Director's Report

2005 was a varied, but busy year, for the staff of the Division of Library Services. The year included such things as the biennial Library Client Survey, the launch of the new Library website, preparing for the University's Australian Universities Quality Audit (AUQA) visit, new resources to support researchers, and streamlining a number of internal processes. As ever, the staff of the Division continued to provide quality services and support to the CQU community. The summary below provides an insight to the range and diversity of the activities undertaken during 2005.

Graham Black, Director Division of Library Services

Library Client Survey

The biennial Library Client Survey facilitated by Ambit Insight, formerly Rodski, was undertaken in August. CQU Library was once again recorded an overall performance score that placed it in the top quartile of libraries in Ambit Insights database. Although, none of the variables in the survey showed a significant gap there are areas where the Library needs to improve. The Library has analysed the results and comments of the survey, and it has implemented strategies to address some of the issues identified. More details on the survey are available.

New Library Web Site

The new CQU Library website was launched in February. The new site represents over two years of planning and development by Library staff. Three methodologies were used to identify user preferences, and a significant amount of time and resources was invested in training staff to develop content for the new site. The site is based on the style of the CQU website and was developed with input of the University Web Manager. The web site provides all the information clients need regarding CQU Library.

SearchSMART

The SearchSMART resources portal was launched as a component of the Library's new web site in February. Its aim is to consolidate access points to library resources from one location.

AUQA visit

AUQA undertook an audit of the University in October. Unlike audits undertaken at most other institutions, Library staff were interviewed as a sole group rather than with colleagues from learning and teaching support or IT areas. Accordingly, quite a bit of time was spent preparing for the audit interview as well as providing the panel with additional information.

Scopus

One of the major research subscriptions taken for 2005 was SCOPUS. SCOPUS is a large abstract and citation database of research literature and quality web sources produced by Elsevier. Scopus' coverage includes  access over 12,850 academic journals including coverage of 535 Open Access journals, 750 conference proceedings,  12.7 million patent records from 4 patent offices. It also provides  links to full-text articles where the Library currently maintains a subscription, in addition to other library resources.

Staff Development

Staff development opportunities were provided to staff throughout the year via in-house sessions, University provided events, staff study support, and workshops and conferences held in metropolitan centres. One of the major achievements by the Staff Development Committee was the development of the staff development policy. The policy provides a comprehensive framework for the organisation and implementation of staff development within the Division.

Serials Financial Database

Division's Serials Financial Database was ugraded to enhance its functionality. The 'new' database provides enhanced reporting and searching facilities, in addition to enabling bulk changes. The database was migrated from Microsoft Access to a MySQL/Oracle web-based platform.

Course Profiles

Obtaining information about changes to set texts and recommended readings has been a difficult and time consuming process for Technical Services. Previously, the information was recorded in each course profile with Library staff having to scan each course profile to identify changes. Acquisitions has been working closely with CQU Bookshop to streamline the process to obtain new titles or editions of set texts. A new process has also been implemented to capture changes to recommended readings by requesting academics to advise of changes via a simple form. Work is ongoing to streamline the process even further through possible enhancements to the content management system.

System Upgrades and Changes

A number of upgrades and enhancements were made to Virtua, the Library's integrated library management system, including an upgrade to Version 45 and the implementation of Syndetic Solutions catalogue enhancement. This enhancement enables book covers and the contents notes to be displayed for many recently acquired items. Videoconferencing was implemented to all CQ campus libraries thus improving the delivery of presentations and the management of meetings. Preliminary investigations and assessments were undertaken for the purchase and development of an institutional repository. The decision was made to implement the ARROW solution which incorporates commercially developed and open source software.

Records and Archives Office

The Records and Archives Office developed the University's Records Management Policy which was approved by the Vice-Chancellor in March. The policy articulates the University's commitment to records management and provides a framework for the creation and management of records within the University. The Office also contributed to the development of the General Retention and Disposal Schedule for Queensland Universities which was approved by the Queensland State Archives in June.

Strategic Planning

For 2005,  the Division identified  a number of strategic initiatives which were prioritised into three categories. As Priority 1 initiatives were the most important, the majority of the Division's energies were devoted to achieving these. By the end of 2005, 10 of the 15 initiatives were either completed or due to be completed in 2006. Three of the seven Priority 1 initiatives were successfully completed. They were:

• Expand information literacy education in Biology, Human Movement, OHS, Health and Business
• Implement a library portal
• Implement the initiatives of the CQU Library Marketing Plan
   

The four remaining Priority 1 initiatives were on their way to being achieved in 2006. They were:

• Implement an electronic repository
• Information commons developments at Mackay, Bundaberg, Gladstone & Rockhampton
• Continue to enhance the skills of staff ensuring that all staff have appropriate IT skills for their duties and that staff at public service points are able to competently deliver agreed levels of service, with expert help available if required, to clients.
• Augment quality processes by including risk assessment.