22.08.2012
NTNU University Library
GOALS, CHOICES AND ACTIONS 2012 – 2014
NTNU’s 2011-2020 strategy document, "Knowledge for a better world", will also govern the library’s activities over the coming years. The library shall
contribute to enabling NTNU to reach its goals. The core of the library’s work is to provide a foundation so that NTNU’s staff and student have access to a
broad spectrum of knowledge sources. The library’s services shall support and provide added value to the research, outreach, teaching and learning that
takes place at NTNU. To achieve these goals, the library must be in close contact with its users and have a good understanding of the activities that take
place at the university. The University Library is also a library that offers services to external users.
Some trends and challenges
Academic and research libraries are making the transition from owning the material that they offer (printed books and journals) to distributing publishers’
materials (electronic journals and e-books) via access agreements.
Libraries are no longer the sole source of information. Users often find what they need on the Internet, via social media and in other places. Libraries must
adapt their services accordingly, by meeting users in the venues where they are and tailoring user contacts to meet this development.
It will be an increasing challenge to acquire and develop the expertise that libraries will need to meet these developments and stay ahead. Varied, relevant
and top-notch expertise will be key competitive factors for libraries.
Library facilities must be developed as good, flexible places for learning. For many students, the library is a workplace, a meeting place and a learning
environment. Library facilities need to reflect the varied ways that students study and work. The transition from printed to electronic materials offers an
opportunity to reallocate the space in libraries from book collections to student workspaces.
Goals and choices
The goals describe the situation we would like to find ourselves in by the end of 2014. The choices provide the direction we need to pursue to
get to where we want to go. It is assumed that the choices and priority areas will be enacted as measures that to the greatest extent possible
have a verifiable effect.
Goal 1 – The library is the main provider of knowledge sources for research and teaching
The library will contribute to quality in research and teaching through its sources of knowledge, along with developing services for information
monitoring, handling references and publishing. (From NTNU’s strategy: Quality in teaching and research.)
Choices
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The knowledge sources provided shall be in line with the user’s wants and needs.
Access to online knowledge sources shall be the priority.
Knowledge sources shall be accessible where the users are.
Priority areas and actions
1 Services
Develop future-oriented services for searching, displaying, sharing and using knowledge sources.
2 Knowledge sources
Make use of and further expand the use of NTNU’s own purchasing systems.
Introduce a new library system for effective handling of procurements and access to knowledge sources.
Streamline the procurement process.
Try out new forms of purchasing and access in collaboration with the difference academic disciplines.
Update criteria for the purchase, access and storage of knowledge sources.
Streamline the processing and access to e-resources.
3 Access
Integrate access to the library’s knowledge sources with other systems at NTNU.
Goal 2 – The library contributes to a good learning environment
The library provides a significant contribution to NTNU’s learning environment by providing diverse learning venues. (From NTNUs strategy: A
good learning environment)
Choices
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Competence in the use of knowledge sources is promoted through courses and e-learning offerings.
Increased cooperation with relevant units at NTNU on the facilitation of learning venues.
The number of student workstations is increased and their availability is improved.
Priority areas and actions
1 Course-related activities and guidance
Develop training programmes that help meet the requirements in the Qualifications Framework.
Adopt new methods for evaluating courses and e-learning offerings provided by the library.
Develop partnerships with the different academic disciplines on the use of the library’s knowledge sources in the
curriculum.
Integrate access to knowledge sources in the learning platforms associated with different subjects.
2 Student workstations
Increase the number of student workstations in the libraries.
Develop partnerships with other units to improve the use of the library areas.
Offer users an online service for reserving group rooms and special rooms.
3 Activities
Develop a library room for activities that promote creativity and provide inspiration.
Improve accessibility to the library’s facilities and offerings.
Streamline the process for registering borrowers and the borrowing of books.
Goal 3 – The library contributes to increasing the visibility of NTNU’s research, academic and artistic development work,
and outreach
The library shall prioritize measures that promote the dissemination and reporting of NTNU’s academic and artistic work. (From NTNU’s Strategies:
Strengthen international outreach and communication. Secure scientific collections and make them accessible.)
Choices
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The library shall have expertise in scientific publishing.
The library shall be a driver in the efforts to increase open publishing at NTNU.
The library contributes to the increased use of relevant support systems for scientific publishing.
The library contributes to efforts to ensure data are made publicly available.
