibility, and adaptability to an information landscape which is characterized by constant change. Sensitivity to diversity and awareness of the contribution that it makes to our organization and to the campus community enhances our service mission. The environment in which we work fosters not only individual initiative but also collaboration, teamwork, partnerships, communication, peer support, and shared ownership and accountability for the quality of our services. The Libraries must lead the campus in developing optimal access to scholarly information, but leadership means testing our understanding with the campus community on how that may best be achieved.
SUBJECT TEAMS
Nature and Intent
The teams will function in an integrated way, encompassing the functions of reference service (in the context of Service Plus as well as specialized reference assistance for their disciplines), user education and collection management. Team members will have specific subject assignments and will be expected to assume collection development, reference assistance, and user education in support of the assigned subject areas and in Service Plus. The task force recommends that each team member be assigned a minimum of eight hours/week to Service Plus. Members will work cooperatively and collaboratively within the team to develop and implement annual action plans and programs to address the ongoing and special needs of the colleges that they serve. One of the most desired outcomes of the teams is that they maintain proactive, regular and ongoing liaison work with the academic colleges and schools for which they have assigned responsibility to support and serve. In addition, teams will be expected to work together on broader service and collections issues.
Subject Team Responsibilities
The guiding principles, expectations, and responsibilities of the subject teams are:
Subject Team Composition
Each team will include 10-12 librarians and a team manager who will have as a major responsibility the successful integration of service activities. Since some subjects clearly will require the investment of more time and energy in a particular function (e.g., collection development or user education), the amount of time spent in other areas, such as Service Plus, would necessarily be adjusted. Thus, within each team, job assignments would have this common range of responsibilities but would differ in relative emphasis between collection management librarians (with a heavier responsibility for collection management) and reference/instruction librarians (with a heavier teaching and Service Plus responsibility). See Appendices 2-3 for sample job descriptions.
Assignments of existing staff (i.e., support staff, reference librarians, bibliographers, and branch librarians) in the new organizational structure will be made jointly by the Associate Director, Collection Management & Special Collections and Associate Director, Public Services in consultation with and final approval from the Dean of Libraries. Some appointments may be made on an interim basis or filled after a competitive search. The teams will also rely on new positions that the libraries have already identified in the strategic plan. Team members will be expected to have or acquire the subject expertise for their specific assigned academic areas and work in a proactive way with faculty and students both undergraduate as well as graduate.
Role of Team Manager
Each team will have a manager who will serve as the primary supervisor for the team and its members. The person will be selected on the basis of a competitive search. Team managers will report jointly to the Associate Director, Collection Management & Special Collections and Associate Director, Public Services. See the sample job description in Appendix #4.
Interaction of Subject Teams with Other Library Staff and Campus Resources
In addition to the members of the subject teams, the expectation is that library staff in various capacities will have varying degrees of interaction with the members and managers of the subject teams. In response to its charge regarding the relationship with the EIS Manager and User Education Manger, the task force concludes that there needs to be a close working relationship in particular between these two positions and the activities of the teams. The two managers clearly need to be involved in the development of annual team plans that relate to instructional programs and the development of electronic collections. In this regard, they will work closely with each of the team managers. The EIS and User Education managers will accordingly be included in setting annual goals and objectives for individual team members and provide input in their annual performance evaluations as it relates to each of these areas.
Library staff who are not assigned to a team can and should have an impact on the effective operation of the teams. The task force recommends that each team forge a strong working relationship with other staff with subject expertise from Technical Service, Special Collections, Information Technology, and Nonprint Media as well as with the many staff associated with other services including periodicals, interlibrary loan, circulation, and reserves. All staff can provide needed information and advice and represent perspectives that are integral to the work of the teams. The task force recommends the creation of mechanisms to ensure the effective flow of information and consultation among the teams and staff who will assist the teams in a special resource capacity.
It is equally critical for vital links to be forged with the individual Campus Computing Associates (CCAs) affiliated with aITs. A more coordinated effort to assist the faculty of the colleges and schools is regarded by the task force as a major concern. Appropriate library staff, including the Library Executive Council, are strongly encouraged to engage other campus units with shared service missions in an active dialog to identify areas of cooperation and collaboration.
