Business Commons^™

Practicing And Marketing With Empathy In Libraries, Wren Daniel Ambroise

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

In 2017, Abigail Phillips, a postdoctoral fellow at Utah State University wrote, “The role of empathy in the library has been infrequently researched in library and information science (LIS) literature. However, as demonstrated in the reactions of libraries and librarians during recent social movements, empathy is a critical component of librarianship and routine library work” (Phillips 1). Over the last twenty years, numerous researchers have argued the same; this paper enters into conversation several texts from the late 2000s to the early 2020s that conceptualize the intersections between empathy marketing and librarianship and/or put them into practice. It first defines …

A Call For The Library Community To Deploy Best Practices Toward A Database For Biocultural Knowledge Relating To Climate Change, Martha B. Lerski

Publications and Research

Abstract

Purpose – In this paper, a call to the library and information science community to support documentation and conservation of cultural and biocultural heritage has been presented.

Design/methodology/approach – Based in existing Literature, this proposal is generative and descriptive— rather than prescriptive—regarding precisely how libraries should collaborate to employ technical and ethical best practices to provide access to vital data, research and cultural narratives relating to climate.

Findings – COVID-19 and climate destruction signal urgent global challenges. Library best practices are positioned to respond to climate change. Literature indicates how libraries preserve, share and cross-link cultural and scientific knowledge. …

Lessons Learned From Bookstagrammers For Library Promotion And Promotion Of Readership: Qualitative Study, Anna Novotna, Kamil Matula, Veronika Kociánová, Vojtěch Svačina

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

The prevalent problem with which libraries deal with today is decrease of patrons in younger generation. There is a lot of academic and research attention dedicated to studies of their behavior and trends connected to increase in time spent online and on social media. There are also concerns about attention spans of younger children and their reading habits. Many libraries tried to pull younger generation toward book reading and libraries in general by starting Instagram accounts but not many know how to run it to address the desired group of users. We have conducted interviews with three out of eight …

Measuring Human Resource Management Practices And Job Satisfaction Of Librarians In Jammu & Kashmir, Mubashir Majid Baba

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

This paper attempts to examine the impact of Human Resource Management (HRM) practices on the Job Satisfaction of Librarians in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K). On basis of the literature review, it is hypothesized that a positive perception among librarians regarding the HRM practices helps in developing a sense of satisfaction among them regarding their jobs. The hypothesised relationship is tested though regression analysis by using data from libraries of seven universities of J&K. The findings suggest that perception of employees regarding the HRM practices positively impacts their job satisfaction. It is recommended that university library management should continue to promote …

Tell Me Your Business: Assessing The Teaching Needs Of Undergraduate Business Faculty, Nora Allred, Lauren Movlai, Jennifer Sams

Michigan Tech Publications

Academic libraries often fill a variety of roles in response to the needs of teaching and research faculty while simultaneously navigating a rapidly changing information landscape. As higher education embraces students’ desire for active learning, experiential learning, and service learning, the support needs of teaching faculty also change. In the spirit of providing high-quality, relevant support, librarians at Michigan Technological University partnered with Ithaka S+R to explore the evolving teaching needs of Business Faculty. Nine faculty members from Michigan Tech's School of Business and Economics were interviewed, and interviews were coded and analyzed. Major themes identified included: students' information and …

Asserting Librarian Expertise And Value In Strategic Marketing Efforts, Memo Cordova, Elizabeth Ramsey

Library Faculty Publications and Presentations

This case study of librarian-led marketing efforts at a mid-size academic library examines workarounds to obstacles that librarians frequently encounter when taking on marketing for their libraries. These obstacles often stem from a combination of misunderstanding and/or misplaced priorities at both the unit and administrative levels. Challenges in this case study include a number of factors: no marketing strategy at the administrative level, a lack of understanding from colleagues generally, little time to complete tasks or improve marketing skills, and no dedicated funding. To address these challenges the authors embarked on an internal marketing campaign engaged extensively on social media …

