This document provides guidance and best practices for library liaisons to effectively engage with academic departments on campus. It recommends that liaisons develop an elevator pitch about library services, directly contact faculty with specific collaboration proposals, maintain positive relationships, and become embedded in departments by participating in classes and projects. The document also stresses assessing faculty needs, gaining expertise in subject areas, promoting resources, and creating discipline-specific guides and tutorials. Success is defined as increased collaboration, a greater library presence on campus, and being viewed as peers and experts by other faculty. Sustainability requires routinely reviewing roles and maintaining relationships through ongoing promotion and outreach activities.

1. Welcome Back! Day Two

2. Homework
• Our next challenge to discuss—outreach.
• Before we meet tomorrow, be ready to share:
– A program you would like to reach out to
– A faculty member’s class you would like to work
with

3. Homework review
• Use the whiteboard tools and share:
– A program you would like to reach out to
– A faculty member’s class you would like to work
with
– Add—a strategy you think will help you
get a foot in the door.

4. Best practices: outreach
• The elevator speech
• “What’s going on in the library?”
• Response—more than “Idunnonotmuch”

5. Sparking Interest
• Contact faculty directly
• Have a specific proposal in mind
• Offer your services after a rash of
questions
• Rely on word of mouth
• Maintain positive interactions and open
communication

6. The Collection Development Connection
• Liaison program + computers=
getting your foot in the door!
• When you meet the needs of faculty well
(collections, electronic resources, hardware)
they become more involved as partners.

7. Becoming embedded
• Librarians “go native”—are on the ground
departmentally and play a direct role in a
class or departmental project

8. Embedded librarians
• Have a presence in the academic
department
• Begin in departments that are already
“library friendly” –experiment and grow
• Don’t get overloaded!
• Discover what is most valued by
faculty/students in the class/department

9. Remember…
• You aren’t going to persuade them all
• Build strong relationships with a few
• Build trust/respect
• Use that contact to gain the notice/interest
of others
• Walk the halls!

10. Before You Go There…
• Know the field (resources, journals,
reference tools)
• Be forward, but not aggressive
• Never assume anything
• Don’t be shocked (what do you MEAN you
don’t know what ERIC is!?!)
• Be open to new ideas and methods
• Be sure you REALLY want to do this!

11. Meeting regularly with faculty…
• …but as an asset, not “because my director
said I should get on the agenda this month”
• Participate in seminars, meetings, etc.
• Take a class!
• Take instruction to the department
• Team teach—divide and conquer complex
material together as a team
• Hang out over there

12. Understand collections
• Seek prodev opportunities in disciplinary areas
• Participate in scholarly organizations (discipline specific
groups/roundtables at ALA)
• Conduct subject or database specific workshops
• Share discipline specific trends with your librarian
colleagues
• Work with faculty to create subject guides

13. Promote and teach about
resources
• Integrate info lit concepts into the discipline
• Research consultations
• Information literacy instruction
• Design tutorials
• Become “embedded”
• Develop places and spaces to show off

14. Creating discipline specific
resources
• Russell’s 5x5x5 rule for pathfinders
– 5 most important print/reference
– 5 most important databases
– 5 most important internet resources

15. How to be extremely unsuccessful at creating a
subject guide

16. Exercise
• As a group, we’re going to create a subject
guide.
• Using the 5x5x5 method and the
whiteboard, create a subject guide for
biology

17. Assessing your liaison program
• Formative
– Needs assessment/survey for faculty AND
liaisons
– Effectiveness of liaison training
• Ongoing and summative
– Assess faculty satisfaction
• Collections
• Services
• Instruction

18. For you, what does success look
like?
• Share on the whiteboard what factors are indicative of a
successful liaison program at your library:

19. What does success look like?
• Increased collections usage
• More efficient spending of dedicated funds in the
disciplines
• Faculty and librarians work more closely together
– Create/develop instruction, assignments, guides
together
– Greater dialogue about all library services
• Increase overall number of instruction sessions
• Greater presence in the campus community

20. Success…
• A librarian or two on every faculty committee
• Considered peers by other faculty
• Librarian office hours in departments
• One-on-one consultation with faculty and
students on research
• Increase in respect for the library on campus

21. Keys to liaison program
sustainability
• Liaison role must remain fluid and be
reviewed routinely
• Adding skills/knowledge, and keeping up
• Consistent promotion and marketing—if you
start a new books blog…
• Getting/maintaining buy in/nurturing
relationships

22. This will happen with liaisons
• Who…
• Are experts, consultants, facilitators
• Support faculty in challenging areas—intellectual
property/copyright, technology, assignment building
• Customize information to meet faculty/student needs
• Are seen outside the library
• Train not only students, but faculty and staff, to use
information resources

23. Thank You For Attending!
Questions/Comments?
• 1.800.999.8558
• Email: russell.palmer@lyrasis.org