special libraries - australian library and information association

ALIA SPECIAL LIBRARIES SURVEY

Report

DECEMBER 2010

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ALIA SPECIAL LIBRARIES SURVEY Report DECEMBER 2010

ALIA SPECIAL LIBRARIES SURVEYReport DECEMBER 2010

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Table of CONTENTS

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3InTRoDUCTIon 5DEMogRAphICS 6Respondents by State/Territory 6parent organisations 6Type of Library 7Corporate Membership of Library organisations 7Staffing 7NumberofPaidStaff 7EffectiveFulltimeEquivalent(EFT) 8StaffQualifications 8Volunteers 9ReasonsForChangesinStaffing LevelsOverLast5Years 9Clients 10Current Users 10ChangesInClientBase 11SERVICES 12LibraryServices 12OtherBusinessServices ProvidedByTheLibraryService 12MajorProjects 12NumberofLibraryServicePoints 13BUDgETS 15CoLLECTIonS 16CurrentSubscriptions 16CollectionSize 16SpecialCollections 16CollectionStrengths 16AccesstoLibrary HoldingInformation 17CollectionManagementSystems 18Networksandresourcesharingconsortia 18LibrariesAustraliamembership 18GOVERNANCE 19Wherethelibraryisbasedwithinthe structureoftheorganisation 19LibraryReferencegroup/committee 19FeedbackOnLibraryService 19Policies 20DevelopmentandPlanningActivities 20KeyPerformanceIndicators(KPI) 21CostingServices&CostBenefit 21Reportingonlibraryperformance 21gEnERAL 23ProfileofSurveyRespondents 23ViewsofSurveyRespondents 23SUMMARY 24ProfileofSurveyRespondents 25RECoMMEnDATIonS 26AppEnDIX 1 SurveyMethodology 27AppEnDIX 2 TypeofLibraries 28

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EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In2010theALIASpecialLibraryAdvisoryCommittee(SLAC)determinedtoundertakeastatisticalstudyofspeciallibrariesinAustralia.

ThepurposeofthestudywastoenableALIA,speciallibrariesmembersandemployers(management)togainabetterunderstandingofthecurrentstateofspecialistinformationservicesinAustralia.

Anonlinesurveywasdesigned,pilotedandthendistributedbySLACmemberstoover1400libraryemailaddressesinNovember2010.

Survey ResponsesResponsesweresoughtfromservicemanagersandindividuallibrarystaffinAustralianspeciallibraries.73%(266)oftherespondentsaremanagersofaspeciallibraryservice.Intotal380responseswerereceivedcoveringallstatesandterritories,81%(307)oftheseresponseswerecompleted.

Snapshot of Survey Findings• 74%ofresponsescamefromlibrariesbasedincapitalcities• 52%ofresponsescamefromgovernmentbasedlibraries• Thetypesoflibrariescoveredinthesurveyarediverse–thelargestresponserate(28%)wasfrom

health/medicinesector• Thereisnoclearpatternofwherelibrariesarebasedwithintheirparentorganisationorthe

seniority of the person they report to• 87%ofrespondentsreportedthattheirlibrarygatheredfeedbackonitsserviceinformallyatthe

timeofservicedelivery–thiswasthemostcommonmethodofgatheringfeedback• 34%ofrespondentshaveKPIsfortheirlibraryservice• 63%ofrespondentsindicatedtheirlibraryservicedidnotcostitsservicesorwasableto

demonstratethevalueofthelibrarytotheorganisation.• 15%ofrespondentsregularlybenchmarktheirserviceagainstotherlibraryservices• 70%ofrespondentsworkedinlibrarieswhichemploy1-3staffandonly12respondentsworked

inlibrariesthathavemorethan10staff• 18%ofrespondentshavevolunteersworkingintheirlibraryservice• 76%ofrespondentssaidtheirlibraryisacorporatememberofALIAand71%aremembersof

LibrariesAustralia• 80%ofrespondentssaidtherehasbeennochangeinthenumberoflibraryservicepointsintheir

organisationoverthelast5years• Internalusers(97%),Otherlibraries(57%),Researchers(52%)ExternalOrganisations(45%)and

Students(43%)werethemostfrequentlyidentifiedclientbasesidentifiedbyspeciallibraries• 86%ofrespondentsreportedthattheirlibraryhadabudgetof<$1.5millionwhile43%reported

anannualbudgetof<200,000.10%ofrespondentsdidnotknowwhattheirlibrary’sannualbudget was