The library contributes to improving the visibility of artistic and scientific work through exhibitions and events..
Strengthen national and international cooperation.
Priority areas and actions
1 Publishing
Coordinate the services that the library offers researchers, particularly in publishing and bibliometrics.
Develop necessary expertise in publishing.
Offer a submission portal for doctoral dissertations.
Help establish a submission portal for master’s theses in cooperation with the Studies Division.
2 Open data
Build expertise in the generation and use of open data.
Develop a policy for the use of data, collections and standards at the library.
Participate in joint projects with other libraries.
3 Internationalization
The library will develop international cooperative relationships.
Goal 4 – The library contributes to better preservation, digitalization and accessibility of NTNU’s historical collections
The library is an active and recognized contributor to NTNU’s role in public outreach. The library’s collections of valuable, historical archive material shall be
stored in accordance with approved protection schemes. Selected collections shall be digitalized and made accessible. (From NTNU’s Strategies: Strengthen
international outreach and communication. Secure scientific collections and make them available.
Choices
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The digitalization and accessibility of historical material will be further developed.
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Older books and archival materials will be kept in a secure manner.
Research on NTNU’s own historical collections will be promoted.
All historical collections shall be made electronically searchable.
Priority areas and actions
1 Preservation
Establish a coordinated and comprehensive plan for digitizing historical materials.
Select system solutions for the storage and dissemination of digital historical collections.
Develop national and international partnerships on digitization.
Participate actively in the planning of the Kalvskinnet Science Centre with respect to integration, public offerings and
protection of collections.
2 Access
Make historical collections publicly available via an open search system.
3 Research
Promote the historical collections and provide support for research on them.
Goal 5 – Interaction with NTNU is significantly improved.
A variety of communication forms strengthen our knowledge of user needs and provide the foundation for the targeted development of services. Users
must also be informed about the services. Close cooperation with NTNU's other activities is important in this context. (From NTNU’s Strategies: NTNU has
effective support and information systems that are tailored to the university’s primary tasks and student learning.)
Choices
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Development of services based on the mapping out of user needs.
The library shall communicate directly with instructors and students.
The library shall provide strong support for research and learning.
Priority areas and actions
1 User contact
Establish services on Innsida 2.0.
Market the library’s knowledge sources.
Establish a "Library for medicine and health" in cooperation with HIST.
Establish a working group with the special assignment on user studies/user contact.
Offer a system that includes a “customer contact” (person with academic responsibility/contact person) for all
disciplines.
Develop a communications strategy.
Further develop the library services in social media.
2 Research
Expand cooperation with the history of science milieu at NTNU.
Develop and offer courses and user support for handling references and publishing.
“The library and your project”: Investigate an offering on project help (literature searches, information architecture,
how to handle information) for researchers and instructors.
3 Administrative support systems
Research support – define and develop the service.
Participate actively in relevant committees and forums at NTNU.
Work to influence the use of open solutions and access to open data at NTNU.
Goal 6 – Good service offerings via the sound use of resources, a good work environment and adapting the library’s
expertise to the university’s needs
The effective use of resources provides a good foundation for better services. Transforming those resources into good service requires the right
expertise and a good work environment. The library must always have the competence it needs to fine-tune the role it plays in NTNU’s
organization. (From NTNU’s Strategies: A high level of expertise and good resource management in all areas.)
Choices
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On-going evaluation and assessment of the usefulness of services.
Resources, work processes and competence shall fit current and future services.
Changes in systems and tools are in line with technological developments and market offerings.
The work environment and the leadership shall be participatory and characterized by openness. Internal cooperation between the
University Libraries shall be emphasized.
Priorities areas and actions
Work environment
Further develop leadership and cooperation.
Improve the physical work environment.
Competence
Undertake planning for skil needs at the organizational level.
Implement internal competence development.
Expand the library’s areas of expertise.
Resource management
Evaluate those products and solutions that provide the foundation for the library’s services.
Adjust the use of resources, work processes and expertise to the library’s service offerings and solutions.
Some definitions
Knowledge sources – Replaces the previously used term “Information resources”. The knowledge sources we offer are mainly research-based
knowledge, available in different media forms (including metadata), but also include literary texts, pictures, films, etc.
Open data – see http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Open_Data
Link data - see http://linkeddata.org/
Bibliometrics - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibliometrics
Open search systems– search systems that are publicly available, such as Google Scholar, PubMed, etc.