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Ensuring Relevancy: Key Challenges in Public Services, 2006-2010

Presentation to the Academic Assembly, February 2, 2006

Anne R. Kenney

As one of my library colleagues remarked, “I’d rather give a talk at ALA than speak to the Academic Assembly.”  So it was with some trepidation that I took the podium on Thursday, February 2, to address an unusually large turnout for Academic Assembly.  It was also somewhat intimidating to follow both Ross Atkinson, who presented six key challenges for collection development in the Janus Conference on Research Library Collections in October, and Tom Hickerson, who addressed the November Academic Assembly, speaking on “Sociotechnological Change: A Brief History of Technology in Libraries and the Future of Library Management Systems and Institutional Repositories.”  But I also welcomed the opportunity to think aloud about future directions for public services.

As I reviewed the literature in preparing for my talk, I was reminded once again how well Cornell Library staff serve users’ needs and how lucky I am to work at such a great institution.  Certainly there are interesting initiatives going on elsewhere, and clearly there are areas in which we need to improve.  But my talk was very much premised on the fact that the Cornell Library is doing an excellent job—that we consistently outshine our research library peers in quality of service, that students continue to value the library above all other services provided during their four years at Cornell, and that most faculty rely heavily on the work we do.

My sight, however, was focused on challenges we face in ensuring continuing relevancy in an increasingly competitive information market.  My main premise was that user values do not neatly line up with traditional library values and that while the latter may continue to drive our mission, the former should inform our tactics.  The fundamental question to address is, How do you sell the library “brand” in a buyers’ market?  I cited four possibilities: demonstrate that our resources and services will (1) increase productivity, (2) provide the competitive edge, (3) promote collaboration and community, and (4) encourage experimentation and expression.  From there, I focused on seven key challenges for the next five years:

  1. Deliver the goods (quickly, easily, cheaply, where they are most needed)
  2. Focus on points of contact (especially by making outreach the key public service)
  3. Invest in knowledge management (by managing and contributing to the use of the university’s intellectual capital)
  4. Leverage the library as place (for learning, providing one-stop shopping for information needs, and building connections between faculty, students, and the administration)
  5. Foster strategic partnerships (especially with other libraries to develop the public service equivalent to cooperative cataloging)
  6. Prioritize human-intensive work (to maximize the effectiveness of others and focus on efforts that yield the greatest benefit)
  7. Utilize measures of success (defining outcomes as the key to prioritizing our efforts)

A copy of my Power Point slides and the audio file of my presentation are available online.

The discussion following my presentation was both provocative and challenging, and I wish there had been more time for the exchange of ideas.  For my part, I’m interested in hearing from others whether they agree that these are the key challenges facing public services and, if not, what they are.  I’d also welcome your thoughts on how best to engage these issues in the months to come.  I’m also happy to let you know that the Academic Assembly Steering Committee is continuing this series of future talks.  Next fall Karen Calhoun will be presenting her take on the future of technical services at the Academic Assembly.

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