Investigation Of Factors That Influence Public Librarians’ Social Media Use For Marketing Purposes: An Adoption Of The Technology Acceptance Model And Theory Of Planned Behavior, Soohyung Joo, Namjoo Choi, Lindsey M. Harper

Information Science Faculty Publications

This study aims to explore multiple factors that are associated with social media use by public librarians for marketing purposes. Based on the technology acceptance model and theory of planned behavior, the effects of five factors—usefulness, ease of use, attitude, subjective norms, and behavioral control—on social media use intention were examined. A survey was conducted, and 462 valid responses were collected from public librarians across the United States. The findings revealed that all five factors have a significant impact on librarians’ intention to engage in social media activities for library marketing. Perceived behavioral control factors were the most influential on …

Project Management In Libraries, Jennifer A. Bartlett

Library Faculty and Staff Publications

This issue's "New and Noteworthy" column focuses on several books, journal articles, and websites that will serve as an introduction to project management in library and information organization settings.

Mayflower: Ode To New Beginnings — A New Column For New Times With A Positive Mission, Antje Mays

Library Faculty and Staff Publications

Numerous studies and articles downplay the value of libraries, citing instances of library defunding, layoffs, and outright closures, along with studies on the waning usefulness of libraries based on flawed quantifiables. Such pronouncements spread fear of obsolescence and irrelevance, contributing to dissatisfaction in the library profession. Yet polls in the United States and Great Britain reveal the library profession's enduring value among the most trusted professions.

To kick off the column "Mayflower: Ode to New Beginnings", this article frames library pressures in a context of broader trends affecting economic and educational conditions, examines professional stewardship and the library profession’s enduring …

Practical Management Or Practical Magic: A Conversation With Lance Werner And Julene Jones. Managing Dysfunctional Environments, Julene L. Jones

Library Presentations

Presentation and discussion on the topic of working in or managing dysfunctional environments.

Practical Management Or Practical Magic: A Conversation With Julene Jones And Nyama Reed. Difficult Conversations With Those You Supervise, Julene L. Jones

Library Presentations

Presentation and discussion on the topic of difficult conversations between supervisors and those they supervise.

Why Can't We Be Friends? Examining The Benefits And Challenges Of Maintaining Your Friends Of The Library, Maureen Rust, Julia Stringfellow

Library Scholarship

One of the most fruitful collaborative relationships a library can have is with its Friends of the Library organization, providing that group is vibrant and progressive. This article provides insight into the history of the Friends of the Library group at a regional comprehensive university since its founding in 1962 to nearly becoming defunct in 2015. The steps taken in the transformation of the Friends of the Library since then from an inactive group with no clear direction, to a robust organization with an active board who have identified goals and strategies for successful library advocacy are described. The work …

You Are Welcome Here: The Genesis And Evaluation Of A New Employee Orientation Program Within The Library, Rebecca French, Jennifer A. Keach, Elizabeth Price, Susan Thomas, Michael Trocchia

Libraries

Your library may hire new employees throughout the year, but do you prepare them to succeed in your environment? Learn how James Madison University Libraries developed a new employee orientation program designed to meet the needs of new employees, their supervisors, and the entire organization.

I Heart Communication In The Library: Exploring Communication Satisfaction, Jennifer A. Keach

Libraries

This poster presents findings about organizational communication within a mid-sized academic library. Discover if demographic differences, the number of connections, attendance at events, or use of technology helped or hindered communication. Learn about ways to do a communication audit at your own library.

Creating Spaces For Innovation In The Workplace, Michael Rodriguez

Published Works

When libraries create innovative spaces—or spaces for innovation—they are mostly public-facing spaces. They might be learning commons, makerspaces, collaboration rooms, digital production labs, 3D printing stations, innovation studios, kiosks, incubators, and other buzzwords for physical spaces designed to foster creative productivity through technology and collaboration. At the same time, these transformations have the effect of framing library innovation as heavily public-facing and presenting innovation in terms of technology adoption. Spaces that foster intraorganizational, entrepreneurial innovation by library workers are no less essential yet are largely overlooked in the literature and in practice. This chapter draws on studies, concepts, and models …

