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Yale University Library
Service Quality
Improvement Council
Yale University Library
Service Quality Improvement Council
SQIC Minutes
December 16
1-2:30 pm
SML Room 409
Attending: Danuta Nitecki, Susan Crockford-Peters, Alan Solomon, Fred
Martz, David Stern, Mark Gentry, Ellen Hammond
Absent: Carol Jones , Diane Turner, Pam Mouzon, Robert Killheffer
NEW BUSINESS
1. Ask!live proposal (Sue Lorimer
and the Reference Group)
The SQIC Reference Group and SQIC engaged in conversation about the
proposal for permanent implementation. The results of these conversations
and the revised proposal will be presented to LMC/LMT.
Ask!live virtual reference is a service that is an innovative extension
of existing services as well as of our ambitions for integrating services
through technology and has the full endorsement of the SQIC. Use during
the test period has been expanding and has received rave reviews. A
number of details were highlighted for LMC consideration:
(1) the definition of “participating librarians”
Those librarians with a primary responsibility for providing reference
service should be designated as available one hour per week.
(2) the hours of the service
Coverage and hours of service may change and will be dependent upon
the number of available participating librarians and the suggestion
of the Reference Group. The minimum service provision will be maintaining
the existing 26 hours per week.
(3) statement of service expectations
A public service contract of reasonable expectations for depth of coverage,
response time, service limitations, and referral to subject specialists
will need to be approved and mounted on the web. SQIC members urged
not to appear too restrictive in the public presentation of this service.
(4) work from home
The maximum benefit of this distributed service will be obtained if
we implement work-from-home allowances for times when professional reference
service isn't available in many or any libraries and at times known
to be important research and study times for undergraduates.. This may
eventually require funding for DSL lines and other small fees, flex
time arrangements with supervisors, and a statement of maximum hours
per shift per personper shift. The scope and quality of service provided
from home as opposed to that offered from a physical library need to
be explored. SQIC proposes that the Library Administration approve a
one- year exploration of offering AskLive services that will utilize
a work-at-home approach for qualified reference librarian volunteers
who have appropriate technologies at home; the pilot arrangement will
be monitored and reviewed by the AskLive Service Manager with a report
to SQIC/LMT/LMC by January 2006.
The Ask!live virtual reference service is seen as a supplement, and
not a replacement for traditional Reference services. The SQIC believes
no additional resources are required for this new service, but rather
that it can be supported through a reallocation of existing staff resources.
There may be some extra staffing attention that the Reference Group
is willing to give in order to adapt to an expected migration of AskLive
to QuestionPoint software that the vendor has announced will occur this
summer.
The timeline to make AskLive a permanent service will be training
and implementation as soon as possible in the new year, based upon Reference
Group availability, with a possible summer migration and retraining
if the revised QuestionPoint software is implemented.
2. SurveyMonkey proposal
The SQIC received an update on the progress to date by the SurveyMonkey
Task Force, in terms of process and responsibilities. After conversation
and clarification, the SQIC endorsed the support plans which will involve
designating a Coordinator and administrative assistant support to utilize
the software for library public opinion surveys. A prototype survey
using a topic of interest to PIC will be run shortly to test the proposed
process. Work on developing a database for storage and retrieval of
gathered data will proceed using this data set. The group recognized
a need for YUL-wide guidelines for gathering and utilizing data from
human subjects that would clarify recognized and required principles
and practices for handling such data. The SQIC encouraged Danuta and
the Coordinator to evolve such a policy statement from working on this
prototype survey which can be proposed to LMC.
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