Referrals

When a person comes to the desk asking for a specific person, by name:: If a patron comes to the desk for an appointment with a staff member, the person serving the patron should telephone the staff member to let them know that their appointment is here. A patron should never be sent to an office unannounced.; If the patron does not have an appointment, the person at the desk should telephone the staff member and then hand the telephone to the patron so that they can leave a voice-mail message or talk with the staff member. The staff member can then decide whether or not to a) come to the desk to meet with the patron immediately; b) make an appointment with the patron for a later time; or c) refer the patron to someone currently at the desk for assistance. If the patron is not able to speak to the requested staff member, the person at the desk should offer to help.
When a person comes to the desk and wants specialized assistance that is not available at the desk, but does not know the specialist's name:: Staff at the desk should identify the University Department that the course is in and refer to the specialist assigned that department. OR In cases that the user is doing non-course related research, identify the University Department that the user is associated with, refer to the specialist assigned that department.; Staff at the desk may refer patrons by giving out business cards, but preferably only to students, staff and faculty of the University of Maryland. UMUC students should be referred to UMUC librarians and non-UM patrons can be told when the appropriate subject specialist is scheduled to work at the desk.