ARC Customer Service Interest Group met on Wednesday, April 15, 2009 at Emmanuel d'Alzon Library at Assumption College in Worcester, MA.
Attendees: Dodie Gaudet (CMRLS), Matthew Haggard (Nichols), Patty Porcaro (HolyCross), Janice Wilber (Assumption), Larry Spongberg (Assumption), and Barbara Merolli (Holy Cross)
1. Janice Wilber, Assumption College, demonstrated the clicker system used at Assumption’s library to provide refresher training to returning student workers. This consisted of a power point presentation integrated into the clicker software. Participates answered a series of questions and learned the results of the group’s answers almost immediately, via a bar chart displayed on the screen.
2. Janice provided copies of the Scavenger Hunt training tool used at Assumption to re-acquaint student workers with the library prior to the beginning of the fall semester.
3. Attendees participated in a round table discussion of student worker practices at their respective libraries.
Dodie Gaudet provided information on two upcoming events:Friends of CMRLS is hosting a viewing of The Hollywood Librarian on Friday, May 15, 2009 at the Hogan Campus Center at Holy Cross College, Suites B & C on the 4th floor. There is a reception at 6:00 pm and the movie will be start at 7:00 pm. The cost of $30.00 per person covers hors d’oeuvres, 1 beverage, move and a one year membership to the Friends of CMRSL organization.
4. Pioneer Valley Association of Academic Libraries (PVAAL) is holding its spring meeting at Mt. Holyoke College, on Wednesday, April 29, 2009. A reception begins at 5:00 PM, with dinner at 6:00 PM and discussion at 7:00 PM. The discussion will be lead by GSLIS students who will present on topics of technology, content management, folksonomy (user-generated meta-data), and uses for library 2.0 applications. Dinner and reception cost is $25.00. For additional information, please contact Gary Atwood at (413) 748-3504 or gatwood@spfldcol.edu
5. Matthew Haggard tendered his resignation as chair of the Customer Service Interest Group after several years of serving in this capacity, to allow someone else the opportunity to lead the group and bring new ideas and programs to its members.
No one at the meeting volunteered to become chair. If members of ARC would like to see this interest group continue, they are urged to volunteer for this leadership opportunity. If anyone is interested and would like more information, contact Matthew who will be happy to provide relevant details.
Thursday, April 16, 2009
Friday, June 20, 2008
ARC Customer Service Interest Group met on Thursday, June 19, 2008.
Attendees: Alice Baron (AMC), Dodie Gaudet (CMRLS), Matthew Haggard (Nichols), Ginny Julian (WPI), Paula McDonald (QCC), Barbara Merolli (Holy Cross)
1. Review and Discuss Draft Mission Statement
The draft mission statement of the Customer Service Group was accepted without changes.
2. Best Practices Using ILL/Circulation Software ProgramsQuestions discussed are:
1. E-reserves and what systems are being used: intranets, Blackboard, etc. Issues and recommendations
Most libraries still handle print reserves, with some libraries adding them into their circulation system for checking in and out. Software programs that are used include Blackboard, ERes (Docutek), WebCT. WPI will be using SharePoint for document collaboration and Holy Cross is introducing Moodle but for course management, not for electronic reserves.
2. Video/Media reserves, requests, and ILL. Can faculty request themselves and does anyone uses interactive calendars to put hold on videos or what else is being used and how? What are the best practices?
None of the attendees use digital scheduling software or interactive calendars for managing video/DVD loans at their libraries. Some libraries restrict use of video/DVD to in-library use only, some check out media materials to faculty only, some check out to students and faculty.
Most libraries that checkout materials do so for a shorter period of time than books. Some libraries will put more expensive videos/DVDs on permanent reserve. The reluctance to loan out DVD/videos is due to the concern about losing them, and a need to have them available to faculty to use in classroom, especially if the materials were specifically requested by faculty.
3. Sharing of e-resources for ILL- Do licenses allow this? What are best ways to share them within ARC?
Licensing agreements and contracts with vendors or publishers stipulate what can be shared, with many restricting or prohibiting the sharing of resources through ILL. Some libraries considered giving college alum off campus access to their databases, but vendors and publisher charge high fees for allowing this or don’t allow it at all.