• Collectionsizesrangedfromlessthan5,000tomorethan1millionitems• 140respondinglibrariesholdcollectionsofspecialistmaterial• 71%ofrespondentsindicatedtheirlibraryserviceparticipatesinnetworksorresourcesharing• Cataloguing(91%),documentsupply(90%),readyreferenceenquiries(87%),research(86%)

currentawarenessservices(84%),andcentralordering(84%)werethemostfrequentlyidentified

servicesprovidedbyspeciallibraries

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Profile of Survey Respondents

Recommendations• ALIAbroadlypublicisestheresultsofthis2010surveyofAustralianSpecialLibraries.• ALIASpecialLibraryAdvisoryCommittee(SLAC)developsasmallsetofinterview/focusgroup

questionstoelicitexpectationsofnon-libraryseniormanagersoftheirorganisation’slibraryservice,especiallythosewhohavelineresponsibilityforthelibraryservice.ThesetofquestionscouldthenbedistributedtoAustralianspeciallibrarymanagerstouseintheirinteractionwiththeseniormanagersoftheirparentorganisation.

• Conductanothershorterversionofthissurveyin3yearstimeinordertomonitorthedevelopmentofspeciallibrariesinAustralia

60%haveworkedinthespeciallibrarysectorformorethan10years46%movedtospeciallibrariesfromanotherlibrarysector73%aremanagersofthelibraryservice92%haveformallibraryqualifications52%arepersonalmembersofALIA88%arefemale54% are 50+64%workfulltime32%earn$61-$80,00023%earn$81-$100,000

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INTRODUCTION

ALIASpecialLibrariesAdvisoryCommitteeisinterestedingatheringinformationanddataaboutspeciallibrariesfromparentorganisations,employers(management)andstaffofspeciallibrariesviaasurvey.ThisinformationwillenableALIA,speciallibrariesmembersandemployers(management)togainabetterunderstandingofthecurrentstateofspecialistinformationservicesinAustralia.

In2010theALIASpecialLibraryAdvisoryCommittee(SLAC)determinedtoundertakeastatisticalstudyofspeciallibrariesinAustralia.

ThepurposeofthestudywastoenableALIA,speciallibrariesmembersandemployers(management)togainabetterunderstandingofthecurrentstateofspecialistinformationservicesinAustralia.

Anonlinesurveywasdesigned,pilotedandthendistributedbySLACmemberstoover1400libraryemailaddressesinNovember2010.

Thisreportsummarisestheresultsofthesurveyandprovidesrecommendationsforfutureresearch.

TheCommitteehadoriginallyplannedtosurveynon-libraryseniormanagersintheparentorganizationaswellaslibrarystaffinthesamesurveybutontheadviceoftheconsultantagreedtolimitthedistributionofthesurveytothemanagersandlibrarystaffinAustralianspeciallibraries.

Thedatabaseoflibrarycontactemailswasdevelopedbycommitteemembersbasesontheirspeciallibrarynetworks.FurtherdetailsaboutthesurveymethodologyareincludedinAppendixA.

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DEMOGRAPHICS

Respondents by State/Territory

ACT

80

70

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

NSW NT QLD

100

90

SA TAS VIC WA

answeredquestion358

• Speciallibrariesinallstatesandterritoriesrespondedtothesurvey• 74%(265)responsescamefromlibraryserviceslocatedincapitalcities• 13%(46)arebasedinregionalareas&4%(13)inrurallibrariesservices

Parent Organisations

What Sector best descibes your parent organisation?

Commonwealth Government

State Government

Local Government (Corporate Library)

Commercial

Not-for-Profit

Other (please specify)

• Over50%(187)responseswerefromgovernmentfundedspeciallibraries.• CommercialandNot-for-Profitwereequalat19%ofresponses• ‘Other’includedgovernmententities,peakbodiesandeducationinstitutions.

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Type of Library

Agriculture0.0%

5.0%

10.0%

15.0%

20.0%

25.0%

30.0%

Which category best descibes your library?

