Analyzing Cataloging Job Descriptions: Are Cataloging Jobs Disappearing,Changing, or Merging?

Abstract

To determine the state of the cataloging job market, this study compares job advertisements from August 2016-August 2018 advertising for jobs with cataloging in the title, metadata in the title, and cataloging and metadata in the title. Given ongoing concerns about the impact of metadata jobs on the cataloging job market, this study asks the questions: Are cataloging jobs in fact “disappearing” and becoming metadata jobs? Are entry-level jobs disappearing, perhaps contributing to the idea that there is a lack of qualified catalogers? Is there a difference in position level between cataloging and metadata job advertisements that can account for a lack or perceived lack of available cataloging jobs? Are there more entry-level or mid/supervisory positions advertised? Are cataloging and metadata jobs really separate, or should they be considered one position called cataloging and metadata?     

Mantis Project

Abstract

The Mantis project is developing a toolkit for building Web-based cataloging systems with arbitrary metadata definitions and interfaces. By requiring that end users have only standard Web browsers, the project is aimed at lowering the barriers to acceptance, distribution, and use of these tools. By emphasizing that metadata can assume many different formats, the project shows that generalized metadata tools can be used for many applications.     

From Assessment to Implementation: Using Qualitative Interviews to Inform Distance Learning Library Services

ABSTRACT

While broad assessment projects are often used to steer library strategic planning initiatives, this article will present the benefits of qualitative interviews with distance learning constituents as a framework for developing a focused vision and targeted services. This article will describe the planning and execution of an assessment project used to build a foundation for future library resources and services to target off-campus users. The benefits of this analysis will be detailed. Based on the data, implementation strategies were devised to strengthen and further develop the distance learning unit at Florida State University Libraries.     

Expanding the Use of Linked Data Value Vocabularies in PCC Cataloging

Abstract

The Program for Cooperative Cataloging's 2018–21 strategic plan includes as one of its goals to “expand [the] use of linked data value vocabularies to augment, and where feasible to replace, existing metadata practices”. This paper sets out the reasons for pursuing this goal and considers some of the implications for MARC cataloging practice.     

Syndicating Rich Bibliographic Metadata Using MODS and RSS

Abstract

Many libraries use RSS to syndicate information about their collections to users. A survey of 65 academic libraries revealed their most common use for RSS is to disseminate information about library holdings, such as lists of new acquisitions. Even though typical RSS feeds are ill suited to the task of carrying rich bibliographic metadata, great potential exists for developing applications that can exploit metadata exposed to Web services via RSS. Using the MODS metadata format, entire catalog records can be seamlessly embedded in RSS 2.0 feeds. Existing tools, such as Library of Congress Java toolkits and XSLT stylesheets, can facilitate this process, while a new XSLT stylesheet may be used to create the RSS feeds complete with MODS records. As an example of the added functionality these MODS/RSS feeds can offer, records from a MODS-enriched RSS feed can be ingested into a non-RSS application such as Zotero. As more emerging library technologies use Web services architectures to handle data objects, the ability to syndicate catalog records will become more critical to providing innovative library Web services.     

Public Services Satellite Cataloging Operations and Non-Print Backlogs

Abstract

Satellite cataloging operations using public services staff trained specifically to complete non-book cataloging are almost nonexistent or are very rarely written about in traditional library literature. A search of the literature provides little or no evidence of their existence. On the surface, they would appear to take more time, effort, and budget outlay to bring up and maintain. There are real advantages as well as some disadvantages to maintaining these operations. There is a risk as public services staff have a primary responsibility to provide public and reference services and very little time to catalog as well as eep up with the changes in cataloging rules and practice. But it can work with planning, organization, and cooperation between the departments and staff involved.     

Exploring Library Discovery Positions: Are They Emerging or Converging?

Web-scale discovery service systems and platforms are continuing to evolve and become more commonly adopted in academic libraries. Functioning as more than next-generation catalogs due to their volume and associated Web services, they invite strategic inquiry and launch libraries into deeper questioning and continuous critical thinking concerning discovery system best practices. This article explores emerging library discovery positions and discovery requirements gleaned through position postings from Autocat, Code4Lib, ERIL-L, and NGC4Lib listserv e-mails, from February 2012 through July 2014, along with a 2013 scan of Association of Research Library (ARL) staff directories’ Web sites. As seen through the lens of recent discovery position postings and names of discovery positions at ARL libraries, staffing solutions suggest strategic oversight and deep understanding of discovery systems, metadata, and users. This study of 36 discovery positions reveals directors or managers as comprising the highest number with ten (28 percent), systems with eight (22 percent), cataloging and metadata with seven (19 percent), acquisitions or electronic resources with five (14 percent), user experiences with three (8 percent), access services with two (6 percent), and general technical services with one (3 percent). These emerging discovery positions traverse both traditional technical and public services functions, with the majority, 26 (72 percent), from large research-level institutions.     

Building a More Diverse and Inclusive Cataloging Cooperative

Abstract

The Program for Cooperative Cataloging’s Strategic Directions document for 2018-2021 mark the first explicit mention of diversity and inclusion in PCC strategic planning, but the organization has a significant record of supporting diversity, inclusion and collaboration within the library cataloging community throughout its 25?year history. This paper will outline what the PCC has done to be more diverse and inclusive in its work and collaborations, and offer recommendations on where PCC should go next to even further support diversity, equity, and inclusion with collaboration in the future.     

CatDoc HackDoc: Tools and Processes for Managing Documentation Lifecycle,Workflows, and Accessibility

Abstract

Documentation of local policies, workflows, and procedures is an important activity for cataloging and metadata units. But creating and maintaining documentation is a huge task that is not always a high priority. Librarians at the University of Minnesota Libraries planned a documentation hackathon, CatDoc HackDoc, with three primary goals: to update a large amount of documentation quickly, to apply accessibility best practices to all documentation, and to bring new staff into the documentation workflow. This article describes the event’s planning process, structure, and outcomes, and offers guidance on how others can adapt the CatDoc HackDoc model in their own organizations.     