Some ARC libraries are using the Boston Public Library e-card and providing students with information for acquiring an e-card. Some colleges are adding BPL databases to their own list of resources. None of the ARC libraries use the BPL e-card to fulfill ILL requests, with the understanding that this would be violating copyright laws.
4. What group purchases or consortia agreements do libraries use?
ILL groups or consortia used by ARC libraries include LVIS, DOCLINE, OCLC, CMRLS, CWMARS. Other groups/consortia used by libraries for purchasing databases include NERL, WALDO, NELINET and Oberlin.
5. What non-conventional models for accessing/sharing materials are libraries considering/using?
There is an issue with getting ILL materials to borrowers who are distant from the library’s physical location, including satellite campuses and online education programs. Providing students with access to services from remote locations is a challenge. Some colleges integrate access with their network login. Others have separate user id and password login processes.
Registering on-campus students is cumbersome at some colleges, where the library manually registers every student for a library card. For other libraries, the college has automated the process with the college-issued ID cards. At some, there is a combination of processes with full-time students being registered automatically and part-time and graduate students having to register manually.
6. Are libraries streaming video through Blackboard (or other programs) for courses rather than putting them on reserve at the library?
None of the ARC libraries represented at the meeting are streaming video through course management software.
7. How are reserves put on Blackboard or WebCT or Moodle—who takes them off at the end of the semester?
This varies, in some cases the faculty put things up on reserves and in others the library staff will do it.
8. Records management? How long are records kept? Guidelines say 3 years.
There are supposedly guidelines that say three years, but the source of this guideline was unclear. Some libraries will keep records for 3 years or 6 years. It was noted that paper records are no longer required to tabulate statistics with the ability to pull reports from OCLC, although no one could definitely say how long OCLC retains their records.
9. WorldCat Direct [http://www.oclc.org/productworks/betterworldbook.htm}
WorldCat Direct mails books directly to borrowing patron, with an option to purchase the book if the patron wishes to keep it. A trial of this service has been underway since February, but none of the attendees had heard about it until Dodie provided some information about it for this meeting.
3. Discussion of ARC Strategic Plan Goal for Customer Service
The Customer Service objective and first of two related activities are:
Objective C. Promote ARC’s traditional resource sharing services.
Activity: 1. Assure that all resource sharing library staff are aware of emerging developments/software.This activity has a timeframe for completion of “Spring 2009.”
The assessment is to be a “written report with summary of proposed technologies.”
Prior to the next Customer Service interest group meeting, we will update the list of ILL contacts for all ARC libraries and draft an email to directors of all ARC libraries regarding this initiative. Survey will be compiled to determine:
Attendees: Alice Baron (AMC), Dodie Gaudet (CMRLS), Matthew Haggard (Nichols), Ginny Julian (WPI), Paula McDonald (QCC), Barbara Merolli (Holy Cross)
1. Review and Discuss Draft Mission Statement
The draft mission statement of the Customer Service Group was accepted without changes.
2. Best Practices Using ILL/Circulation Software ProgramsQuestions discussed are:
1. E-reserves and what systems are being used: intranets, Blackboard, etc. Issues and recommendations
Most libraries still handle print reserves, with some libraries adding them into their circulation system for checking in and out. Software programs that are used include Blackboard, ERes (Docutek), WebCT. WPI will be using SharePoint for document collaboration and Holy Cross is introducing Moodle but for course management, not for electronic reserves.
2. Video/Media reserves, requests, and ILL. Can faculty request themselves and does anyone uses interactive calendars to put hold on videos or what else is being used and how? What are the best practices?
None of the attendees use digital scheduling software or interactive calendars for managing video/DVD loans at their libraries. Some libraries restrict use of video/DVD to in-library use only, some check out media materials to faculty only, some check out to students and faculty.
Most libraries that checkout materials do so for a shorter period of time than books. Some libraries will put more expensive videos/DVDs on permanent reserve. The reluctance to loan out DVD/videos is due to the concern about losing them, and a need to have them available to faculty to use in classroom, especially if the materials were specifically requested by faculty.
