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Article
Publication date: 29 June 2012

Judith Broady‐Preston and Wendy Swain

The purpose of this paper is to report results of a research project which investigated how two UK National libraries categorise their core business purpose together with an…

2534

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report results of a research project which investigated how two UK National libraries categorise their core business purpose together with an assessment of the role and relevance of additional (or value‐added) services in their strategic thinking, future planning and performance measurement.

Design/methodology/approach

This is a qualitative interpretive study, using a collective case study methodology, with the National Libraries of Wales and Scotland as the core cases. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with senior managers in both institutions, together with focus groups with librarians and library assistants, selected using purposive sampling. All instruments were piloted; data from the respondents were recorded, coded, classified and cross‐checked to ensure validity and rigour, using themed interview schedules to facilitate analysis.

Findings

It is difficult to be definitive as to core and additional services as individuals have differing interpretations of the terms. Changing customer demands and expectations, technological developments and the impact of a dynamic and complex economic environment suggest it is more meaningful to reconceptualise services according to the extent to which they contribute to achieving basic business purpose at any one time.

Originality/value

Libraries must demonstrate efficiency and effectiveness in service provision, and in relation to achieving primary purpose and resource priorities in order to survive. Examining the relevance of defining and distinguishing core and added‐value services in relation to performance assessment and strategic vision addresses a gap in existing knowledge.

Details

Performance Measurement and Metrics, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-8047

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 8 July 2014

13

Abstract

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Performance Measurement and Metrics, vol. 15 no. 1/2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-8047

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Article
Publication date: 25 November 2013

Joseph Matthews

– The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of adding value and in particular to suggest ways in which libraries can add even more value than they do so now.

1550

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of adding value and in particular to suggest ways in which libraries can add even more value than they do so now.

Design/methodology/approach

With this primarily a literature review combined with some examples of ways in which some libraries are adding value in new and interesting ways. This paper seeks to extend the work of Robert Taylor who developed a Value-Added Model.

Findings

Libraries must find new ways to add value to their collections and services as competitors continue to introduce convenient services that are drawing people away from libraries. The ways in which a library might add new value have been grouped into five broad categories: community, content, context, collaboration, or co-creation and connection. Each category is discussed in some detail and examples are provided to illustrate possibilities.

Originality/value

Exploring ways in which libraries can add value in the life of their customers must become a topic of conversation for librarians everywhere. The mandate to change is ever present and libraries need to introduce new and innovative services that add real value.

Details

Performance Measurement and Metrics, vol. 14 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-8047

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 29 June 2012

Stephen Thornton

251

Abstract

Details

Performance Measurement and Metrics, vol. 13 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1467-8047

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Article
Publication date: 5 May 2021

Deborah E. Swain and Patrick Roughen

This paper aims to describe how knowledge management (KM) in planning can support the sustainability of innovation in a hybrid, joint-use facility. The case study research studies…

941

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to describe how knowledge management (KM) in planning can support the sustainability of innovation in a hybrid, joint-use facility. The case study research studies ImaginOn, a 15 year-old children’s library and theater for young people in Charlotte, NC.

Design/methodology/approach

This research used KM model analysis of qualitative data about tacit-explicit knowledge, intellectual capital (IC) and cognitive modes of collaboration. Both historic documents and primary data (from field study observations, interviews and a questionnaire) were analyzed for informal KM practices. Semi-structured and unstructured interview questions about innovation were used.

Findings

This study found evidence of tacit knowledge sharing, the growth of IC and the operationalization of collaboration to promote innovation. Although traditional KM terms were not used by staff, an integrated model framework demonstrates how KM practices promote innovation in planning joint-use facilities.

Practical implications

Although a study of a diverse cultural collaboration rather than two libraries, the KM practices that supported innovation and collaboration in this hybrid, joint-use facility might be applied to libraries. Future KM model research on joint-use organizations could investigate merged businesses, government programs and non-profits.

Social implications

The library and theater institutions in ImaginOn impact the lives of children and parents in meaningful ways that support community understanding, art, diversity and social interaction.

Originality/value

Research on joint-use libraries began in the 1960s. This case study provides unique model analysis of KM practices in a hybrid, joint-use facility (a library and theater). The innovative success and sustainability of ImaginOn illustrates the application of KM for strategic planning and aligning IC and business assets.

Details

Journal of Knowledge Management, vol. 25 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1367-3270

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Article
Publication date: 22 March 2013

Jennifer Walinga and Wendy Rowe

The purpose of this paper is to explore how to transform one's perception of workplace stressors, moving beyond the idea of merely surviving or coping with stress to “thriving”…

2366

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to explore how to transform one's perception of workplace stressors, moving beyond the idea of merely surviving or coping with stress to “thriving” within what is becoming a non‐negotiable level of stress in the workplace.

Design/methodology/approach

The researchers generated a working definition of work stress thriving based on current literature, then conducted a content analysis of qualitative interviews to develop an empirically‐grounded understanding of factors differentiating a stress transformation response from a coping response to workplace stressors.