Art

Business/CorporateCultural

Defence/Military

Health/MedicineLaw

MiningMusic

Religion

Research

Science/Technology


answeredquestion362

• 28%(101)respondentswerefromhealth/medicinelibraries• ‘Other’typesoflibrariesaccountedfor22%(81)ofresponsesandincludedengineering,

education,emergencymanagement,disability,socialwelfareandtradeunions.SeeAppendix2forfulllistoflibrarytype

Corporate Membership of Library OrganisationsAustralianLibrary&InformationAssociation 76.3%AgLIn 20.2%AustralianLawLibrarians’Association 20.9%HealthLibrariesInc 11.9%AustralianGeosciencesAssociation 1.6%SpecialLibrariesAssociationAustn&NZChapter 7.1%VALA 7.1%Other(pleasespecify) 23.3%answeredquestion253

• 76%ofrespondentslibrarieshaveALIACorporateMembership• ‘Other’corporatemembershipsincluded:AustralasianLibrariesintheEmergencySector(ALIES);

AustralianSocietyofArchivists;AustralasianParliamentaryLibrariesAssociation;Australia&NewZealandTheologicalLibraryAssociation;andWAGLIN.

StaffingQuestionswereaskedaboutpaidstaff,qualifications,volunteersandanychangesinstaffinglevelsoverthelast5years.

Number of Paid Staff• 70%ofrespondentsworkinlibrarieswith1-3paidstaff• Only12respondentsworkedinlibrariesthathadmorethan10staffandtheirnumbersranged

from16-65staff.

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How many paid staff are currently employed in your library, including part time?

1-3

4-6

7-10

10+

Accordingtosurveyrespondentstherehasbeenlittlechangeinthenumberofstaffemployedinthelibrariesoverthelast5years.

Effective Fulltime Equivalent (EFT)EFTrange No.ofresponses<1 531-3 1484-6 387-10 610+ 14• 53haveanEFTof1orlessstaff• ThemostcommonEFTofrespondentlibrariesisintherange1-3EFT.

Staff Qualificationsnumber of Librarians 95.4%NumberofLibraryTechnicians 56.7%answeredquestion263

• 98%(258)respondentshadatleast1staffmemberwithalibraryqualification• 39%(102)respondentshad1qualifiedlibrariansandnoqualifiedlibrarytechnician• 5respondentsreportedthattheyhadnoqualifiedstaffintheirlibraryservice• 11respondentshad1qualifiedtechnicianandnoqualifiedlibrarians

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Volunteers

How many volunteers work in your library service?

0 1-‐3 4-‐6 7-‐10 10+

answeredquestion263

• 19%(49)ofrespondentshavevolunteersintheirlibraryservice• 5librarieshadvolunteersonlyandnopaidstaff• 42%(20)volunteershadlibraryqualifications

Howmanydaysperweekdovolunteersworkinyourlibraryservice?(totaldaysnotpervolunteer)

Answer options ResponsePercent Response Count

1 day 37.5% 182 days 16.7% 83 days 6.3% 34 days 4.2% 25 days 6.3% 3Other(pleasespecify) 29.2% 14answeredquestion48

• Somevolunteersworkondemandwhenrequiredratherthanasettime.

Reasons For Changes in Staffing Levels Over Last 5 Years

Reasonsgivenforreductioninstaffinglevels

• budgetcuts• staffnotbeingreplacedonretirement

amalgamationofservices

Reasonsgivenforincreasedstaffinglevels

• expandedroleoftheservice• additionalservicepoint• increasedstaffinorganisation

answeredquestion31

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Clients

Current Users

0.0%

20.0%

40.0%

60.0%

80.0%

100.0%

120.0%

Inte

rnal

Exte

rnal

/Oth

er

Org

anisa

9ons

Oth

er li

brar

ies

Gene

ral P

ublic

Cons

ulta

nts

Stud

ents

Rese

arch

ers

Oth

er (p

leas

e sp

ecify

)

Who are the current users of your library service? (Please choose all that apply.)

answeredquestion258

• Internalusers(97%),Otherlibraries(57%),Researchers(52%)ExternalOrganisations(45%)andStudents(43%)werethemostfrequentlyidentifiedclientbasesidentifiedbyspeciallibraries.