3. Sharing of e-resources for ILL- Do licenses allow this? What are best ways to share them within ARC?
Licensing agreements and contracts with vendors or publishers stipulate what can be shared, with many restricting or prohibiting the sharing of resources through ILL. Some libraries considered giving college alum off campus access to their databases, but vendors and publisher charge high fees for allowing this or don’t allow it at all.
Some ARC libraries are using the Boston Public Library e-card and providing students with information for acquiring an e-card. Some colleges are adding BPL databases to their own list of resources. None of the ARC libraries use the BPL e-card to fulfill ILL requests, with the understanding that this would be violating copyright laws.
4. What group purchases or consortia agreements do libraries use?
ILL groups or consortia used by ARC libraries include LVIS, DOCLINE, OCLC, CMRLS, CWMARS. Other groups/consortia used by libraries for purchasing databases include NERL, WALDO, NELINET and Oberlin.
5. What non-conventional models for accessing/sharing materials are libraries considering/using?
There is an issue with getting ILL materials to borrowers who are distant from the library’s physical location, including satellite campuses and online education programs. Providing students with access to services from remote locations is a challenge. Some colleges integrate access with their network login. Others have separate user id and password login processes.
Registering on-campus students is cumbersome at some colleges, where the library manually registers every student for a library card. For other libraries, the college has automated the process with the college-issued ID cards. At some, there is a combination of processes with full-time students being registered automatically and part-time and graduate students having to register manually.
6. Are libraries streaming video through Blackboard (or other programs) for courses rather than putting them on reserve at the library?
None of the ARC libraries represented at the meeting are streaming video through course management software.
7. How are reserves put on Blackboard or WebCT or Moodle—who takes them off at the end of the semester?
This varies, in some cases the faculty put things up on reserves and in others the library staff will do it.
8. Records management? How long are records kept? Guidelines say 3 years.
There are supposedly guidelines that say three years, but the source of this guideline was unclear. Some libraries will keep records for 3 years or 6 years. It was noted that paper records are no longer required to tabulate statistics with the ability to pull reports from OCLC, although no one could definitely say how long OCLC retains their records.
9. WorldCat Direct [http://www.oclc.org/productworks/betterworldbook.htm}
WorldCat Direct mails books directly to borrowing patron, with an option to purchase the book if the patron wishes to keep it. A trial of this service has been underway since February, but none of the attendees had heard about it until Dodie provided some information about it for this meeting.
3. Discussion of ARC Strategic Plan Goal for Customer Service
The Customer Service objective and first of two related activities are:
Objective C. Promote ARC’s traditional resource sharing services.
Activity: 1. Assure that all resource sharing library staff are aware of emerging developments/software.This activity has a timeframe for completion of “Spring 2009.”
The assessment is to be a “written report with summary of proposed technologies.”
Prior to the next Customer Service interest group meeting, we will update the list of ILL contacts for all ARC libraries and draft an email to directors of all ARC libraries regarding this initiative. Survey will be compiled to determine:
- 1. What resource sharing technology does your library currently use?
- 2. Are you planning to upgrade or change your resource sharing technology within the next year?
- 3. How do you learn about or keep up to date with new resource sharing technology?
- 4. What communication tools would you be willing to use or would like to see used for sharing information about new resource sharing technology: newsletters (print or electronic), blogs, wiki’s, email, ipods, etc.
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
The ARC Customer Service IG met on Friday, March 28, 2008 at Holy Cross.
In attendance were: Dodie Gaudet (CMRLS), Kathy Maxwell (WSC), Eileen Cravedi (HC), Ginny Julian (WPI) and Barbara Merolli (HC).
Review Meeting Notes from January 11, 2008 with corrections and comments:
· Corrected spelling of CLIO.
· Barcode placement on books – Discussion related to reasons for change: change was made to accommodate future software for more automated processing of books, to facilitate inventorying books, and facilitate checking books in and out. More important to change the location to the outside of the book cover, less important is whether the front or back cover is used. This policy is for new books only going forward, not retroactive.
