Staff-Less Libraries. Innovative Staffing Design [1st Edition] 9780081019245, 9780081019238

Table of contents :
Content:
Series Page,Front Matter,Copyright,List of Figures,List of Tables,List of Boxes,AcknowledgmentsEntitled to full text1 - Introduction, Pages 1-41
2 - Open Library Service in a Broader Perspective, Pages 43-69
3 - The Development and History of Open Libraries, Pages 71-111
4 - Open Library Communities, Users, and Usage, Pages 113-147
5 - Critical Success Factors, Pages 149-153
6 - A Step-by-Step Approach to Implementation, Pages 155-159
7 - Conclusions, Pages 161-162
References, Pages 163-169
Index, Pages 171-175

Citation preview

Chandos Information Professional Series Series Editor: Ruth Rikowski (email: [email protected]) Chandos’ new series of books is aimed at the busy information professional. They have been specially commissioned to provide the reader with an authoritative view of current thinking. They are designed to provide easy-to-read and (most importantly) practical coverage of topics that are of interest to librarians and other information professionals. If you would like a full listing of current and forthcoming titles, please visit www.chandospublishing.com. New authors: we are always pleased to receive ideas for new titles; if you would like to write a book for Chandos, please contact Dr Glyn Jones on [email protected] or telephone +44 (0) 1865 843000.

Staff-Less Libraries Innovative Staff Design

Carl Gustav Johannsen Royal School of Library and Information Science University of Copenhagen Denmark

Chandos Publishing is an imprint of Elsevier 50 Hampshire Street, 5th Floor, Cambridge, MA 02139, United States The Boulevard, Langford Lane, Kidlington, OX5 1GB, United Kingdom Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Details on how to seek ­permission, further information about the Publisher’s permissions policies and our ­arrangements with organizations such as the Copyright Clearance Center and the Copyright Licensing Agency, can be found at our website: www.elsevier.com/permissions. This book and the individual contributions contained in it are protected under copyright by the Publisher (other than as may be noted herein). Notices Knowledge and best practice in this field are constantly changing. As new research and ­experience broaden our understanding, changes in research methods, professional practices, or medical treatment may become necessary. Practitioners and researchers must always rely on their own experience and knowledge in evaluating and using any information, methods, compounds, or experiments described herein. In using such information or methods they should be mindful of their own safety and the safety of others, including parties for whom they have a professional responsibility. To the fullest extent of the law, neither the Publisher nor the authors, contributors, or ­editors, assume any liability for any injury and/or damage to persons or property as a matter of ­products liability, negligence or otherwise, or from any use or operation of any methods, ­products, instructions, or ideas contained in the material herein. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data A catalog record for this book is available from the Library of Congress British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library ISBN: 978-0-08-101923-8 (print) ISBN: 978-0-08-101924-5 (online) For information on all Chandos Publishing publications visit our website at https://www.elsevier.com/books-and-journals

Publisher: Glyn Jones Acquisition Editor: Glyn Jones Editorial Project Manager: Charlotte Rowley Production Project Manager: Poulouse Joseph Designer: Mark Rogers Typeset by TNQ Books and Journals

List of Figures

Figure 1.1 Figure 2.1 Picture 3.1 Figure 4.1 Figure 4.2 Figure 4.3 Figure 4.4 Figure 4.5

 iterature on Open Libraries 2016 unit: articles—N = 62. Library and L Information Science Abstracts (LISA), August 16, 2016. Open public libraries—Denmark 2009–2016. Open library elements. Langeland 2013–2016—visitors broken down by gender N = 111,905. Visitors by age—Langeland and Jægersborg. Visitors per year 2000–2015 Langeland and Jægersborg. Logins (unstaffed) and visit (staffed) 2010–2015 in six Danish open libraries percentages. Dybbøl library 2013–2015 logins and loans during unstaffed hours.