Findings

The study revealed key characteristics of a stress transformation response to stress challenges in the work place: systemic cognitive appraisal, inclusive communication strategies, collaborative and sustainable problem solving, individual learning and growth, and organizational positive impacts.

Research limitations/implications

As a pilot study, limitations to the research include a relatively small sample size and only one type of work environment. More empirical work is needed to test the model, develop and validate measures of stress transformation.

Practical implications

Findings provide the foundation for further empirical research into stress transformation, and will potentially lead to the development of measures, training interventions, organizational structures, and work processes to enhance stress thriving within organizations.

Social implications

The findings provide preliminary insights into tools for both organizational leaders and employees to respond more sustainably to increasingly stressful, fast paced, and complex work environments.

Originality/value

The study provides an original conceptual perspective on the concept of stress management, calling for a paradigm shift that views stress as desirable and conducive to optimal performance.

Details

International Journal of Workplace Health Management, vol. 6 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1753-8351

Keywords

Available. Content available
Article
Publication date: 13 November 2009

924

Abstract

Details

The Electronic Library, vol. 27 no. 6
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0264-0473

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Article
Publication date: 18 January 2008

Roger Bennett, Wendy Mousley and Rehnuma Ali‐Choudhury

The purpose of this research is to examine the influences of certain factors that helped determine students' assessments of the usefulness of a higher education orientation unit…

1345

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this research is to examine the influences of certain factors that helped determine students' assessments of the usefulness of a higher education orientation unit (HEOU) in a large post‐1992 university.

Design/methodology/approach

All students in a university business studies department who had completed or were near to completing a compulsory one‐semester HEOU were asked to fill in a questionnaire that explored specific personal characteristics that a review of prior academic literature had identified as potentially relevant to the explanation of how well or badly students respond to a HEOU. The outcomes were then related to the participants' views on the overall value of the unit and whether their attendance had led to improved academic performance.

Findings

Students who claimed that they had obtained the greatest advantages from the HEOU tended to be “academic” individuals who were highly committed to being a student, intrinsically motivated to study, high in academic self‐concept, academically able, and prior to their entry to the institution had been well‐prepared for university life. This was not necessarily the profile of the students that the unit had been designed to assist.

Research limitations/implications

Data on key variables was (necessarily) self‐reported. The investigation took place in a single institution and in a particular subject area. Also the students who filled in the questionnaire were, ipso facto, “survivors” and as such may not have been typical of students who had dropped out.

Practical implications

The outcomes to the study imply that “one size fits all” approaches to the design of study skills units might not be appropriate. Rather, specially constructed units may be needed to cater for the academically ill‐prepared.

Originality/value

At the time the research was conducted this was the first major empirical study to have related students' perceptions of the usefulness of an HEOU to their backgrounds, traits, and other personal characteristics.

Details

International Journal of Educational Management, vol. 22 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0951-354X

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Article
Publication date: 1 December 2004

Wendy Holliday and Qin Li

Brings together recent research on undergraduate information behavior, including preliminary findings of a qualitative study testing Kuhlthau's Information Search Process (ISP…

7189

Abstract

Brings together recent research on undergraduate information behavior, including preliminary findings of a qualitative study testing Kuhlthau's Information Search Process (ISP) model. The main methods include a literature review of undergraduate attitudes and information behavior and a qualitative study of 35 undergraduates. The data were coded into the original ISP model to test how it holds up with a new generation of students. Finds that the Millennial Generation increasingly turns to the web rather than the library as its primary information resource and also that the ISP model holds up for many of the students in the study. The easy access to information, however, suggests some changes to the model. It enables some students to skip steps in the process, especially focus formulation, because many students stop after their preliminary searches, thinking that they have completed the research process. The study is a qualitative study with a small sample, so findings cannot be generalized. The findings are also preliminary. The paper brings together a wide range of literature and can provide instruction librarians with a more coherent and updated view of the Millennial Generation in order to improve instruction for this group of students.

Details

Reference Services Review, vol. 32 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0090-7324

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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1986

In the matter of food purity and control Hospital Catering Services have been outside the law, a privileged position where the general law of food and drugs have never applied and…

211

Abstract

In the matter of food purity and control Hospital Catering Services have been outside the law, a privileged position where the general law of food and drugs have never applied and the modern regulatory control in food hygiene has similarly not applied. In the eyes of the general public hospital catering standards have always been high above the general run of food preparation. As the NHS continued, complaints began gradually to seep out of the closed community, of dirt in the kitchens and prevalent hygiene malpractices. The general standard for most hospitals remained high but there were no means of dealing with the small minority of complaints which disgusted patients and non‐cater‐ing staff, such as insect and rodent infestations, and an increase in the frequency of food poisoning outbreaks.

Details

British Food Journal, vol. 88 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0007-070X

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