Preview Revised ARC Borrowing Letter with New Logo
Question was asked if we can have the new text in electronic format to begin using it on the old letterhead stationery until the supply is exhausted.
Question was asked why UMass Medical School library is not on the “In-House Only” list.
Both questions are being routed back through CMRLS for response: Per Rick Levine on 3/31/08, the “fillable form” templates will be ready in a few weeks. The UMass omission is being investigated.
Review and Discuss Draft Mission Statement
The draft mission statement of the Customer Service Group was discussed and revised to read:
“The Academic and Research Collaborative (ARC) Customer Service Interest Group (CSIG) represents the rim in a wheel analogy, where Circulation and Interlibrary Loan is the hub. The spokes of the wheel are Reference, Collection Management, Communications, Governance, Professional Development, and the Steering Committee. The Customer Service Interest Group shall provide a rim of awareness on customer service issues and initiatives to the ARC member libraries and greater CMRLS community. This awareness will be accomplished through periodic meetings, the CMRLS ARC web site, Customer Service Interest Group blog, and other venues as appropriate which may include wiki’s, social networks, and the Central Massachusetts Regional Library System ARC annual meeting.”
The revised mission statement will be reviewed and discussed again at the next meeting.
Discussion of ARC Strategic Plan Goal for Customer Service
The Customer Service objective and first of two related activities are:
Objective C. Promote ARC’s traditional resource sharing services.
Activity 1. Assure that all resource sharing library staff are aware of emerging developments/software.
This activity has a timeframe for completion of “Spring 2009.” The assessment is to be a “written report with summary of proposed technologies.”
Discussed using a survey format to identify what librarians know about technologies, what is used, what technologies librarians want to learn about, what other information is of interest to librarians in the realm of customer service. Discussed using Survey Monkey to distribute the survey and ARC-L list serve to publicize the survey. The timeframes for the survey are:
Creating Survey - Beginning of 2008 Fall Semester
Publicizing Survey – First half 2008 Fall Semester
Analyzing Survey – December CSIG meeting
Write and Publish Summary – Spring 2009
Further discussion of the survey, and formulation of survey questions will be conducted at the next CSIG meeting.
Identify Term Lengths for Officer Positions for CSIG
The terms of office were two years under the previous WACL structure. Secretary will check with other interest groups to determine what they have adopted for terms of office.
Best Practices Using ILL/Circulation Software Programs
Questions formulated for discussion of this topic are identified below. Participants will be asked to bring copies their current practices to the next meeting. Questions include but are not limited to:
1. E-reserves and what systems are being used: intranets, Blackboard, etc. Issues and recommendations
2. Video/Media reserves, requests, and ILL. Can faculty request themselves and does anyone uses interactive calendars to put hold on videos or what else is being used and how? What are the best practices?
3. Sharing of e-resources for ILL-Do licenses allow this? What are best ways to share them within ARC?
4. What group purchases or consortia agreements do libraries use?
5. What non-conventional models for accessing/sharing materials are libraries considering/using?
6. Are libraries streaming video through Blackboard (or other programs) for courses rather than putting them on reserve at the library?
7. How are reserves put on Blackboard or WebCT or Moodle—who takes them off at the end of the semester?
Other questions can be submitted for discussion.
Communications
Barbara Merolli created a blog on the for the Customer Service Interest Group at http://custsvcig.blogspot.com/
Matthew Haggard set up a Facebook group called CMRLS ARC Customer Service Interest Group, with a link to the blog. Meeting notes will be available via either of these two sites.
Next Meeting
The next meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, June 19, 2008 at 2:30 PM at CMRLS, 8 Flagg Road, Shrewsbury, MA. Directions are available at http://www.cmrls.org/about/directions.htm.
In attendance were: Dodie Gaudet (CMRLS), Kathy Maxwell (WSC), Eileen Cravedi (HC), Ginny Julian (WPI) and Barbara Merolli (HC).
Review Meeting Notes from January 11, 2008 with corrections and comments:
· Corrected spelling of CLIO.