Market Reach And Advertising Medium: Assessing How Students Learn About Research Services, Stephanie Wiegand

University Libraries Faculty Publications

Promotion of services is something we discuss often in libraries; however, it is rare to find a comprehensive promotion plan for research services or any evaluation of promotional services beyond case studies of a specific promotion. How do we know where to place our time and efforts if we have not assessed how students learn about research services? In the 2015-2016 academic year, the Library Research Services department at the University of Northern Colorado Libraries set out to answer this question. Surveys were sent to individuals contacting a librarian for in-depth research assistance. The goal of this survey was to …

Marketing And Development For Libraries, A Luxury Or A Necessity?, Essraa Nawar

Library Presentations, Posters, and Audiovisual Materials

For many libraries across the world, marketing, development and fundraising can be dirty words and if you add outreach people do not even get it. In this poster, the presenter will prove why libraries across the globe should embrace marketing, outreach and development for what they are, and let outreach spread and be part of our daily routine in libraries. Just like corporations and start-up, libraries of all kinds need to invest time; energy and resources on their marketing and development strategies. By applying some of these techniques, libraries will not just be able to better understand their users’ needs …

Book Review: Adding Value To Libraries, Archives, And Museums: Harnessing The Force That Drives Your Organization’S Future, Jennifer A. Bartlett

Library Faculty and Staff Publications

Value in libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural organizations has traditionally been centered on collections and services. Today’s libraries are looking at new ways to make their operations valuable to their patrons. Adding Value is geared toward library managers and administrators focusing on understanding, identifying, planning, and implementing services with an eye toward new definitions of value.

Professional Identity And You: Why Self-Concept Matters In Librarianship, Kevin Tanner

FIMS Presentations

Kevin Tanner addresses the importance of professional identity in librarianship. In the Summer 2015 semester, he completed an independent study on the construction of professional identity of librarians on Twitter through professional development and networking. During this session, he shares the results of that study and give suggestions on how you can begin to find your own professional identity while still retaining your individuality. While there are many stereotypes about librarians, they are not “one-size-fits-all” professionals, and a new modern image of the professional has begun to emerge in the digital age through a thoughtful reflection on identity.

We're All In This Together: Mentoring In Academic Libraries (Poster), Matt Ruen, Cara Cadena, Betsy Williams

Presentations

Navigating a new job can be difficult for both new and experienced librarians. How will you learn “the way we do things here”? Mentoring can play a key role in helping librarians find their way to becoming effective professionals. Grand Valley State University currently has several formal mentoring programs for new librarians, in addition to informal mentoring. Our poster will discuss GVSU’s mentoring programs and the purposes they serve—acclimating to university culture, developing position-specific skills, and successfully participating in the scholarly process. We will include our experiences and perspectives as recent participants in these programs. This discussion will include insights …

The Power Deep In Org Chart: Leading From The Middle, Jennifer A. Bartlett

Library Faculty and Staff Publications

This "New and Noteworthy" review column focuses on recent publications involving the recognition and development of leadership skills at all levels of the library organization, not only those positions at the top of the organizational chart.

Libraries And Total Quality: Making The Patron A Partner, Todd Bruns, Rendong Bai

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Libraries began to see service competition for the first time in the 1990s, due to the Internet and Google. The necessity of being more customer-focused became apparent, and this resulted in the creation of LibQUAL+, a tool developed to quantitatively measure the quality of customer service (Saunders, 2007). While LibQUAL+ serves as a first step toward increasing quality and value for patrons, library commitment to responding to survey results is essential.