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FrequencyofUsebyClientGroups

Answer options Daily WeeklyA few times a

monthMonthly

A few times a year

n/A

Internal 224 18 6 1 1 2External/Otherorganisations

30 46 25 8 27 26

other Libraries 43 49 35 14 31 16GeneralPublic 15 14 21 7 29 51Consultants 13 14 18 6 29 41Students 42 15 24 8 36 35Researchers 39 19 31 5 52 29Other(pleasespecify) 12 8 2 2 6 34answered258

• Internalusersarebyfarthemostfrequentusersofspeciallibraries

Changes In Client Base • 60%(154)ofrespondentsdidnotthinktheirclientbasedhadnotchangedoverthelast5years• Growthinthenumberofclients/staffintheparentorganisation,machineryofgovernment

changesandincreaseinthenumberofstudentsaresomeofthereasonsrespondentsgaveforthechangeintheirclientbaseoverthelast5years

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SERVICES

Library Services

Current services Response %Cataloguing 91.40%Documentsupply(includingInterlibraryloans) 90.60%Readyreferenceenquires 87.10%Research 85.50%Centralorderingbooks/aquisitions 84.00%Currentawarenessservice(e.g.bulletinsoralerts) 83.60%Remotesearchingofdatabases/journals 77.00%Desktopdelivery 70.30%Journalcirculation 65.20%Informationliteracy 62.50%VirtualLibrary(Internet) 46.90%RSSFeed 17.20%Other(pleasespecify) 16.40%Businessintelligenceanalysis 16.40%Blog 11.30%Wiki 7.00%

answered 256

• Cataloguing,DocumentSupply,ReadyReference,Research,CentralOrderingandCurrentAwarenessServiceswerethemostfrequentlyidentifiedlibraryservices.

• Libraryintranetsarethemostcommon‘Other’serviceidentifiedbyrespondentsandacouplementionedsocialnetworking.

Other Business Services Provided By The Library Service• 25%(64)ofrespondentssaidthattheirlibrarymanagednootherbusinessservices.• 35%(90)respondentslibrariesmanagedtheirorganisation’spublications• 32%(82)managedanArchive• 23%(58)providedKnowledgeManagement• 19%(51)servedasthePhotographicrepository• Thelibraryintranetwasaservicementionedbysomeinthe‘Other’category.

Major Projects• Inadditiontosystemupgrades,digitizationandknowledgemanagementprojectsanumberof

respondentsindicatedtheirservicehadrenovatedorrelocated.

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Major Library Management System upgrade or changes

80.0%

70.0%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

Knowledgemanagement

projects

Digitisation projects Indusrty directories

What major projects has the library been involved in over the last 5 years?(Please choose all that apply)

answeredquestion187

Number of Library Service Points Todeterminewhethertheincreasingavailabilityofelectronicdeliveryofinformationserviceshadimpactedonthedeliveryofspeciallibraryservicesthesurveyincludedquestionsaboutlibraryservicepoints.

How many library services points are there in your organisation?

0

1-‐3

4-‐6

7-‐10

10+

answeredquestion253

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• The2%(5)respondentsthathadmorethan10libraryservicepointswerepartoflargegovernmentorglobalbusinessnetworks.

• 80%(204)respondentsindicatedtherehasbeennochangeinnumberofservicepointsintheirlibraryserviceoverthelast5year

• 20respondentsindicatedthenumberofpointsattheirlibraryservicehadbeenreducedbyone.

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BUDGETS

Annual Budget For Library Service

Annualbudgetincludingstaffcosts Response % No.ofresponsesLessthan$50,000 13.6% 34$50,000-$99,999 15.6% 39$100,000-$199,999 14.0% 35$200,000-$299,999 10.4% 26$300,000-$399,999 8.8% 22$400,000-$499,999 6.8% 17$500,000-$599,999 6.0% 15$600,000-$699,999 2.0% 5$700,000-$799,999 1.2% 3$800,000-$899,999 3.2% 8$900,000-$999,999 0.4% 1$1m-$1.5m 3.6% 9$1.5m+ 4.4% 11Don’tknow 10.0% 25Other(pleasespecify) 10answeredquestion250

Librarybudgetsvariedsignificantly• 53.6%(134)reportedabudgetoflessthan$300,000includingstaffcosts• 13.6%(34)reportedabudgetoflessthan$50,000• 8%(20)respondentshadlibrarybudgetsof$1million+• 10%(25)respondentsdidnotknowwhatthebudgetwas• ‘Other’responsesincluded:confidential,partoflargernetworksodetailunknown• 30%(76)respondentsdidnotknowwhatthebudgetwas5yearsago

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COLLECTIONS

Current Subscriptions

Subscriptionlessthan

1010-29 30-49 50-79 80+ n/A No.responses

Journals(hardcopy) 24 69 42 32 51 6 224Journals(electronic) 71 55 21 18 39 12 216Electronicdatabaseservices(i.e.Proquest)

133 35 5 4 7 21 205

other 17 5 2 0 5 18 47(pleasespecify) 41answeredquestion233

Collection Size

Respondentswereaskedtoprovideatotalnumberforthesizeoftheirlibraryservicecollection.

