Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to present the complete details of the Quality Maturity Model (QMM), and the associated Quality Culture Assessment Instrument (QCAI). The QMM provides a framework for libraries to self-assess their progress towards achieving a culture of quality. Design/methodology/approach – The research used a Design Science approach and predominantly grounded theory methodology to develop the QMM as a roadmap that defines an ordinal scale for measuring the maturity of an academic library’s quality culture. Findings – The QMM describes seven facets of quality culture, and five levels for each facet. Practical implications – The QCAI enables libraries to locate themselves within the quality maturity landscape. They will then be able to use the QMM as a roadmap to plan their route to improvement. Such a strategic approach to improvement allows libraries to make sense of the literature in terms of what is appropriate for them, so avoiding expensive irrelevancies. Originality/value – The QMM is unique. There are other models that assess quality culture, but the details of these models are kept secret and the only way to be assessed is by paying a consultancy fee. There are other models that make their details public, but they describe only one or two aspects of quality culture, not all.

Purpose - It remains unresolved from the literature whether benchmarking is a useful and appropriate tool for the library and information services sector. The aim of this research was to gather evidence to establish whether benchmarking provides a real and lasting benefit to library and information services.\ud Design/methodology/approach - The study investigated the long term effects of a benchmarking exercise on the quality level of three UK academic libraries. However, an appropriate framework for assessing the quality level of libraries is not present in the literature, and it was therefore necessary for such a framework to be developed. This article describes and provides initial characterisation of the framework developed - the Quality Maturity Model (QMM).\ud Findings - The evidence from the investigation showed that the two libraries which were at stage one on the QMM before the benchmarking exercise remained there; and the library which scored at the penultimate level, level four, before benchmarking, was, four years afterwards, at level five. The tentative conclusion drawn were that benchmarking may only be appropriate for organisations with a existing high level of quality maturity. Much further work is proposed.\ud Originality/value – The research provides evidence which establishes whether benchmarking provides a real and lasting benefit to library and information services

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