Collection Management Coordinator
The task force envisions the need for a Collection Management Coordinator, reporting to the Associate Director for Collection Management & Special Collections, who is versed in the techniques and methodologies of collection assessment and other process activities. The coordinator would be available as a specialist to assist the teams in devising and planning ongoing as well as special collection-based projects and programs that may range from materials selection to collection storage issues. This individual will serve as a resource to the teams and their managers, training staff in the use of collection development and management tools. In particular, the coordinator will chair a new committee that Dean Lowry has recommended in anticipation of a significant infusion of resources for collection building. The Collection Management and Resource Allocation Committee (CMRAC) will be responsible for conducting ongoing collection assessment and resource allocation to acquire scholarly information. Membership on the CMRAC will include the collection management librarians from the subject teams and other resource people. The allocation of fiscal resources will strongly reflect the university's strategic plan as well a self-assessment studies such as the GRC report of 1997. The coordinator is also responsible for the management and monitoring of approval and standing order plans. Subject content issues remain the immediate purview of the teams and their members. The position will be filled by a competitive search. See the sample job description in Appendix #5.
Additional Subject Team Recommendations
SERVICE PLUS: IMPLEMENTING OUR SERVICE PHILOSOPHY
The creation of Service Plus is an attempt to address many items related to the charge of the task force. First, Service Plus is the implementation of the Square One concept proposed in the CQI report on undergraduate library services and provides a welcoming teaching environment for all library users, particularly novice users. Also, it is an attempt to create a service model that embodies the library's proposed service philosophy as drafted by the task force. Finally, Service Plus is a continuum of service that begins with basic information services at the library's "front door" and concludes with specialized subject-based services that will be developed and offered through the subject team model.
Why do we need Service Plus?
The changing information needs of our users mandate changes in the way that we provide information and reference services. Our service philosophy states that our services are "user-centered and responsive to the needs of its various constituents." The impetus for Service Plus comes from the CQI report on undergraduate library services and the Libraries' revised Strategic Plan, which led to the Service Task Force charge to examine "library functions, services and their organization."
What is Service Plus?
Service Plus is a new way of doing business for all of the College park campus libraries that seeks to break down the barriers between users and the information they need. Service Plus goes beyond traditional reference to an integrated service that minimizes referrals and emphasizes user education. It reflects many of the best practices of branch library reference services. Service Plus takes users from wherever they are in terms of their understanding of the library or the research process to wherever they need to be to meet their information needs. Service Plus aims to build user self-sufficiency while providing a variety of ways for users to get the help that they need.
How does Service Plus work?
Service Plus as a service concept will be applied throughout the campus library system. The centerpiece of Service Plus at McKeldin is a large open area on the main level that provides space for users and staff to interact. It is made very clear and obvious, through its design and accompanying signage, that this space is the place for users to start their work in the library. Service Plus starts at a desk, but Service Plus is not desk-bound. Staff will move around the main floor area to assist users with print or electronic resources, or to sit with a patron at a quiet area for more intensive assistance or instruction. The successful practice of the staff "rovers" will be a key part of Service Plus. A variety of staff -- graduate students, classified staff and librarians -- from all parts of the Libraries will be trained to provide a continuum of services. These services will range from basic to specialized and will incorporate a range of user education functions. Competency levels will be developed and training will be emphasized. Each staff member who works at Service Plus will address the information needs of all users and contribute their subject expertise or special skills as needed. Adequate technical support will be provided so that Service Plus staff can spend "quality time" meeting users information needs.
A key part of Service Plus is the concept of "seamless referral." Good communication among staff, ad good training of all staff, will enable users to work with the person best able to help them, minimizing their need to physically move from place to place or wait in a queue to ask their question again.
Service plus will also be less time-bound than current services. Adequate staffing and training will enable staff to spend as much time as a user requires (either at that moment or by making n appointment for a later date). One way to assure adequate staffing is to assign backup staff who will be immediately available at times of heavy demand.
The goal of Service Plus is to have enough staff to provide expanded service hours. Enhancing the role of user education within public services is a distinctive feature of Service Plus. In this context, user education can take many forms, e.g., helping a novice user begin a term paper, scheduling consultations with subject specialists for graduate students, holding group workshops, or working with faculty in designing effective research assignments. At McKeldin, facilities for user education will be part of the Service Plus space on the first floor. Service Plus seeks to initiate and expand collaboration with the university's faculty to more effectively teach information literacy skills.
