 Making Sense of Assessment All-Staff Meeting Nov. 4-5, 2010 Lisa R. Horowitz, Assessment Librarian

All-staff meeting, 11/2010 Libraries use data the way a drunk uses a lamppost — more for support than for illumination. — Kendon Stubbs (paraphrased) In God we trust. All others must bring data. — Robert W. Hayden To guess is cheap. To guess wrongly is expensive. — Chinese proverb accessed 10/29/10

What is Assessment? “… Collection of statistical and other data describing the performance of the library, and the analysis of these data in order to evaluate performance. Or, in other words: Comparing what a library is doing (performance) with what it is meant to do (mission) and wants to achieve (goals). All-staff meeting, 11/2010 Roswitha Poll, “Measuring Quality: International Guidelines for Performance Measurement in Academic Libraries,” IFLA Publication 76 (1996): 16. (Description of performance measurement)

Assessment is NOT:  Individual performance evaluation  Ranking individuals or units All-staff meeting, 11/2010

Assessment Team All-staff meeting, 11/2010

Desired Future State  Guided by a user-centered approach to service, the Libraries will be an agile, creative, and data-driven organization that: Enables seamless discovery and access to scholarly information sources. Manages knowledge, with an emphasis on MIT-created content. Provides faculty, students, and staff with expert support and training to find, evaluate, manage, and use resources. Creates high-quality spaces for both reflective and collaborative work and study. Leads initiatives to inform and shape the future of libraries and scholarly research. Aligning Assessment with Strategy All-staff meeting, 11/2010

Assessment Plan  Assessment model  Assessment advisors All-staff meeting, 11/2010 How can I help you?

Strategic Directions and Objectives Strategic DirectionReworded as Objective Build and strengthen relationships with faculty, students and the MIT community (1) Understand our users (2) Improve customer service (3) Increase awareness Advocate for sound information policy(4) Advocate for sound information policy Transform library space(5) Transform library space Collaborate with strategic partners outside the Libraries (6) Collaborate with strategic partners outside the Libraries Improve infrastructure for digital content management and delivery (7) Improve infrastructure for locating and accessing digital products Enhance staff capabilities(8) Train and instill staff competencies Create the next generation research library organization (9) Improve staff workflows (10) Increase resources and balance budgets All-staff meeting, 11/2010

Next Steps Measures Targets Tools All-staff meeting, 11/2010

Expectations of Staff  First year is a pilot  Not a separate project  Related to ongoing work  All units participate  Aligned with strategic directions All-staff meeting, 11/2010 Assessment plan is a guide; no work is prescribed

Where do I fit?  Staff members should consider how their work contributes to the unit objective, as well as the systemwide objective.  You may be asked to count something new, or participate in a focus group or staff discussion.  You may be observed as you go about your work. All-staff meeting, 11/2010

Conclusion  Assess progress toward strategic goals  Part of everyday work  Everyone participates and matters  Assessment advisors available  Not personal but systemwide All-staff meeting, 11/2010

Questions?  Lisa Horowitz,  Assessment Team, assessment-  Library Assessment and Business Intelligence wiki, /LABI/Library+Assessment+and+Busin ess+Intelligence+(LABI) or Aw /LABI/Library+Assessment+and+Busin ess+Intelligence+(LABI Aw All-staff meeting, 11/2010