3 53 72 120 121 122 131 134

List of Tables

Table 1.1 Table 1.2 Table 2.1 Table 2.2 Table 2.3 Table 4.1 Table 4.2 Table 4.3 Table 4.4 Table 4.5 Table 4.6 Table 4.7

Table 4.8

 ISA Records About Self-Service Libraries L LISTA Records About Self-Service Libraries Open Libraries in Seven Countries Staffed and Unstaffed Opening Hours per Week in 76 Open Public Libraries in 2011 in Denmark—Unit: Hours per Week Staffed and Unstaffed Weekly Opening Hours (2015), Sweden Cordura Open Libraries and Logins in Denmark, Norway and Sweden 2014–2015 Open Library Users, Denmark 2011 Age, n = 49.000 Open Library Visits Staff-Less Libraries, Denmark, Visits per Hours During Unstaffed and Staffed Opening Hours, 2011, N = 34 Staff-Less Libraries, Denmark, Loans per Hour and Total, During Unstaffed and Staffed Opening Hours, 2010/2011—Top 10, N = 10 Staff-Less Libraries, Denmark, Logins per Unstaffed Hour and Balance Between Staffed and Unstaffed Opening Hours, 2011 − N = 10 Staff-Less Libraries, Denmark, Loans per Hour and Balance Between Staffed and Unstaffed Opening Hours, 2011, N = 7 Staff-Less Libraries, Denmark, Yearly Number of Loans (in Thousands)—Before and After Establishment of an Open Library, Libraries With Growth, Top 10, Only Libraries With More Than 2% Yearly Growth Staff-Less Libraries, Denmark, Yearly Number of Loans (in Thousands), Before and After Establishment of an Open Library, Top 6 Libraries With Decreasing Number of Loans

4 5 50 53 61 123 125 130 133 135 136

137

138

List of Boxes

Box 1.1 Box 1.2 Box 1.3 Box 2.1 Box 3.1 Box 3.2 Box 3.3 Box 3.4 Box 4.1 Box 4.2 Box 4.3 Box 4.4 Box 4.5 Box 4.6

 taff-Less Libraries on the Island, Bornholm, Denmark: A Case S Purposes of Offering Open Library—Gladsaxe Libraries (Denmark)—Case Giving Libraries Back to the Users—Hareskov Library (Denmark)—Case Gjern 2004—The World’s First Open Library—Case An Ongoing Research Project on Open Libraries The City of Vantaa and Its Libraries (Finland)—Case Spydeberg Public Library (Norway)—Case Cross-Party Support in Peterborough, UK—Case Open Libraries in the City of Copenhagen—Case Library on the Doorstep, Lyngby-Taarbæk Case (Denmark) Case Gladsaxe Libraries (Denmark)—Case Typical Worries Before Installing an Open Library, Gladsaxe Libraries (Denmark), Case No Major Issues in Peterborough (United Kingdom)—Case Sønderborg Libraries (Denmark)—Case

12 14 20 52 81 85 86 106 115 117 133 139 140 142

Acknowledgments

This book is very much a product of the stimulating and open intellectual environment of the Royal School of Library and Information Science at the University of Copenhagen where I have been privileged to work for many years. Among my many remarkable colleagues who have contributed, directly or indirectly, with inspiration or comments, I will especially thank Dorte Skot-Hansen, Vice-Director, Hans Dam Christensen, Henrik Jochumsen, Lennart Bjørneborn, Nan Dahlkild, Nanna KannRasmussen, and my Swedish, Ph.D., student, Lisa Engström. The staff of the university library and especially Karen Margrethe Ørnstrup and Lisbeth Rasmussen have also delivered valuable inputs and guidance. I would also like to thank members of my national network of library professionals and researchers for their valuable contributions: professor Gunnar Lind Haase Svendsen, Hellen Niegaard, Jens Thorhauge, and Jonna Holmgaard Larsen and special thanks for contributions to Carsten Nicolaisen, Sønderborg, Finn Petersen, Copenhagen, Gitte Fisker, Aalborg, Hanne M. Sørensen, Sønderborg, Jon Madsen, Bornholm, Kirsten Boelt, Aalborg, Martin Lundsgaard-Leth, Ikast-Brande, Mogens Larsen, Silkeborg, and Pia Henriette Friis, Kolding. Besides, a number of professionals and researchers from different countries have contributed: Andreas Vårheim, Norway, Ane Landøy, Norway, Annelie Krell, Sweden, Cecilia Ranemo, Sweden, Claudia Knauer, Germany, Ibi Engsby, Norway, Kristiina Kontainen, Finland, Kristina Elding, Sweden, Leikny Haga Indergaard, Norway, Lisa Roberts, Peterborough, UK, Marit-Gro Berge, Norway, Mikko Vainio, Finland, Sven Arne Tinnesand, Norway, and Svanhild Aabø, Norway. I would also like to thank leaders and staff from the two, recently merged, library software companies Bibliotheca and Cordura for their invaluable inputs, data, and contributions: Anja Høyer Bæk, Aarhus, Lau Rasmussen, Aarhus, Richard Stewart, UK, and Sven Mønsted Hilm, Copenhagen. For continuing interest in the project and valuable support, I would like to thank the publisher, Elsevier, and especially George Knott, Poulouse Joseph and Tessa de Roo. Book projects cannot be completed without sacrifices on the home front. Here I would like to thank the following people for their patience and support: my grandchild, Clara, my son Anders who recently has moved to Cambridge, my daughter Rikke, and my girlfriend Gitte. Østerbro, Copenhagen, Denmark October 2016

