Evolving academic library specialties

The purpose of this review is to examine the shaping of librarianship in the academic context through the literature of career specialties, with Abbott's (1988) system of professions providing an analytic framework. The specialties investigated are systems librarian, electronic resource librarian, digital librarian, institutional repository manager, clinical librarian and informationist, digital curator/research data manager, teaching librarian/information literacy educator, and information and knowledge manager. Piecemeal literature based on job advertisements, surveys, and individual case studies is consolidated to offer a novel perspective on the evolution of the profession. The resilience of the profession's core jurisdiction is apparent despite pressures to erode it. Forays into teaching, and more recently into open access and data management, can be understood as responses to such pressure. The attractions but also the risks of embedded roles and overextended claims become apparent when comparing past and prospective specialties. © 2013 ASIS&T

Relationship Building One Step at a Time: Case Studies of Successful Faculty-Librarian Partnerships

Building strong relationships between academic librarians and teaching faculty is paramount for promoting services and resources. While librarians face challenges ranging from new technologies to heightened expectations and fiscal difficulties, the key work remains in solid relationship building. Drawing on the experience of a group of subject librarians and teaching faculty at The Ohio State University, this study examines the qualities that help liaison librarians develop relationships with faculty and support ongoing library services. It explores how liaison librarians build opportunities for ongoing relationships and how they assess the successes or failures of those interactions. It chronicles interview findings that detail the importance of such skills as patience, expertise, follow-through, responsiveness, and individuality if librarians are to build solid relationships and fruitful collaborations. Finally, it offers some preliminary observations on the teaching faculty's understanding of the librarians' relationship-building efforts.No embargo

Research know-how for research support services: Preparing information specialists for emerging roles

The panel will discuss the importance of understanding the research environment for providing effective information and technology support to researchers, and the implications for curricula in professional education. Our specific context is growing involvement of academic libraries and information services in managing research data, but the issues raised have wider implications for educating and developing other information specialists (e.g., in research institutes, government agencies, public libraries). Studies in the past five years have identified technical and disciplinerelated skills and knowledge gaps as potential constraints on developing library research data services. Our recent research in Australia, New Zealand, the UK, and Ireland confirmed the need for data curation and technology skills, but also found practitioners engaging in other forms of research support, and expressing needs for a multilayered introduction to the research environment, extending beyond the research skills typically gained in masters programs, including subjects such as academic culture and practice, and research policy and evaluation. The panelists represent a mix of academic and practitioner viewpoints from different countries. They will each offer their views on what is missing and should be added to graduate curricula, and how programs can make space, asking the audience to respond with their own suggestions, counter-arguments, and alternative visions, using an interactive style from the start

The challenge for librarian skills: Transforming professional competencies

Academic libraries and information services must continually evolve in response to challenges in the wider organization and environmental context. Key trends include rapid development and convergence of digital technologies, massive growth in non-specialist interaction with information and technology, and the evolution of the network society as a participatory culture. New concepts and models have emerged, such as blended librarianship, embedded informationists, inside-out collections, the participatory library, and space-as-service. The shift from a support service mindset to collaborative working and multidisciplinary partnerships has significant implications for competency development, giving rise to calls for T-shaped, Pi-shaped, and comb-shaped people. New frameworks are needed to articulate the breadth and depth of specialist and generic knowledge, skills, and abilities required for boundary-spanning roles in the 21st century. Professional preparation programs and continuing education activities must focus on key areas where enhanced capabilities are important and urgent, including technological fluency, relationship building, and reflective practice

The Quarterly Interview: Sheila Corrall

Brad Sietz, the Director of LOEX, interviews Sheila Corrall about her background, her research, differences and similarities between the US and UK, and where LIS programs are going in the future. LOEX [Library Orientation Exchange] is a self-supporting, non-profit educational clearinghouse for library instruction and information literacy information, based in Ypsilanti, MI. The organization was founded in 1971 after the First Annual Conference on Library Orientation at Eastern Michigan University. It publishes a quarterly journal and each issue includes an interview with someone in the library world who has done interesting work

EMERGENT TRENDS IN LIBRARY SERVICES DELIVERY: THE APPLICATION OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGIES IN ACADEMIC LIBRARIES

This paper focuses on the application of ICTs in academic libraries as an emergent trend in academic library service delivery. It is strongly believed that libraries of the 21st century are experiencing changes in different areas of their services delivery. This paper, however, believes that this change is championed by the introduction of ICT in these libraries. Literature hold that ICT application in libraries is of utmost importance due to its numerous benefits. Among these benefits are; increase in effectiveness and efficiency of library services, reduction in time of information access, location and retrieval, saving of library’s physical space, etc. Amidst its numerous benefits in library service delivery, some academic libraries are yet to fully apply these ICTs in their services. To some academic libraries where these ICTs are applied, there are numerous challenges facing its utilization. This paper seeks to uncover the service delivery impact of ICTs and the challenges facing the application of the ICTs in academic libraries. In conclusion, ICTs are vital components for library development as well as the promotion of library service delivery and this paper recommends its full application in academic libraries to enhance effective and efficient library services deliver

Bibliometric Services in Research Evaluation: A New Task Area Strengthening the Jurisdiction of Academic Librarians

Science policy framed by audit culture relies heavily on performance measurement. This changing research environment affects higher education institutions and their scientific libraries. As service providers for research and teaching libraries need to demonstrate their added-value in front of various stakeholders. Some Library and Information Science (LIS) scholars and practitioners thus promote evaluative bibliometric services as a new service area. The question rises whether this trend to engage in evaluative bibliometrics will consolidate into a recognized professional task area in academic librarianship. Using Abbott’s theoretical framework the paper asks whether academic librarians claim a professional jurisdiction on bibliometric expertise in research support services and assessment. The bibliometric practices of academic librarians in the UK and Germany are studied in a comparative perspective. The collected empirical data consists of 28 expert interviews and different types of documents. This research in progress paper reports on the theoretical framework and demonstrates how it helps to interpret and understand current developments

Research data management and libraries: Current activities and future priorities

This paper reports research carried out at the end of 2012 to survey UK universities to understand in detail the ways in which libraries are currently involved in research data management (RDM) and the extent to which the development of RDM services is a strategic priority for them. The research shows that libraries were offering limited RDM services, with highest levels of activity in large research-intensive institutions. There were major challenges associated with skills gaps, resourcing and cultural change. However, libraries are currently involved in developing new institutional RDM policies and services, and see this as an important part of their future role. Priorities such as provision of RDM advisory and training services are emerging. A systematic comparison between these results and other recent studies is made in order to create a full picture of activities and trends. An innovation hype-cycle framework is deployed to understand possible futures and Abbott’s theory of professions is used to gain an insight into how libraries are competing to extend their jurisdiction whilst at the same time working collaboratively with other stakeholders