Because Service Plus is user-centered, assessment of user needs, monitoring and evaluation of service are critical components.
Service Plus is grounded in an understanding and appreciation of our users' needs and is designed to offer them the help they need -- no matter how simple or how complex -- when they need it.
Staffing
Service Plus is nothing less than a major cultural change for the Libraries that encourages the creation of a positive learning environment for all library users, particularly novice users. It will require an intense commitment of staff resources and a positive, motivated attitude from staff. The task force discussed at length the issue of meeting user needs through a single comprehensive service point in McKeldin and maximizing staff resources and expertise. We concluded that our service model should, as much as possible, provide our users the "one-stop shopping" approach to their information needs and to make referrals as "seamless" as possible. The synergy created by working at the desk in a team environment will foster the flow of information among the service staff that will encourage on-the-spot training and reduce the artificial hierarchy that patrons feel they must work through to get assistance. The mix of staff at the service desk will work collaboratively to provide information and reference services. Graduate assistants and staff will answer directional and information questions and get patrons started on workstations with basic VICTOR queries. More experienced staff can go beyond these basics to more complex reference questions. In addition to addressing these questions, rovers will provide point-of-use assistance. Beyond assistance at a service point, appointment-based services with subject librarians will be offered to patrons requiring lengthy or multiple consultations. The total number of staff assigned during desk shifts will reflect the ebb and flow of days, weeks and semesters. A key component to the successful implementation of this service model will be determining baseline expectations for Service Plus staff and providing ongoing training and development to assist staff in meeting those expectations. The task force identified several "guiding principles" and recommendations that address staff morale and user perceptions of library services in the context of Service Plus:
Scheduling and Service Hours in McKeldin Library
We recommend that service hours and the building hours be expanded. The task force believes strongly that the Libraries should provide Service Plus in McKeldin with "full service" -- namely, all levels of staff present -- beyond the number of hours that we currently provide reference consultation service. Both of these recommendations have resource implications that should receive priority attention from the Library Executive Council. We recommend that Service Plus operate on the following fall/spring semester schedule in McKeldin:
Monday-Thursday: 9am-10pm
Friday: 9am-7pm
Saturday: 10am-8pm
Sunday: 11am-10pm
In addition to expanded hours of service in McKeldin, branch libraries should be assessed on an individual basis and hours enhanced based on user need and resource availability. Also, McKeldin service should be re-evaluated and adjusted based on the first year's experience with the above hours.
Physical Design of McKeldin Service Plus
The task force recommends that Service Plus occupy the public area in the entire front half of the first floor of McKeldin (the area currently housing the reference collection, public workstations, information and consultation room). In general, the task force envisions an open space with improved sight lines to other service areas and to public workstations. In keeping with the Service Plus continuum, the most basic services will be close to the door; services and resources will become more specialized as patrons move through or off of the first floor. To achieve this goal, the space must have an open floor plan. The task force recommends that an expanded and redesigned service desk be located at the site of the current information desk and consultation room space. The service desk should be clearly and easily identifiable, particularly for new users. It should also be configured to accommodate walk-up patrons who have directional and basic information needs as well as patrons requiring more in-depth assistance. It is our assumption that an increasing number of complex reference questions will be asked at the point of need at workstations. Therefore, the task force recommends a larger, redesigned workstation area in close proximity to the Service Plus desk and an expanded "rover program" to provide additional assistance. To accommodate additional workstations, the task force recommends that the print reference collection be significantly reduced to a smaller, high-use collection. Further discussion needs to take place in the library regarding the content and set-up of the workstations and the provision of telephone service; the task force felt these details were beyond its charge.
McKeldin Service Plus Management
The task force recommends that a McKeldin Service Plus Coordinator position be established and filled by a competitive search. The primary responsibility of this position will be to coordinate services and operations at this first point of patron contact. See a sample job description in Appendix #6.
Relationship of McKeldin Service Plus with other Public Service Units in McKeldin
The task force recommends a closer service and organizational relationship among the units along with a clarification of roles, responsibilities, and referral relationships. While Service Plus becomes the focal point for patron assistance in McKeldin Library, it obviously does not operate in a vacuum. Cross-training and cross-staffing should be considered as one means of bringing service units closer together. Upon the task force's recommendation, a review of the organization of Public Services units in McKeldin was undertaken by the Associate Director for Public Services. Her recommendations are attached to this report.
