Redefining Who We Serve

(Part 3 of the white paper I'm working on)

The notion of whom we serve deserves a fresh look. Historically, we focused on providing information services to the students and faculty of our own institutions. We served other information seekers, but at a much lower priority. In the Information Age, the Internet has given every academic library the capacity to provide information services to the whole world. It turns out that there are great benefits in doing so relative to the cost.

Reevaluating our mission in terms of the entire world of information seekers is justified by the consideration that all academic libraries stand to benefit by pursuing this philosophy. It is easy for a contrarian to observe that Institution A is not serving its mission by providing access to digital collections to patrons of Institution B. On the other hand, Institution B'’s digital resources may very well be benefiting the patrons of Institution A. This pay-it-forward philosophy imbues the culture of the Information Age, from Open Source software to Open Access collections. As for the cost, for some of these services, such digitizing special collections, there is virtually zero marginal cost for delivery. In other words, it does not cost any more to provide access to the whole world than it does to provide access to local patrons. In fact, the greater cost would come in not providing these services at all, resulting in a library culture that is increasingly irrelevant in the Information Age.

The other major benefit is that a strong online presence raises the profile of the institution, its scholars, and its collections. Institutional repositories, consisting of scholarly work emanating from the institution, can increase access to scholarship that would otherwise be virtually inaccessible. Studies have shown a positive correlation between online access and scholarly impact. A common problem for archives is raising public awareness of collections. Digitizing special collections can do this. In many cases, the materials in these archives are singular, and only the institution that possesses, say, a letter from a Civil War soldier, can digitize it and provide it in a networked environment. In fact, raising awareness of special collections may have side benefits in terms of philanthropic development, sponsorship, and community engagement.

(Next up, evaluating our services)

Adapting to the Information Age

(Part 2 of the white paper I'm working on.)

Our patrons no longer perceive that we provide unique services. We do not have a monopoly on information services; rather, our broader culture is an information culture. The Google search engine is the first choice of many for information needs. The full-text of our newspapers are available online with up-to-the-minute coverage. Apple'’s iTunes service, a digital music and video library, is a mainstream commercial success. In academe, open-access projects such as arXive, the Public Library of Science, and the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy have demonstrated that scholarly content can be delivered free on the web, completely external to traditional library services.

Whether we are aware of it or not, we compete for the attention of our patrons who have alternatives for information access. We exist in an expanding information culture in a mature information age. Academic libraries can remain relevant in this age, but the key to our success will be in developing new services that are valuable to our patrons in the context of the broader landscape. Our professional values should remain our guide, but our means must adapt. In order to evolve our services, we must understand, embrace, and adapt to modern times. Foremost, we must thoroughly understand the need and desires of our patrons, and strive to meet those needs. Besides this, we must understand the information culture from multiple perspectives and seek opportunities to innovate and improve in ways that support our values:

- What information do our patrons want and how do they want it delivered? What can we do with information (how can we add value to it) to make it easier for them to use?

- What is the life cycle of digital information? How should the academic library manage information throughout its life cycle? Are we doing all that we should be doing, or should we do things differently?

- What are the relevant technologies? What new technologies are being introduced? How can we employ these technologies in support of our services?

(Next, I'm going to talk about some specific steps we can take here and now.)