• 50%ofrespondentsprovidedanestimateofthesizeoftheirlibrary’scollection.• 4respondentsreportedthesizeofthecollectionwasunknownand187othersskippedthis

question.No.ofitemsincollection No.ofresponses

<5000 385000-10000 4310000-20000 4220000-50000 4350000-100000 15100000+ 11answeredquestion188

Breakdown of Collections by categoryMonographs Journals Standards other49% 28% 3% 20%

answeredquestion200

Special Collections• 140of148respondentsindicatedtheirlibraryserviceheldspecialcollections.• Thespecialcollectionsincludedunpublishedmaterial;rarehistoricalmaterial;photographsand

ephemera.

Collection StrengthsThestrengthsoflibrarycollectionsareasvariedasthebusinessoftheirhostorganisations.

• 187responsestothequestionaboutcollectionstrengthsaresovariedthereisnoclearpatternofcollectionstrengths.

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Access to Library Holding Information

Library OPAC

80.0%

70.0%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

Organisation’sintranet

Organisation’swebsite

LibrariesAustralia

WorldCat Other (pleasespecify)

Where is information on your library’s holdings accessible? (Please choose all that apply)

answeredquestion225

• Lessthan30%ofrespondentsreportedthattheirlibrary’sholdingswereaccessibleviatheirorganisation’swebsite.

• ‘Other’responsesincludedthedesktopsofstaffintheirorganisation.• AfewrespondentsindicatedtheirjournalholdingslistedonGratisnetandsomeothershadplans

tomaketheirholdingsaccessiblethroughtheirorganisationswebsiteorTrove.

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Collection Management SystemsThemostcommonlyusedlibrarysystemsarelistedbelowCollectionManagementSystem

No.ofresponses

DBTextworks 78SoftlinkLiberty 20FIRST 15Horizon7 15SirsiDynix 11Voyager 7Athena 6Koha 6Exlibris 2In house 4no system 4other 59answeredquestion227

• 4respondentsreportedusingin-housesystemsandAccessdatabases• Othersindicatedtheirlibraryservicehadcollectionstoosmalltowarranthavinganymanagement

system.

Networks and resource sharing consortia

• 71%(160)respondentsparticipatedinnetworksorconsortia• Morethan50respondentsindicatedtheirlibraryserviceparticipatedinGratisnet.• Respondentslistedover50libraryresourcesharinggroups–somearesubjectbased.• Informalresourcesharingwithinsectorswasalsomentionedbyanumberofrespondents

Libraries Australia membership• 164(71.3%)respondents’librarywasamemberofLibrariesAustralia• 137providedtheirlibraryserviceNUCsymbol

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GOVERNANCE

Where the library is based within the structure of the organisation Thereisnostandardplacewherespeciallibrariesfitwithintheirhostorganisations.

0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0%

Finance

Human Resources

Client Services

Research & Development

ICT

Corporate Services


Where is the library based within the structure of the organisation?

answeredquestion256

• 28%(71)respondentsreportedtheirlibraryservicewasbasedwithinCorporateServices• ‘Other’responsesincludedICT,InformationServices,andEducation.• Wholibrarymanagersreportstointheirorganisationisevenlyspreadbetweenexecutive,senior

managementandmiddlemanagement.• Insmallerorganisationslibrarymanagersaremorelikelytoreportdirectlytosomeoneatthe

executiveleveloftheirorganisation.

Library Reference group /committee• 82%(185)respondentsdonothaveareferencegrouporcommitteefortheirlibraryservice• Themostcommonroleofcommittees/referencegroupsthatdoexististoprovideadvicetothe

managerofthelibraryservice.

