The Patron-Driven Library: A Practical Guide for Managing Collections and Services in the Digital Age (Chandos Information Professional Series)

Libraries in the USA and globally are undergoing quiet revolution. Libraries are moving away from a philosophy that is collection-centered to one focused on service. Technology is key to that change. The Patron Driven Library explores the way technology has moved the focus from library collections to services, placing the reader at the center of library activities. The book reveals the way library users are changing, and how social networking, web delivery of information, and the uncertain landscape of e-print has energized librarians to adopt technology to meet a different model of the library while preserving core values. Following an introduction, the first part begins with the historical milieu, and moves on to current challenges for financing and acquiring materials, and an exploration of why the millennial generation is transformational. The second part examines how changes in library practice can create a culture for imagining library services in an age of information overflow. The final chapter asks: Whither the library? Provides a synthesis of current research on the impact of technology on behaviour, and connecting it with library services Offers examples and practical advice for incorporating technology to meet user expectations and assess services Suggests management techniques to overcome barriers to change and technology innovation Libraries in the USA and globally are undergoing quiet revolution. Libraries are moving away from a philosophy that is collection-centered to one focused on service. Technology is key to that change. The Patron Driven Library explores the way technology has moved the focus from library collections to services, placing the reader at the center of library activities. The book reveals the way library users are changing, and how social networking, web delivery of information, and the uncertain landscape of e-print has energized librarians to adopt technology to meet a different model of the library while preserving core values. Following an introduction, the first part begins with the historical milieu, and moves on to current challenges for financing and acquiring materials, and an exploration of why the millennial generation is transformational. The second part examines how changes in library practice can create a culture for imagining library services in an age of information overflow. The final chapter asks: Whither the library?

• Provides a synthesis of current research on the impact of technology on behaviour, and connecting it with library services
• Offers examples and practical advice for incorporating technology to meet user expectations and assess services
• Suggests management techniques to overcome barriers to change and technology innovation

Content: Front matter , Pages i-iii Copyright , Page iv Dedication , Page v List of figures and tables , Pages xiii-xiv List of abbreviations , Pages xv-xvi Acknowledgements , Page xvii About the author , Page xix Introduction: patron centered libraries , Pages xxi-xxii 1 - From the White House conferences and the golden age of libraries to challenges forlibraries in the age of digital information , Pages 3-22 2 - A culture of technology , Pages 23-37 3 - A focus on readers , Pages 41-64 4 - Information literacy and social networks , Pages 65-89 5 - Collaborative collections , Pages 91-117 6 - The librarian as advocate , Pages 119-139 7 - Metrics for decisions , Pages 141-178 8 - The extensible library , Pages 179-212 9 - Digital collections , Pages 213-236 10 - Data repositories, open source and the library , Pages 237-257 11 - The new professional librarian , Pages 259-287 12 - Whither the library? , Pages 289-306 Conclusion , Pages 307-308 References , Pages 309-342 Index , Pages 343-352 The Patron Driven Library is a guide for librarians to help them develop a new relationship with technology that preserves the core mission of libraries while still responding to the needs of a new generation of library clients. Dee Ann Allison looks at the challenges facing today's libraries and summarizes current research and experiments that have been reported in library literature. Building on these themes, she offers practical advice on management, collections, and services that will emphasize the patron while still preserving the ideals of the profession. "A guide for librarians to develop a new relationship with technology that preserves the core mission of libraries while responding to the needs of a new generation of library clients"--Page xxii