Bridging the Gap: Wherever you are, the Library

Building Relationships With Senior Campus Administrators: Strategies for the New College Library Director

“…There is an element of risk in this type of relationship, and there must be a great amount of trust to believe that things will get done properly even if we aren't the ones doing them. (Stoffle et al, 2008) Their new mutual understanding of the partner department enabled L/IT members to coordinate strategic planning efforts, and staff throughout both organizations now routinely work together. Currently the team is investigating establishing an institutional repository.…”

“…Carla J. Stoffle, Kim Leeder, and Gabrielle Sykes-Casavant offer what may be the most important reason for working closely with other administrative units: libraries must re-invent themselves in response to diminished financial resources throughout higher education, and partnering with other departments should be a key strategy in this transformation process (Stoffle, Leeder, & Sykes-Casavant, 2008). While libraries have been restructuring collections and services over many years to capitalize on and respond to new user expectations in the age of Google and Amazon, Stoffle argues that ".…”

Library as a Verb: Technological Change and the Obsolescence of Place in Research

“…Although there are exceptions (e.g., Stoffle et al, 2008, who argue for economics as the main impulse), most authors who approach the idea that the library is in danger of vanishing assume that the increasing rapidity of technological changes is the root cause. Specifically, the continuing evolution of information storage-and-retrieval systems-and the subsequent shifts in library patrons' research habits-force us to change the way we look at and operate academic libraries.…”

Research support through the lens of transformation in academic libraries with reference to the case of Stellenbosch University Libraries

“…In this age of a surfeit of information libraries are working towards and consolidating an "in your space" philosophy, that is, having a virtual presence in the space of the researcher. To be in the space of the researcher, the library must ensure that the user has access to full-text from the widest range of mobile devices (Stoffle, Leeder and Sykes-Casavant 2008;Basefsky 2009;Sennyey, Ross and Mills 2009). Staley and Malenfant (2010: 65) add another dimension to the transformation of academic libraries making specific reference to research support.…”