Relationship of Service Plus with the Branch Libraries
Upon the recommendation of the task force, the Associate Director for Public Services was charged to explore appropriate mechanisms (i.e., policies, procedures, or new organizational models) to work towards a consistent mode of service delivery across the libraries. Her recommendations are attached to this report. The philosophy of Service Plus is intended to extend throughout the library system. The service model currently used in the branch libraries provides the foundation and inspiration for the Service Plus model.
Relationship of Service Plus with User Education
The task force makes three recommendations to integrate the Service Plus model with the Libraries' user education initiatives. First, the User Education Manager should work closely with the McKeldin Service Plus Coordinator to coordinate instructional activities that complement and are reinforced by Service Plus, particularly programs that are designed for undergraduates. Secondly, to continue the development of the user education program for graduate students and faculty, User Education should work in close collaboration with the subject teams. Finally, because of the ambitious agenda for instruction, the task force recommends that additional human resources be allocated to User Education. The task force endorses a strong user education program that offers a continuum of instructional opportunities for building information literacy skills. Current program planing for user education dovetails nicely with the Service Plus model and the implementation of these recommendations will further cement this linkage.
Relationship Service Plus with Electronic Information Services
The task force recommends the relocation of the information resources currently housed in the Electronic Reading Room to the first floor in close proximity to the McKeldin Service Plus site. Also, the task force recommends that the EIS Manager work closely with the Service Plus operations in all facilities in the design and delivery of electronic information resources. Finally, we recommend that additional human resources be allocated to Electronic Information Services. As with User Education, the success of Service Plus depends on the integration of coordination of services and resources system-wide. An easy-to-use electronic information environment that provides access to a wide-range of resources that meet the needs of all levels of users is a critical component to that success.
Relationship of Service Plus with Subject Teams
The task force recommends that the subject teams contribute service hours to Service Plus sites in McKeldin and the branches. In particular, the service team managers will be expected to work closely with the McKeldin Service Plus Coordinator and the branch libraries to coordinate scheduling as well as determine service policies, priorities, and procedures. Hours will vary among team members based on subject assignment(s), but all subject team members will devote a significant amount of time at Service Plus.
Relationship of Service Plus with Other Divisions
The task force recommends that public service assistance from all divisions, and in particular, the Technical Services Division, be encouraged as resources permit. The task force also recommends that technological support from the Information Technology Division should be readily available, preferably on site during busy periods, in the expanded workstation environment on the first floor of McKeldin.
The success of Service Plus depends not only on the Public Services and Collection Management/Special Collections Divisions but also on support from the other divisions in the Libraries. The task force recognizes and applauds the long-standing commitment that the Technical Services Division has made to public catalog assistance. We also recognize the support that the Information Technology Division has given to the systems and resources our users have come to rely on for their research. A robust and reliable technological infrastructure is critical to Service Plus. Just as we are striving to break down physical and metaphorical barriers in the library, we want to bring down the walls that technology can build between the user and their information needs.
Additional Service Plus Recommendations
Additional Task Force Recommendations
The task force acknowledge the work in progress related to the merger of Hornbake and McKeldin reference services and collections. The task force makes the following additional recommendations in relation to our charge to redefine the nature and focus of services as operations currently housed in the Hornbake Library are discontinued and/or relocated to McKeldin:
The task force makes the following recommendations with respect to our charge to clarify the roles and relationships of Electronic Information Services and User Education to other library services including the prospective services in electronic full text and technology training/curriculum capacity currently under discussion with the College of Arts and Humanities:
The task force recommends closer integration of the roles of the EIS and User Education Managers and the functions of their respective areas with other library services and staff. Electronic information and user education are key components to the success of Service Plus and the Subject Team model. With respect to the College of Arts and Humanities initiative, during the course of the task force's work, Betty Day and Trudi Hahn became engaged in project activity related to this charge. It is the recommendation of the task force that developments relevant to the libraries resulting from these initiatives be directed to the Library Executive Council and/or appropriate associate directors.
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Created: April 9, 1998