· Barcode placement on books – Discussion related to reasons for change: change was made to accommodate future software for more automated processing of books, to facilitate inventorying books, and facilitate checking books in and out. More important to change the location to the outside of the book cover, less important is whether the front or back cover is used. This policy is for new books only going forward, not retroactive.
Preview Revised ARC Borrowing Letter with New Logo
Question was asked if we can have the new text in electronic format to begin using it on the old letterhead stationery until the supply is exhausted.
Question was asked why UMass Medical School library is not on the “In-House Only” list.
Both questions are being routed back through CMRLS for response: Per Rick Levine on 3/31/08, the “fillable form” templates will be ready in a few weeks. The UMass omission is being investigated.
Review and Discuss Draft Mission Statement
The draft mission statement of the Customer Service Group was discussed and revised to read:
“The Academic and Research Collaborative (ARC) Customer Service Interest Group (CSIG) represents the rim in a wheel analogy, where Circulation and Interlibrary Loan is the hub. The spokes of the wheel are Reference, Collection Management, Communications, Governance, Professional Development, and the Steering Committee. The Customer Service Interest Group shall provide a rim of awareness on customer service issues and initiatives to the ARC member libraries and greater CMRLS community. This awareness will be accomplished through periodic meetings, the CMRLS ARC web site, Customer Service Interest Group blog, and other venues as appropriate which may include wiki’s, social networks, and the Central Massachusetts Regional Library System ARC annual meeting.”
The revised mission statement will be reviewed and discussed again at the next meeting.
Discussion of ARC Strategic Plan Goal for Customer Service
The Customer Service objective and first of two related activities are:
Objective C. Promote ARC’s traditional resource sharing services.
Activity 1. Assure that all resource sharing library staff are aware of emerging developments/software.
This activity has a timeframe for completion of “Spring 2009.” The assessment is to be a “written report with summary of proposed technologies.”
Discussed using a survey format to identify what librarians know about technologies, what is used, what technologies librarians want to learn about, what other information is of interest to librarians in the realm of customer service. Discussed using Survey Monkey to distribute the survey and ARC-L list serve to publicize the survey. The timeframes for the survey are:
Creating Survey - Beginning of 2008 Fall Semester
Publicizing Survey – First half 2008 Fall Semester
Analyzing Survey – December CSIG meeting
Write and Publish Summary – Spring 2009
Further discussion of the survey, and formulation of survey questions will be conducted at the next CSIG meeting.
Identify Term Lengths for Officer Positions for CSIG
The terms of office were two years under the previous WACL structure. Secretary will check with other interest groups to determine what they have adopted for terms of office.
Best Practices Using ILL/Circulation Software Programs
Questions formulated for discussion of this topic are identified below. Participants will be asked to bring copies their current practices to the next meeting. Questions include but are not limited to:
1. E-reserves and what systems are being used: intranets, Blackboard, etc. Issues and recommendations
2. Video/Media reserves, requests, and ILL. Can faculty request themselves and does anyone uses interactive calendars to put hold on videos or what else is being used and how? What are the best practices?
3. Sharing of e-resources for ILL-Do licenses allow this? What are best ways to share them within ARC?
4. What group purchases or consortia agreements do libraries use?
5. What non-conventional models for accessing/sharing materials are libraries considering/using?
6. Are libraries streaming video through Blackboard (or other programs) for courses rather than putting them on reserve at the library?
7. How are reserves put on Blackboard or WebCT or Moodle—who takes them off at the end of the semester?
Other questions can be submitted for discussion.
Communications
Barbara Merolli created a blog on the for the Customer Service Interest Group at http://custsvcig.blogspot.com/
Matthew Haggard set up a Facebook group called CMRLS ARC Customer Service Interest Group, with a link to the blog. Meeting notes will be available via either of these two sites.
Next Meeting
The next meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, June 19, 2008 at 2:30 PM at CMRLS, 8 Flagg Road, Shrewsbury, MA. Directions are available at http://www.cmrls.org/about/directions.htm.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
ARC Customer Service Interest Group - January 11, 2008 Meeting Notes
ARC Interest Group History and Scope
Prior to the formation of interest groups, ARC had function related committees, including a circulation committee and an interlibrary loan committee.