Feedback On Library Service

• Themostcommonmethodofobtainingfeedbackontheoperationofthelibraryserviceisinformalattimeofservicedelivery87%(191)

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0.0% 10.0% 20.0% 30.0% 40.0% 50.0% 60.0% 70.0% 80.0% 90.0%

Formal Surveys

Customer Feedback Forms

Service Reviews

As part of organisaHon score card

Informally at Hme of service delivery


How does your library gather feedback on its service? (Please choose all that apply)

answeredquestion219

Policies

Documentsproducedbythelibraryservice ResponsePercentResponse

CountStrategicPlan 25.8% 58Business/OperationalPlan 33.8% 76MarketingPlan 11.1% 25CollectionDevelopmentPolicy 57.8% 130ServiceLevelAgreements 18.7% 42CustomerServiceCharter 11.6% 26RiskManagementPlan 9.8% 22OH&SPolicy 2.7% 6AnnualReport 22.2% 50StandardOperatingProcedures/Manual 53.8% 121OtherPolicies 19.6% 44Other(pleasespecify) 17.8% 40

answered 225

• Over50%ofrespondentsreportedtheirlibraryserviceproducesaCollectionDevelopmentPolicyandStandardOperatingProcedures/Manual.

• 38%producedabusiness/operationalplanand22%anannualreport.• 11%ofrespondentsindicatedtheirlibraryhasamarketingplan.• ‘Other’documentsreportedinclude:monthlystatistics,someothersreportedproducingnoneof

thesedocuments.

Development and Planning Activities• 59%(129)ofrespondentsindicatedtheyparticipateinorganisationplanninganddevelopment

activities.• Informationmanagement,knowledgemanagementandorganisationalcommitteesaresomeofthe

areaswherelibrarystaffareinvolved.

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Key Performance Indicators (KPI)• 34%(74)ofrespondentsindicatedtheirlibraryhasKPIs.• OfthesethemostcommonKPIsdescribedarestatisticallybased:includingdataonnumbersof

loans,searchesetc.• Timelinessofservicedeliveryisanothermeasurecitedbysomerespondents.• SomeothershadlibraryKPIstiedtothoseoftheirorganisation.

Costing Services & Cost Benefit• 64%(141)respondentsreportedthattheirlibraryservicedonotcostservices• 66%(141)areunabletodemonstratethevalueofthelibraryservicetotheorganisation.

Responseswhichshowedthemeasurementoflibraryservicebenefitincluded:• Comparingthecostofthelibraryperformingtheresearchasopposedtothecostofaprofessional

researcher,oreventheclientthemselves,giventheefficiencywehaveinfindingandevaluatinginformationsources.

• KeepingstatisticsonarticlesobtainedviaGratisnet–cancalculatecostifhadtopurchasetheseonline,plusstafftime

• Benefitcalculator–comparingourservicestowhatstaffwouldpayiftheyhadtogotoanexternalsupplier

Reporting on library performance

CEO

80.0%

70.0%

0.0%

10.0%

20.0%

30.0%

40.0%

50.0%

60.0%

Department Head Your Immediate Supervisor

Finance Manager

Who within your organisation is provided with information on the library’s performance? (Please choose all that apply)

Other (pleasespecify)

• ‘Other’includedprovidinginformationonthelibrary’sperformancetotheChiefOperatingOfficer,theBoard,andinsomelawlibrariestothepartners.

• Anumberofrespondentsdonotprovideinformationonthelibraryservicetoanyone.

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Benchmarking Services• 84.5%(186)responsesdonotbenchmarktheirserviceagainstotherlibrariesorserviceproviders.

• Ofthe15%whodidbenchmarktheAustralianHealthLibrariesBenchmarkingGroup,ParliamentaryLibrariesandAGLINwerementionedbyanumberofrespondents.

• Afewothersindicatedtheybenchmarkedonanadhocbasisiftheirlibraryservicewasunderrevieworthedepartmenttheyworkedinwasbeingrestructured.

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GENERAL

Profile of Survey Respondents• 60%haveworkedinthespeciallibrarysectorformorethan10years• 46%movedtospeciallibrariesfromanotherlibrarysector• 73%aremanagersofthelibraryservice• 92.3%haveformallibraryqualifications• 52%arepersonalmembersofALIA• 88%arefemale• 54% are 50+• 64%workfulltime• 32%earn$61-$80,000• 23%earn$81-$100,000

Views of Survey RespondentsImportance of Skills and Knowledge for Special LibrarianRespondentswereaskedtoratetheimportantofalistofskillsandknowledgeforspeciallibrarians.