Introduction

1

Purpose The purpose of this book is to present and illuminate both the challenges and the benefits associated with a quite new type of public library: the staff-less or the open library or the unstaffed library. The terms “staff-less” and “open” will be used synonymously from now on. The first open library was opened in Denmark in 2004 and since 2010, the staff-less model has spread in Denmark and to the other Nordic countries and to other countries in Europe, such as the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. At the same time, the model has also emerged in several Far Eastern countries such as China, Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan. Staff-less libraries are found both among academic and public libraries. However, there are many differences on how they work, their opening hours, and the like; also the contexts associated with the two library types are quite different. Therefore, this book will, primarily, focus on the staff-less public libraries. However, when interesting parallels can be drawn, relevant academic library experiences will be referred to also. For example, because the interest for late-night access to the library seems to be quite different among academic and public library users (Lawrence & Weber, 2012), the causes of such remarkable differences will be dealt with. Since about 2004 the open library type has evolved in many countries, especially, in the Nordic countries in Europe. Experiences with unstaffed public library services from many countries will be dealt with. However, the book, in particular, will focus on the following seven selected countries: • Denmark • Finland • Norway • Sweden • Germany • United Kingdom • United States

These countries have, however, not been chosen because they were the only countries where the open library concept has been tested. Asian countries such as China, Japan, Singapore, and Taiwan have already been mentioned as early adopters of the necessary radio frequency identification (RFID) technology in public libraries. Therefore, it has been a combination of languages available for the author and countries with relevant experiences that has determined the selection. For example, the Dutch experiences have been omitted because of language difficulties. Although many users, local politicians, national library authorities, and library leaders and staff members have welcomed the open libraries, resistance and critique have Staff-Less Libraries. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-101923-8.00001-0 Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

2

Staff-Less Libraries

also been submitted by professionals, certain associations, and even by some users. This important aspect is clearly mirrored in the subtitle of this book: Navigating the Innovative Staffing Design, where I hope that the facts and reasons presented during the following pages will contribute to constructive dialogs in the libraries and wherever else the open library issue is discussed to facilitate the navigation toward innovative staffing designs.

Definitions The definition of the term also demands attention, whereas the risk of misunderstandings is at hand. As far as possible, the specific term used in the country in question will also be used in the book. In Sweden and in Norway, for example, the term “more opened” instead of “staff-less” or “open” is frequently used. Also in Denmark, staffless libraries are more often referred to as “open libraries” than as “staff-less” or “unstaffed” libraries. Such preferences have something to do with the negative connotations associated with terms such as “unstaffed” and “staff-less.” Because, however, all the applied terms “staff-less,” “open,” “more-opened,” and “unstaffed” library, immediately, could appear somewhat misleading, a further, more elaborated, definition seems to be necessary. Below, however, the four terms, will, more or less, be used synonymously. As it will emerge from the next chapter or Chapter 2, a fifth term, “self-service,” however, will be avoided or handled with care because it indicates a somewhat different status compared to the terms “open,” “moreopened,” “staff-less,” and “unstaffed.” Also, in the business world, for example, most “self-service” super markets are not “staff-less” at all.

What Is an Open Library? What is an open or more-opened or staff-less or unstaffed library? Is it, for example, the same as a self-service library? It is certainly not the same. But why is it not the same? Because the latter question is more complex than immediately thought, it cannot be answered fully by a straight “yes” or “no.” To consider the question about choosing a proper terminology, I will start the discussion by using a small bibliographic exercise to show the character of the existing ambiguities and the complexities of the issue.

Open Libraries in Bibliographic Databases In online databases, especially the ones prepared by professional librarians, you usually expect to find well-defined and precisely controlled keywords concerning the important concepts. Let us take a look at such a professional database and consider if that is also valid for the conceptual framework around terms such as “staff-less” or “open” libraries.

Library and Information Science Abstracts If you make an online search in Library and Information Science Abstract (LISA), one of the main databases of the library profession, you would get 65 hits if your

Introduction

3

ϭϲ ϭϰ EDZ
E^

ϴ

h