Aspects of measuring the impact of new innovations in Finnish libraries

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine aspects of measuring the impact of new innovations in Finnish libraries. Design/methodology/approach Along with the change of paradigm of libraries' ways of action toward more networked and with the developing of new innovative services, new evaluation methods and indicators will be needed to show the value and impact of the operation of these services. Findings To measure the impact of services produced by the networking of several organizations and the added value perceived by the patrons, new methods of impact assessment are needed, as well as change in the way of thinking. Originality/value In the libraries, there is only a little if at all discussion about the need and means of showing the results, impact and value of the library services to their clientele, their frame organizations or the society. This is the first article to examine aspects of measuring the impact of new innovations in Finnish libraries.Peer reviewe

The Finna Service: Meeting the New Measurement Challenges in Libraries

Purpose In the transformed information environment, the impact and value of the services are not adequately shown using the traditional library metrics. It needs to be supplemented with user-centered ways of measurement. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach The paper is a case study of the new Finna service and the measurement challenges it presents. Findings The standards guiding the measurement and evaluation of libraries cannot offer a "cook-book" for the organizations to follow. The paper suggests that as a one possible response to this, the Net Promoter Score can be used as one indicator in measuring the impact of new services. Research limitations/implications The findings of the paper are preliminary, because so far there is not a wide experience of the use of NPS in libraries. This calls for further study. The results are encouraging, but more testing is needed with different services. Originality/value NPS has not been widely used in libraries before.Peer reviewe

Towards the Multidimensional Measurement of Library Performance : User Experience Index

The User Experience Index (IUX) is a composite index aimed to measure the overall user experience of services supplied by a library. The user satisfaction is evaluated by calculating the sum of the selected attributes coming from the (scaled) responses to user surveys and weighted by the coefficients assigned by experts. The reason for using the composite index approach is to capture the aggregate effect of multiple factors influencing the overall user experience. The attributes of the IUX were derived from the responses to the National User Survey conducted in Finland over several years in the same format. Altogether seven attributes were selected. The weights of these attributes in relation to each other were defined in a library directors' workshop. The proposed composite index allows the libraries to follow a long-term development of the selected attributes through a single number encompassing their aggregate effect. At the same time, analysis of the individual attributes of the composite index can reveal components of the user experience that require special attention.Peer reviewe

Effects of thiol substitution in deep-eutectic solvents (DESs) as solvents for metal oxides

This study deals with an investigation of how substitution of an alcohol group by a thiol group in mixtures of choline chloride with a series of bio-sourceable molecules affects the physico-chemical properties of the mixtures and their ability to dissolve metal oxides. All of the thiol mixtures studied showed a higher affinity and selectivity for late transition metals and the physical properties of the mixtures were improved compared to their alcohol analogues (i.e. lower viscosity, wider liquid range). The metal solubility was assessed via determination of the final concentration of the metal oxides dissolved in thiol mixtures via inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES). The thiol function selectively improved the solubilities of the late transition metal oxides (i.e. copper and zinc), which are valuable metals often present as residue in industrial waste. The solubility of iron oxides was much lower than that of the valuable metals, which is a significant benefit in industrial applications. The different solubilization behaviour of metal oxides in the thiol and alcohol mixtures was further investigated via UV-vis absorption and infrared spectroscopy. This study allowed the potential of these deep-eutectic solvents for the selective recovery of metals to be assessed

New genetic loci link adipose and insulin biology to body fat distribution.

Body fat distribution is a heritable trait and a well-established predictor of adverse metabolic outcomes, independent of overall adiposity. To increase our understanding of the genetic basis of body fat distribution and its molecular links to cardiometabolic traits, here we conduct genome-wide association meta-analyses of traits related to waist and hip circumferences in up to 224,459 individuals. We identify 49 loci (33 new) associated with waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for body mass index (BMI), and an additional 19 loci newly associated with related waist and hip circumference measures (P < 5 × 10(-8)). In total, 20 of the 49 waist-to-hip ratio adjusted for BMI loci show significant sexual dimorphism, 19 of which display a stronger effect in women. The identified loci were enriched for genes expressed in adipose tissue and for putative regulatory elements in adipocytes. Pathway analyses implicated adipogenesis, angiogenesis, transcriptional regulation and insulin resistance as processes affecting fat distribution, providing insight into potential pathophysiological mechanisms

Net Promoter Score (NPS) as Indicator of Library Customers’ Perception

The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is used in the business to measure the customers’ willingness to recommend the product, service or the enterprise as a whole to their friends or colleagues. Introduced by Fred Reichheld in 2003, NPS may answer the need of libraries to find easy and non-laborious methods of assessing the customers’ experience. It may target either the library as whole or critical services that are the most relevant to the library’s main goals. However, literature about the use of NPS in public sector organizations is sparse. This paper examines the applicability of the NPS to data retrieved from the user surveys 2014-2016 of the Finna service of the National Library of Finland.Peer reviewe