Trends in New Zealand

1

• Trends in New Zealand
• special libraries
• Gillian Ralph
• and
• Julie Sibthorpe
• November 2009

2
Trends in New Zealand special libraries

• Acknowledgements
• Introduction
• Methodology
• Research
• Findings
• Transitional stage
• Conclusions
• Future

3
Acknowledgements

• Paul Szentirmay
  Special Librarianship
  Scholarship Trust
• AC Nielson

4
Acknowledgments

• A big THANKS to
• New Zealand Special Librarians
• and

5
Definitions

• Special library
• an information unit within a public or private
  corporation, government agency or non-profit
  organisation
• Closure
• used to mean an organisation where there is no
  longer a librarian or there is no longer a
  library collection or service

6
Introduction and Methodology

• Introduction
• Concern for
• Small but important special libraries
• Closures and jobs survey
• Methodology
• Literature search
• Interviews and Focus group
• Online questionnaire

7
Research findings

• International comparison
• External factors
• Internal factors
• Professional groups
• Talking with you
• Statistics
• Questionnaire results
• Effect of closures

8
Our findings

• International experience
• Comparison with New Zealand

9
Our findings

• External factors
• Economy
• International mergers and acquisitions

10
Our findings

• Factors within our control
• Improve our managers perceptions
• Improve our perceptions of ourselves

11
Our findings

• Professional groups
• Cohesiveness in health, medical, legal libraries
• Collaborative environment in
• Government, Theological and GLAM sectors
• Corporate libraries - lack of standards,
  guidelines, support
• SLA support

12
Our findings

• Talking with you
• Interviews and focus group
• Moving from traditional roles
• Redundancies
• High visibility / marketing / training
• Sharing successes and news
• Statistics

13
Our findings - Statistics Libraries
in 1990 and 2008

• Number of libraries

14
Our findings - Statistics

• Closures
• Number of libraries

15
Our findings - Statistics

• What has happened in the intervening years?
• 149 Closed
• 37 Downsized / merged / amalgamated
• 12 Reinstated
• 110 Special libraries established
• 237 Functioning special libraries 2008

16
Questionnaire results library closures
17
Questionnaire results reasons for closure
18
Questionnaire results library staff

19
Questionnaire results

• Activities to undertake
• Stressful times so be kind to yourself.
• Reviews are often times for new ideas - take care
  of yourself.
• Dont complain about everything and dont hide in
  a corner.
• There is nothing you can do. I have been made
  redundant 5 times.
• Try vigorously shaking the non-information
  manager responsible for the mess about to happen

20
Questionnaire results

• What kind of support was received?
• 59 survey respondents made redundant
• Half had no support
• Some offered human resources and internal
  management support, Employee Assistance
  Programmes, counsellors and consultants brought
  in to assist.
• Only one was offered retraining.
• Two people had the support of a union.
• Library colleagues in other libraries were best
  support for some others.
• Support from LIANZA and Special Libraries
  Association

21
Questionnaire results personal comments

• Closures seen as a way to cut costs. In dollar
  terms no one is considering the value the library
  adds and the savings made.
• Many resources appear to be permanently lost from
  the national collections. New Zealand material is
  very hard to find even using Union Catalogue
  lists
• Redundancy need not be a negative thing. It makes
  you rethink your career choices and up skill
  accordingly
• Special librarianship has to change. Everyone
  thinks they are a brilliant researcher these days
  thanks to Google. Training the Googlers to be
  better googlers and training in the use of
  appropriate databases is an opportunity.

22
Transitional stage Reference to Guy
St Clairs Knowledge Services
23
Suggestions for the profession

• New professional standards and guidelines
• Creation of skills and competencies lists
• CPD activities nationally coordinated
• Seminars organised regularly

24
Suggestions for individuals

• Take personal responsibility - align the library
  fully with the goals of the organisation
• Create a future-proofing strategy
• Raise our profile preach what you practice
• Become involved in your organisation - SLIS,
  SLA etc
• Become true Managers of information

25
Suggestions for individuals

• There is still a need for special librarian
  skills, but
• Sixty-eight percent of professionals wish they
  could spend less time organising information and
  more time using the information that comes their
  way.2008 LexisNexis Workplace Productivity
  Survey, LexisNexis, December 2007
  WorldOneResearch, 2008

26
http//www.lianza.org.nz/community/special-librari
es/index.html
27
Future trends

• Identified
• transitional stage
• need to actively promote our services and
  ourselves
• need to broaden range of professional skills and
  competencies
• Created a web resource
• Evolution, reinvention, realignment

28
Quote from the late Anita Roddick

• If you think you are too small to be effective,
• you have never been in bed with a mosquito
  

29
Contacts

• Julie Sibthorpe
• University of Auckland
• j.sibthorpe_at_auckland.ac.nz
• Gillian Ralph
• University of Auckland
• g.ralph_at_xtra.co.nz