ERIC Number: EJ1113290
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2016
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1361-4533
EISSN: N/A
Strategic Engagement: New Models of Relationship Management for Academic Librarians
Eldridge, Jeanette; Fraser, Katie; Simmonds, Tony; Smyth, Neil
New Review of Academic Librarianship, v22 n2-3 p160-175 2016
How do we best bridge the gap between the Library and the diverse academic communities it serves? Librarians need new strategies for engagement. Traditional models of liaison, aligning solutions to disciplines, are yielding to functional specialisms, including a focus on building partnerships. This paper offers a snapshot of realignment across the Russell Group from subject support to relationship management. It then follows the journey of a newly-formed Faculty and School Engagement Team. Techniques are explored for building relationship capital, anchored to a model Strategic Engagement Cycle. Theory is contrasted with the challenges of securing real buy-in to new ways of working amid diverging agendas and assumptions, notably within the Library itself. Consideration is given to the retention of aspects of subject librarian roles. Investment in a relationship management function demands staunch and ongoing commitment to fulfil its promise, not only from its performers but from across the library community.
Descriptors: Academic Libraries, Models, Partnerships in Education, Librarian Teacher Cooperation, Strategic Planning, Communication Strategies, Librarians, Interprofessional Relationship, Workshops, Organizational Change, Staff Role, Foreign Countries
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A