Build Your Program by Building Your Team: Inclusively Transforming Services,Staffing and Spaces

ABSTRACT

User feedback told the story of the largest and busiest campus library being dated in both physical form and programmatic function. Under the framework of a newly-developed strategic plan, library leadership initiated a comprehensive and inclusive assessment program to understand fully user needs by engaging users, campus partners, and, importantly, library personnel. Simultaneously, they embarked on a review of change management literature for guidance on implementing the required transformation. Informed by the change management philosophy of John Kotter, the library utilized the findings of the assessment program to craft and implement a sustainable transformation of its services, staffing, and spaces.     

Library Provision of Intellectual Access to Open Access Journal Articles

ABSTRACT

Academic libraries provide intellectual access (discovery and procurement) to the full text of electronic journal articles through traditional library technologies like discovery layers, link resolver software and knowledge bases. These technologies mainly rely on accurate title-level metadata to successfully deliver journal articles to library users. Open Access articles pose a difficulty for many participants in the e-journal supply chain, including libraries and publishers, as Open Access status is a property of the article, not the title. A review of the literature examines: the impact of Open Access on intellectual access through traditional library technologies, current proposed solutions, and emerging technologies.     

Assessment Planning for Distance Education Library Services: Strategic Roadmaps for Determining and Reporting Organizational Performance and Value

ABSTRACT

Through a review of the literature, the author sought to identify what assessment planning practices exist in libraries, how the assessment planning process works in libraries, and what components constitute a library assessment plan. The findings suggest that, while libraries determine and report a great many aspects of organizational performance, general assessment planning (which encompasses total organizational impact and value) is not frequently used or integrated into the library's comprehensive strategic planning process, and it does not always effectively cover the scope of the assessment activities and information needed by organizational leaders and administrators to develop effective strategic plans and decisions. This lack of integration creates disconnects between the library's ability to determine and report organizational value and the library's need to provide accountability evidence to stakeholders and use the performance measurement results effectively in executing strategic planning and decision making. Using the findings of the review, the author proposes an alternative set of assessment planning components and focus areas.     

Work in Progress: The PCC Task Group on Metadata Application Profiles

Abstract

The Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) Task Group on Metadata Application Profiles was convened in May 2019 to help the PCC understand issues and practices associated with the management of metadata application profiles. Their work, discussed here, will guide future decisions and implementations of metadata application profiles in cataloging.     

TIB's Portal for Audiovisual Media: Combining Manual and Automatic Indexing

The German National Library of Science and Technology (TIB) developed a Web-based platform for audiovisual media. The audiovisual portal optimizes access to scientific videos such as computer animations and lecture and conference recordings. TIB's AV-Portal combines traditional cataloging and automatic indexing of audiovisual media. The article describes metadata standards for audiovisual media and introduces the TIB's metadata schema in comparison to other metadata standards for non-textual materials. Additionally, we give an overview of multimedia retrieval technologies used for the Portal and present the AV-Portal in detail as well as the additional value for libraries and their users.     

BIBCO Training and Its Influence on PCC Partnerships

Abstract

BIBCO is one of four programs in the PCC. This article summarizes the development of BIBCO and how its cataloging training program was strikingly different from the other three programs: NACO, CONSER and SACO. BIBCO grew out of the 1990–1991 recession which created widespread anxiety over the cost of original cataloging. BIBCO attempted to reduce the cost without sacrificing quality and increase record production through the use of core records. The early training emphasized the value of cooperation. PCC’s strength in this area is seen today in its partnerships and leadership in metadata initiatives such as linked data.     

Researching Researchers: Meeting Changing Researcher Needs in a Special Collections Environment

ABSTRACT

In the competitive Higher Education environment, it is no longer sufficient for special collections to rely on the “uniqueness” of a collection as its unique selling point—it must be supported by a service and strategic plan that is both proactive in anticipating the demands of future researchers and responsive to current researchers’ changing needs. Edinburgh University's Centre for Research Collections (CRC) is addressing this challenge for the first time in a coordinated manner, employing a suite of research methods that allow staff to take an evidence based approach to service development and strategic planning. These include ethnographic observation, structured surveys, object-based learning initiatives, comprehensive data interrogation, and active engagement with the University's academic schools. This article examines how these approaches have been utilized in the development of CRC services, and its benefit to long-term planning.     

A university library management model for students’ learning support

Abstract

This research was aimed at developing a university library management model that would support students’ learning. The research was conducted in three phases: 1) an investigation into the requirements of a university library service of instructors; 2) an investigation into the attitudes of librarians, libraries’ administrators, and university’s administrators toward the roles of library and policy concepts relating to university library management that promote students’ learning; and 3) the development of a university library management model for students’ learning support. A mixed research method was applied comprising qualitative and quantitative approaches. Data was collected using in-depth interviews and questionnaires. The findings have led to a proposal of a university library management model that supports student learning, which is comprised of five components: 1) management policy and system; 2) learning resources; 3) learning support services; 4) learning environments; and 5) the competency and roles of information professionals. It can be stated that studies into Thai university library implementation, strategic plans, and self-assessment reports under the quality assurance system showed that even though libraries have updated resources and services following changing situations in policies, technologies, and users’ needs, there is no clear indicator that Thai university libraries have any strategy for acquiring roles to support students’ learning with practical outcomes. Through reliable research work, this study into a model for university library management would result in a means of developing university libraries that truly supports university student learning based on information from instructors, library administrators, and librarians.