Under the new structure, there are four interest groups: Collection Management, Reference and Information Literacy, Customer Service, and Archives & Special Collections (http://www.cmrls.org/arc/arc_interest_groups.htm). The function and scope of the groups are not defined on the CMRLS ARC web site, but the site does state they are “cross-functional” in nature. This implies that Customer Service could cover circulation and interlibrary loan, but could also include other functional areas.
ARC Strategic Plan Goals
The CMRLS/ARC Academic and Research Collaborative Strategic Plan 2009 –2013 identifies two goals for the Customer Service Interest group in the section entitled “Goal II. Demonstrate ARC’s Impact on the Community,” Objective C. “Promote ARC’s traditional resource sharing services” (See page 8 of the plan).
The two activities assigned to Customer Service under this objective are:
1. Assure that all resource sharing library staff are aware of emerging development/software. Target date is Spring 2009. Assigned assessment is a written report with summary of proposed technologies.
2. Review existing resource sharing/cross borrowing services to identify areas for improvement. Target date is Fall 2009. Assigned assessment is a written report.
This strategic plan was written subsequent to the ARC strategic planning session held on June 4, 2007. Nineteen representatives of 17 member institute libraries participated in the strategic planning session, which was facilitated by Rob Favini and Anja Smit of NELINET.
Customer Service Interest Group Discussion
The group’s responsibilities were discussed. It was determined that the hub function would be circulation and interlibrary loan, but would reach out to other departments including reference and technical services because customer service is a responsibility of all departments. Customer service is important both internally with the library and externally with patrons.
Action Item: Matthew Haggard and Barbara Merolli will draft a mission statement for the Customer Services Interest group for discussion and refinement at the next meeting.
The group discussed the ARC organizations’ cross borrowing program and noted there is a new template coming out for the ARC borrowing letter and cards.
Action Item: Obtain a copy of the template from Rick Levine at CMRLS.
The group identified interlibrary loan and circulation practices:
· There are no pending major changes to ILL Software (CLIO, ILLiad, Ariel) anticipated at this time. The most recent change was an upgrade to CLIO that was required to accommodate the new OCLC five-digit code.
· CMRLS has just adopted a change in practice regarding the placement of bar codes on books. The new policy now states, "To prepare for an eventual delivery solution, the CMRLS Executive Board urges member libraries to: place barcode circulation labels on the front of all new materials, in the upper left corner, parallel to the top of the item." Holy Cross is choosing to do bar code placement on the on the back cover of the book parallel to the top on the right hand side near the spine.
· Envelopes are no longer required for transporting books from library to library through CMRLS. Rubber bands can be used to package books together.
· Discussed the increase in the occurrence of “not found as cited” results for ILL requests.
· Discussed using tutorials to teach patrons how to request material through ILL, either within databases or using an online form on the libraries’ web sites.
· Discussed using blogs or wikis to communicate and share ideas.
Provided by Dodie Gaudet subsequent to the meeting: There are some documents and policies listed in the ARC section of the CMRLS website http://www.cmrls.org/arc/arc_docs.htm
Action Item: Best practices in using ILL and/or circulation software packages and other procedures will be discussed at the next Customer Services interest group meeting.
Customer Services Interest Group Officer ElectionThere were no volunteers for new officers. Matthew Haggard will continue as Chair and Barbara Merolli will continue as Secretary. Action Item: Identify term lengths for officer positions for discussion and approval at next meeting.
Customer Service Interest Group – Future Meetings
The group decided they would meet on a quarterly basis, with the next meeting scheduled for March 28 at 2:30 p.m. at Holy Cross College. Meeting room location to be confirmed and announced at a later date.
Ideas suggested for future meetings include:
· Speaker from NELINET on providing better reference through ILL “Capture” program.
· Demonstration of using clicker technology to provide library instruction to student circulation staff by Assumption College.
· View and discuss Zingerman’s Deli’s Ari Weinzweig’s speech on customer service.
· FISH! Motivational book discussion
· Creation of a blog for Customer Services interest group on the CMRLS ARC web site.
