This document discusses the importance of including assessment in library projects. It advocates creating clear goals tied to strategic plans and measures of success before beginning a project. This allows projects to be adjusted or stopped if not working. Two examples are provided: a research help desk project and discovery evaluation. For each, goals and measures were set, then results like improved relations and justification for purchases were found through assessment. The document concludes by providing a project proposal template to formalize goal and measure planning.

1. Planning with
Numbers: Building
Assessment into
Projects
Ready, set, assess!

2. In the old days…
• Get an idea.
• (Maybe) draft a plan.
• (Maybe) confer with a
colleague or two.
• (Maybe) talk to some other
people.
• Do it.
• Sit back and receive kudos,
watch enjoy the improved
service/collection/space.

3. • How did you know the project was appropriate for your
library?
• Did it fit larger library or institutional goals?
• Could you articulate its costs and benefits?
• Who was supposed to benefit from this project? Did they
know it was happening? Did they realize how it was supposed
to improve their library world?
How was the project deemed a success?
Or failure?
But…

4. Enter: Assessment!
• Create clear goals - tie your project to strategic plan, give your
project potential for “success”.
• Create clear measures for assessing “success”.
• Ensure key stakeholders are central to these goals and
measures.
• Mitigate negative issues created by change.
• Create a plan with “stop-and-measure” points along the way =
adjustments can be made OR kill switch can be pulled.
• Broadcast your success – communication is made easy
because you have already collected the data!
• Continue to measure the product against the stated goals OR
create new goals for the implemented project.

5. Project 1:
New Research Help Desk
• Proposed move from big reference desk to integrated
Research Help Desk at front counter.
• Stakeholders: Students, Librarians, Staff
• Two outcomes available:
• Stay integrated into main front counter
• buy a new, smaller desk
• Proposed project viewed very negatively by some Librarians
and staff.
• Carried out Mar-July 2014
• Kill point: end of spring term

6. Project 1:
New Research Help Desk
• Consultation and
discussion yielded goals:
1. Students can find and
use our services as or
more easily
2. Workspace is adequate
and comfortable
3. Workspace does not
inhibit student/Librarian
interaction
4. Neutral or positive
impact on Circulation
Services work area
• Goals yielded measures
& tools:
1. Student
satisfaction/survey;
observation
2. Librarian
satisfaction/direct
feedback
3. Student
satisfaction/survey
4. Staff satisfaction/direct
feedback

7. Project 1:
New Research Help Desk
• RESULTS (besides a new desk):
• Students: Improved visibility, same high quality
of service confirmed
• Staff: Relations with staff improved, negative
impact of change mitigated
• Librarians: feel more integrated, still working
out comfort issues

8. Project 2:
Discovery Evaluation
• Reviewing 2 webscale discovery
products for potential purchase.
• Goals:
• Improve accessibility of the collection
• Provide more intuitive search environment
• Spend our money wisely

9. Project 2:
Discovery Evaluation
• Reviewing 2 webscale discovery
products for potential purchase.
• Decision & Implementation Measures/Tools:
• Stakeholder usability tests
• Stakeholder satisfaction surveys
• Ongoing Measures:
• Actual usage stats
• Change in usage stats of collection
• Informal observation during user interaction

10. Project 2:
Discovery Evaluation
• RESULTS (besides a new search box):
• Greater insight into user experience with these
products and searching in general
• Clear justification for purchase of preferred product
based on evidence
• Potential justification for ongoing expense
• Branding opportunity for new search across campus

11. Project Proposal Template
Goals
What is this project trying to achieve?
All factors to be
determined by the
Measures
How will measure the success of the project against the goals
set above?
Will testing or research be required?
Related Library Goals
How does this project advance our Library Goals &
Strategies?
Team with
consultation of the
stakeholders.

12. Attributions
• “talk” icon made by Yannick from www.flaticon.com, licensed
under CC BY 3.0
• “bright light bulb”, “plan”, “working”, “man in a party dancing
with people”, thumbs up” icons made by Freepik from
www.flaticon.com, licensed under CC BY 3.0