Bycombiningresponsesof‘extremelyimportant’and‘veryimportant’thetablebelowranksthemostimportantskillsandknowledgeforaspeciallibrarian.

Ranking Skill & Knowledge1 Information&CommunicationTechnology2 Libraryqualifications3 ResourceManagement4 StrategicPlanning5 Marketing6 Subjectspecialisation

answeredquestion315

Job Satisfaction and Confidence LevelsBycombiningresponsesof‘stronglyagree’and‘agree’thepercentagesbelowshowthesatisfactionandconfidencelevelsofrespondents.

• 96%ofrespondentsenjoyworkinginthespeciallibrarysector• 85%aresatisfiedintheircurrentrole• 62%areconfidentaboutthefutureofthespeciallibrarysector• 68%areconfidentaboutthefutureofthelibrarytheyworkinnow

Future Work Plans• 65%(204)respondentsplantocontinueinthesamejoboverthenext3years• 12.5%(39)respondentswouldliketobeworkinginanotherspeciallibrary• 11.5%(36)respondentsplantoretireinthenext3years• 10%(32)respondentswouldlikeanotherjobinthelibrarytheyarecurrentlyworkingin.

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SUMMARY

ThepurposeofthisstudywastoenableALIA,speciallibrariesmembersandemployers(management)togainabetterunderstandingofthecurrentstateofspecialistinformationservicesinAustralia.

Thedatacollectedprovidesanextremelyvaluablepictureoftheoperationof300speciallibrariesinAustralia.ThesurveysupportstheaimoftheALIASpecialLibraryAdvisoryCommittee(SLAC)toprovideabetterunderstandingofthecurrentstateofspecialistinformationservicesinAustralia.

Themajorityofrespondentstothissurveyworkinlibrarieswherethereisatleastonelibraryprofessionalandlessthan3staff.Theservicestheyprovideareprimarilytraditionallibraryservices.

Mostreportedlittlechangeintheclientbaseorstaffingoverthelast5years.Veryfewusedastructuredmethodtomonitortheperformanceoftheirlibraryserviceandevenfewerwereabletomeasurethecostbenefitoftheirlibraryservicetothehostorganisation.

Asummaryofthestatisticalresultsofthesurveyarelistedbelow:

• 74%ofresponsescamefromlibrariesbasedincapitalcities• 52%ofresponsescamefromgovernmentbasedlibraries• Thetypesoflibrariescoveredinthesurveyarediverse–thelargestresponserate(28%)wasfrom

health/medicinesector• Thereisnoclearpatternofwherelibrariesarebasedwithintheirparentorganisationorthe

seniority of the person they report to• 87%ofrespondentsreportedthattheirlibrarygatheredfeedbackonitsserviceinformallyatthe

timeofservicedelivery–thiswasthemostcommonmethodofgatheringfeedback• 34%ofrespondentshaveKPIsfortheirlibraryservice• 63%ofrespondentsindicatedtheirlibraryservicedidnotcostitsservicesorwasableto

demonstratethevalueofthelibrarytotheorganisation.• 15%ofrespondentsregularlybenchmarktheirserviceagainstotherlibraryservices• 70%ofrespondentsworkedinlibrarieswhichemploy1-3staffandonly12respondentsworked

inlibrariesthathavemorethan10staff• 18%ofrespondentshavevolunteersworkingintheirlibraryservice• 76%ofrespondentssaidtheirlibraryisacorporatememberofALIAand71%aremembersof

LibrariesAustralia• 80%ofrespondentssaidtherehasbeennochangeinthenumberoflibraryservicepointsintheir

organisationoverthelast5years• Internalusers(97%),Otherlibraries(57%),Researchers(52%)ExternalOrganisations(45%)and

Students(43%)werethemostfrequentlyidentifiedclientbasesidentifiedbyspeciallibraries• 86%ofrespondentsreportedthattheirlibraryhadabudgetof<$1.5millionwhile43%reported

anannualbudgetof<200,000.10%ofrespondentsdidnotknowwhattheirlibrary’sannualbudget was

• Collectionsizesrangedfromlessthan5,000tomorethan1millionitems• 140respondinglibrariesholdcollectionsofspecialistmaterial• 71%ofrespondentsindicatedtheirlibraryserviceparticipatesinnetworksorresourcesharing• Cataloguing(91%),documentsupply(90%),readyreferenceenquiries(87%),research(86%)

currentawarenessservices(84%),andcentralordering(84%)werethemostfrequentlyidentifiedservicesprovidedbyspeciallibraries