Prior to the formation of interest groups, ARC had function related committees, including a circulation committee and an interlibrary loan committee.
Under the new structure, there are four interest groups: Collection Management, Reference and Information Literacy, Customer Service, and Archives & Special Collections (http://www.cmrls.org/arc/arc_interest_groups.htm). The function and scope of the groups are not defined on the CMRLS ARC web site, but the site does state they are “cross-functional” in nature. This implies that Customer Service could cover circulation and interlibrary loan, but could also include other functional areas.
ARC Strategic Plan Goals
The CMRLS/ARC Academic and Research Collaborative Strategic Plan 2009 –2013 identifies two goals for the Customer Service Interest group in the section entitled “Goal II. Demonstrate ARC’s Impact on the Community,” Objective C. “Promote ARC’s traditional resource sharing services” (See page 8 of the plan).
The two activities assigned to Customer Service under this objective are:
1. Assure that all resource sharing library staff are aware of emerging development/software. Target date is Spring 2009. Assigned assessment is a written report with summary of proposed technologies.
2. Review existing resource sharing/cross borrowing services to identify areas for improvement. Target date is Fall 2009. Assigned assessment is a written report.
This strategic plan was written subsequent to the ARC strategic planning session held on June 4, 2007. Nineteen representatives of 17 member institute libraries participated in the strategic planning session, which was facilitated by Rob Favini and Anja Smit of NELINET.
Customer Service Interest Group Discussion
The group’s responsibilities were discussed. It was determined that the hub function would be circulation and interlibrary loan, but would reach out to other departments including reference and technical services because customer service is a responsibility of all departments. Customer service is important both internally with the library and externally with patrons.
Action Item: Matthew Haggard and Barbara Merolli will draft a mission statement for the Customer Services Interest group for discussion and refinement at the next meeting.
The group discussed the ARC organizations’ cross borrowing program and noted there is a new template coming out for the ARC borrowing letter and cards.
Action Item: Obtain a copy of the template from Rick Levine at CMRLS.
The group identified interlibrary loan and circulation practices:
· There are no pending major changes to ILL Software (CLIO, ILLiad, Ariel) anticipated at this time. The most recent change was an upgrade to CLIO that was required to accommodate the new OCLC five-digit code.
· CMRLS has just adopted a change in practice regarding the placement of bar codes on books. The new policy now states, "To prepare for an eventual delivery solution, the CMRLS Executive Board urges member libraries to: place barcode circulation labels on the front of all new materials, in the upper left corner, parallel to the top of the item." Holy Cross is choosing to do bar code placement on the on the back cover of the book parallel to the top on the right hand side near the spine.
· Envelopes are no longer required for transporting books from library to library through CMRLS. Rubber bands can be used to package books together.
· Discussed the increase in the occurrence of “not found as cited” results for ILL requests.
· Discussed using tutorials to teach patrons how to request material through ILL, either within databases or using an online form on the libraries’ web sites.
· Discussed using blogs or wikis to communicate and share ideas.
Provided by Dodie Gaudet subsequent to the meeting: There are some documents and policies listed in the ARC section of the CMRLS website http://www.cmrls.org/arc/arc_docs.htm
Action Item: Best practices in using ILL and/or circulation software packages and other procedures will be discussed at the next Customer Services interest group meeting.
Customer Services Interest Group Officer ElectionThere were no volunteers for new officers. Matthew Haggard will continue as Chair and Barbara Merolli will continue as Secretary. Action Item: Identify term lengths for officer positions for discussion and approval at next meeting.
Customer Service Interest Group – Future Meetings
The group decided they would meet on a quarterly basis, with the next meeting scheduled for March 28 at 2:30 p.m. at Holy Cross College. Meeting room location to be confirmed and announced at a later date.
Ideas suggested for future meetings include:
· Speaker from NELINET on providing better reference through ILL “Capture” program.
· Demonstration of using clicker technology to provide library instruction to student circulation staff by Assumption College.
· View and discuss Zingerman’s Deli’s Ari Weinzweig’s speech on customer service.
· FISH! Motivational book discussion
· Creation of a blog for Customer Services interest group on the CMRLS ARC web site.
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