This document summarizes the changing role of liaison librarians from traditional roles focused on collections management and reference to more engaged roles centered around instruction, research support, and scholarly communication. It outlines how the University of North Carolina at Greensboro reorganized its liaison model, establishing subject teams and functional teams to refocus liaisons' work on outreach, instruction, and faculty support. The reorganization process and initial accomplishments are described along with ongoing challenges and next steps to further transition and define the new liaison roles.

1. From Collections to Engagement:
The Changing Role of Liaison
Librarians
Kathryn Crowe
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Academic Library Director’s Forum
Shanghai, China
November 2014

2. Changing roles
Traditional
• Reference desk
• Collection management
• Information literacy
• Consultations
New trends
• Engaged and embedded
• Scholarly communication
• Curriculum design
• Streamlined collection
management
• In-depth research
assistance

3. What do U.S. library leaders think?
More Emphasis
• Research skills and
information literacy
• Instructional design
• Learning spaces
• Key services
• Special collections
Less Emphasis
• Reference
• Print collections
management
• Building legacy print
collections
http://www.sr.ithaka.org/research-publications/
ithaka-sr-us-library-survey-2013

4. Leveraging the Liaison Model (Ithaka
S&R 2014)
Themes
• Shifting focus to work of
scholars
• Address new demands
and expectations
• Promoting tools and
templates
Recommendations
• Align with university goals
and indicators
• Collaborate with campus
assessment
• Quantify progress toward
goals
http://www.sr.ithaka.org/blog-individual/
leveraging-liaison-model-defining-
21st-century-research-libraries-implementing-
21st

5. Why change at UNCG?
Liaisons
• Less desk time
• Less collection
management
• More time for information
literacy, outreach,
engagement
Libraries’ Administration
• Streamline collection
management
• More time working with
faculty on scholarly
communication
• More time on in-depth
research work with students
and faculty

6. Reorganization process
• Appointed task force
to:
• Examine past and
current liaison
responsibilities
• Benchmark other
libraries
• Recommend models for
new organizational
structure

7. Key findings from benchmarking
• Many libraries have decentralized
model
• Most have a collections department
• Some have teams
• Some have formally prioritized liaison
responsibilities with engagement as the
top priority

8. Previous structure
Reference &
Instructional
Services
Electronic
Resources &
Information
Technology
Library
Administration
Various liaisons Various liaisons Various liaisons
Collection Management Committee
(chaired by head of Collections)
(also included non-liaisons, ex. the head of Acquisitions)

9. New structure
Instruction
Coordinator
Head, Research,
Outreach and
Instruction
AD for Collections
& Scholarly
Communications
The leadership
team, along with the
3 subject team
coordinators
Humanities
Team
Social
Science
Team
Natural
Science
Team
AD for
Public
Services
Staff &
student
worker
support
Reference Desk
Coordinator

10. Functional teams:
Composed of liaisons from each
subject team plus other librarians & staff
Instruction
Team
Social
Science
Team
Humanities
Team
Natural
Science
Team
Reference
Desk Team
Collections
Team
Scholarly
Communications
Team

11. Planning & implementation timeline (2013-14)
2013
Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
Implement Collections
Team in Acquisitions
Liaisons track their tasks
& work load, &
contemplate prioritizing
& dropping roles
Liaisons officially
prioritize roles
Begin formation of ”Liaison
Department” with teams &
functional coordinators
Establish best practices & have
training on working in teams
Discuss roles of
functional coordinators
Increased focus on scholarly
communication, open
access, & research support

12. Planning & implementation timeline
2014
Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec
+
Redefined roles
of liaisons continue
Liaisons evaluate
developments
so far
Final Implementation

13. Accomplishments 2013-14
• Provided training and
professional development
• Refined collection
management procedures
and planning
• Renamed Reference
Department to Research,
Outreach and Instruction
• Enhanced research
support
• Improved communication
and collaboration across
the Libraries and campus
• Curriculum mapping for
information literacy
• More opportunities and
flexibility for innovation
• Emphasized “triage” at
Reference Desk

14. Challenges
• Team structure can be “messy”
• Some resistance to change
• Communication -- much improved but always an issue!
• What do we give up?
• Staffing issues

15. What’s next?
• Focus goals and measures
• Continue training and professional development
• Monthly informal “coffee break” meetings
• Increase communication of value to the campus
• Improve collections planning
• Refine performance evaluation process

16. Recommendations
• Must have buy-in and participation at all levels
• Align with library and university goals
• You can’t communicate too much!
• Tell your story

17. More information
• Liaison Task Force Report
• http://tinyurl.com/liaisontf
• Email:
kmcrowe@uncg.edu