Presented at CONUL conference, May 2018, Galway, Ireland

1. Have Academic
Libraries
Transformed their
Position in the
Institution?
John Cox,
University Librarian,
National University of
Ireland, Galway

2. Outline
Institutional
priorities and
transformations
How the HE
institution may view
the library
Some own goals
What we can do
differently
Note: coverage is general and global; local experiences vary

3. Some HE
Drivers and
Challenges
Greater accountability
Stronger competition for students and research
Higher student expectations
Technology-driven learning and research
Internationalisation
Challenging financial environment

4. Institutional Priorities, Library Transformations
HE Institutions: Priorities
 Student success
 Internationally recognised research
 Community engagement
 Global reputation
 Impact, often metrics-based
Library Transformations
 Shift from collections to users
 Interactive learning spaces
 Digital and other literacies
 New roles across research cycle
 Partnerships and convergences

5. But Loss of Status – Why?

6. How the HE
institution may
view the library:
examples from
the literature

7. Traditional
Perspectives

8. Limited Impact
on Institutional
Priorities

9. Taken for
Granted

10. Invisibility

11. Invisibility

12. Dissonance:
Library Directors
and their Bosses

13. Dissonance:
Library
Directors and
Academics

14. Slow To Change
“There is, some of our participants thought, a
focus on incremental rather than disruptive
change, and a lack of truly innovative thinking
in libraries.”

15. Some Own Goals

16. “Service” Terminology

17. The Wrong Conversations?

18. Misalignment
only seven documents (11.1%) included
goals relating to student recruitment, retention,
persistence, or other success factors. These
references were often vague.
Only 17 libraries (27%) made explicit connections
between their plan and the larger university plan.

19. Misalignment

20. Communication Deficits

21. Lack of Strategy

22. Inward Focus

23. Brand Complacency

24. Advancing the
Library’s Position

25. Use New Language

26. Focus on Campus Priorities
SCONUL Focus, 66, 2016

27. Get Out More

28. Partner Broadly, Don’t Serve Narrowly

29. Assert Value and Get Credit
“The problem is not browsing or access; it is timidity. And until
librarianship moves away from our academic inferiority
complex and embraces the calling of digital work in contrast to
the vocation of servitude, digital humanities will continue to be
led by smart, capable, progressive faculty members in English
and History.”

30. Concluding
Observations
 Library transformations deserve more credit
 Short attention spans, large portfolios make that difficult
 Others are transforming/being transformed too
 Is our identity clear and distinctive?
 We have a stronger contribution to make to campus issues, but:
 Are others noticeably more committed beyond their departments?
 Complexity, change management, compliance are restraints
 Newer agendas, eg digital literacy, open research, are campus issues
 Maybe we are too good a citizen and need a harder edge?

31. Source of References
https://tinyurl.com/y8bkerpq

32. References
Baker, D., & Allden, A. (2017b). Leading libraries: the view from above.
Retrieved from https://www.sconul.ac.uk/publication/the-view-from-above
Baker, D., & Allden, A. (2017b). Leading libraries: the view from beyond.
Retrieved from
https://www.sconul.ac.uk/publication/the-view-from-beyond
Connaway, L. S., Harvey, W., Kitzie, V., & Mikitish, S. (2017). Academic
library impact: improving practice and essential areas to research.
Retrieved from
http://www.ala.org/acrl/sites/ala.org.acrl/files/content/publications/whitepa
pers/academiclib.pdf
Melling, M., & Weaver, M. (2017). The Teaching Excellence Framework:
what does it mean for academic libraries? Insights, 30(3), 152-160.
Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1629/uksg.389

33. References
Murray, A., & Ireland, A. (2018). Provosts' perceptions of academic library value
& preferences for communication: A national study. College & Research
Libraries, 79(3), 336-365. Retrieved from
https://crl.acrl.org/index.php/crl/article/view/16693/18647
Pinfield, S., Cox, A. M., & Smith, J. (2014). Research data management and
libraries: relationships, activities, drivers and influences. PLoS ONE, 9(12),
e114734. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0114734
Saunders, L. Academic libraries' strategic plans: top trends and
under-recognized areas. J Academic Librarianship, 41(3) 2015
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2015.03.011
Saunders, L. (2016). Room for improvement: Priorities in academic libraries’
strategic plans. Journal of Library Administration, 56(1), 1-16. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2015.1105029

34. References
SCONUL. (2016). Leadership challenges. Some views from those in the hot seat.
SCONUL Focus, (66), 4-13. Retrieved from
https://www.sconul.ac.uk/sites/default/files/documents/2_17.pdf
Vandegrift, M., & Varner, S. (2013). Evolving in common: creating mutually
supportive relationships between libraries and the digital humanities. Journal
of Library Administration, 53(1), 67-78. Retrieved from
http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2013.756699
Wolff-Eisenberg, C. (2017). Ithaka S+R US library survey 2016. Retrieved from
https://doi.org/10.18665/sr.303066
Wolff-Eisenberg, C., Rod, A. B., & Schonfeld, R. C. (2016b). Ithaka S+R US faculty
survey 2015. Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.18665/sr.277685