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Profile of Survey Respondents

60%haveworkedinthespeciallibrarysectorformorethan10years46%movedtospeciallibrariesfromanotherlibrarysector73%aremanagersofthelibraryservice92.3%haveformallibraryqualifications52%arepersonalmembersofALIA88%arefemale54% are 50+64%workfulltime32%earn$61-$80,00023%earn$81-$100,000

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RECOMMENDATIONS

• ALIAbroadlypublicisestheresultsofthis2010surveyofAustralianSpecialLibraries.

• ALIASpecialLibraryAdvisoryCommittee(SLAC)developsasmallsetofinterview/focusgroupquestionstoelicitexpectationsofnon-libraryseniormanagersoftheirorganisation’slibraryservice,especiallythosewhohavelineresponsibilityforthelibraryservice.ThesetofquestionscouldthenbedistributedtoAustralianspeciallibrarymanagerstouseintheirinteractionwiththeseniormanagersoftheirparentorganisation.

• Conductanothershorterversionofthissurveyin3yearstimeinordertomonitorthedevelopmentofspeciallibrariesinAustralia

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APPENDIX 1 Survey Methodology

ThesurveywasdesignedbySLACinSeptember–October2010withthesupportofanexternalconsultant.ALIAprovidedaccesstoitscorporateSurveymonkeyaccount.

Topicscoveredbythesurveyincluded:demographics;services;budgets;collections;governanceandgeneralinformationonlibrarystaff.

ApilotsurveywastestedbymembersofSLACinlateSeptember.

Thesurveywasdesignedtoenablerespondentswhoarenotmanagersoftheirorganisation’slibraryservicetoskipquestionsabouttheoperationandmanagementofthelibraryservice.

Thefinalsurveywasemailedbymembersofthecommittee(LouiseSegafredoandAndrewMeier)tospeciallibrariesinAustraliaonthe5November2010.

AnemaillinktothesurveywassenttoindividualsemailaddressesprovidedbymembersofSLAC.Areminderemailwassenttoindividualsemailaddresseson11November.Theadvertisedclosingdateforthesurveywas19Novemberandthefinalcloseoffwason24November.

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APPENDIX 2 Type of Libraries

AccountingAgriculture/EnvironmentAnthropology/nativetitle/landrightsArchitectureandTownPlanningArchivalArtAstronomicalAudit/Tax/AccountingAustralianhistoryBotanicalBusinessCommunicationsConservationConsultingEngineersCriminologyCultureCurrentaffairsDefence/MilitaryDisabilityEducation&TrainingEducationandReligionEducationEmergencyManagementEmergencyservices-trainingandresearchEngineeringFisheriesForeignLanguageFreemasonry&relatedareasgay studiesGovernmentGovernment-StatisticalOrganisationGovernment,Publicsector,Treasury

Health/MedicineHigherEducationSciencesandMinistriesIntellectualanddevelopmentaldisabilityInternationaldevelopmentandforeignaidJusticeLawMetaphysical,philosophy,occult,religion,scienceMiningMuseumMusicOH&SandWorkersCompensationOrnithologyPhilatelicPlanning–urban,regionalPolicing/CriminologyPoliticsandcurrentaffairsPublicPublichousingPublicSector/AuditingRecreationalReligionResearchScience/TechnologySocialpolicySocialSciencesSocialWelfareSocio-legalresearchPublicadministrationSpeleologySport/ResearchTrade unionTransportVictimology/SocialworkWelfareandsocialjustice

ALIA I 29


Disclaimer

TheinformationcontainedinthisreportisbasedonthedataprovidedintheALIASpecialLibrarySurveyNovember2010.

Whiletheinformationisprovidedingoodfaiththeauthordoesnotwarranttheaccuracyoftheinformationnorassumelegalresponsibilityforit,oranydamageresultingfromrelianceon,ortheuseoftheinformationprovided.Neitheristheauthorresponsibleforanynegligenceoftheclientorotherpersonswithrespecttoanyuseoftheinformation.

Judy peppardPracticoPtyLtd

Note: This is a standard disclaimer used for consultancy reports

ALIA SPECIAL LIBRARIES SURVEYReport DECEMBER 2010