Although LibQUAL+ has been used by a wide range of libraries, this paper focuses on the use of LibQUAL+ by academic libraries, using two university libraries (Vanderbilt University and …

Getting A Good Read, Todd Bruns, Rendong Bai

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Libraries began to see service competition for the first time in the 1990s, due to the Internet and Google. The necessity of being more customer-focused became apparent, and this resulted in the creation of LibQUAL+, a tool developed to quantitatively measure the quality of customer service (Saunders, 2007). While LibQUAL+ serves as a first step toward increasing quality and value for patrons, library commitment to responding to survey results is essential.Although LibQUAL+ has been used by a wide range of libraries, this paper focuses on the use of LibQUAL+ by academic libraries, using two university libraries (Vanderbilt University and the …

Getting A Good Read, Todd Bruns, Rendong Bai

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Libraries began to see service competition for the first time in the 1990s, due to the Internet and Google. The necessity of being more customer-focused became apparent, and this resulted in the creation of LibQUAL+, a tool developed to quantitatively measure the quality of customer service (Saunders, 2007). While LibQUAL+ serves as a first step toward increasing quality and value for patrons, library commitment to responding to survey results is essential.

Although LibQUAL+ has been used by a wide range of libraries, this paper focuses on the use of LibQUAL+ by academic libraries, using two university libraries (Vanderbilt University and …

Marketing And Outreach In Law Libraries: A White Paper, All-Sis Task Force On Library Marketing And Outreach, Amanda Runyon, Carol A. Watson, L. Cindy Dabney, Liz Mccurry Johnson, Emily Lawson, Shira Megerman, Jamie Sommer, T. J. Striepe, Michele Thomas

Librarian Scholarship at Penn Law

In recent years, libraries have turned to marketing and outreach to better educate library users about services and resources while gaining an understanding of their needs. Marketing and outreach are relatively new concepts in academic law libraries, and librarians tasked with these functions have found resources and examples of this type of work to be lacking. Though focused on academic law libraries, the article identifies the challenges facing all law libraries, explains why libraries need marketing and outreach plans, and provides examples of marketing and outreach successes.

Making Change Happen In The Middle (Approaches To Innovation For Library Middle Managers), Robert Farrell

Publications and Research

This paper seeks to provide library managers with a theoretical framework for thinking about how change is effected by those in middle management positions. Starting from the principles that change takes place within socio-culturally bounded contexts and is most successful when approached indirectly, two scenarios characteristic of many situations requiring change middle managers commonly face are then put forward. Following each scenario, a possible solution or path towards change is advanced in order to provide the reader with models for putting into practice the theoretical ideas presented. A methodology that combines theoretical frameworks and practical scenarios is adopted in order …

Addressing Information Needs In Sport Management, An Interdisciplinary Field, Kendra Spahr, Stephanie Wiegand

University Libraries Faculty Publications

Sport management as a scholarly discipline is relatively new, and very few students who earn doctorates in this field go into academia, instead choosing to go into practice where salaries are much higher. Due to these circumstances, literature research in sport management is difficult for students as well as librarians, as very little primary research exists in published journals and books. This poster reviews challenges for librarians, the best information resources to support academic sport management programs, common student questions, and tangential research areas that support research in this discipline.

Annual Reports To Shareholders: Historical Collections In Libraries, Judith M. Nixon

Libraries Research Publications

The purpose of this article is to describe the scope and depth of the historic corporate annual report collections in twelve academic/research libraries in North America. For many decades, a few major academic business libraries have been collecting and preserving corporate Annual Reports (ARS), the reports sent to shareholders documenting the financial status and future plans of the company. Today these historic collections provide more than a record of the companies’ finances; they provide a glimpse into the social and cultural thoughts from the past and the corporate stories of individual companies. Digitization of these reports has only just begun; …

Telling Stories Of Libraries And Leadership, Audrey Defrank

Criss Library Faculty Proceedings & Presentations

A presentation outlining the four frames of leadership and storytelling as they relate to libraries. Leadership Orientation Questionnaire; Overview; Inspiration; Leadership; Reframing Leadership; Structural Frame; Human Resources Frame; Political Frame; Symbolic Frame; Where do you fit in the frame?; Native American Storytelling; Organizations as Cultures; Story Narrative; Telling the Story.

Practicing Librarianship Around The World, Deana Groves

DLTS Faculty Publications

More and more librarians are sharing their knowledge with colleagues around the world. This paper examines several examples of the type of international work conducted by librarians and also explores the various opportunities available worldwide. A general list of suggested travel tips is also included.