Monthly Archives: March 2017

IRB and Cayuse (Update from the UX Office)

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When the UX Office was created at Fondren Library in December 2010, some of the departmental goals were to do ethnographic and observational studies, and conduct usability studies on our digital tools. The UX Office submits paperwork, including the study design, through an online system in collaboration with the Rice Office of Institutional Effectiveness that is submitted to the Institutional Review Board “IRB”  at Rice. Research involving human subjects, including usability testing, generally needs to go through the IRB process, unless one is not going to publish or write about the results. If the results are only used to improve the business process, it generally doesn’t need IRB. When approval is granted, then the research can start!

We have mentored multiple staff members on various aspects of the research process at Rice, including CITI training (a required online IRB training course), and designing effective research protocols. Please let us know if we can be of assistance to you!

Rice rolled out a new online system last Fall, named Cayuse, that helps store and manage the many IRB’s maintained by departments on campus. Currently the UX Office has approved IRB’s for the following studies:

  • Institutional Repository Usability and Ethnographic Study (Stakeholder: Digital Scholarship Services)(ongoing study from 2012-current)
  • Understanding Researcher Needs for Finding Aids and Testing Usability of ArchivesSpace (Collaboration with University of Houston and Amanda Focke)
  • Fondren Library Website Usability Testing (ongoing study from 2011-current)
  • Research Support Services for the Field of Religious Studies (Amanda Thomas and Elka Tenner)

Past studies include:  Ithaka S+R Survey for Fondren Library, Understanding Desired Usage of BRC Library Space, Understanding Research Flow: An Ethnographic Study of Humanities Researchers, Discovering Discovery: How Rice Researchers Find the Sources They Need, and  Survey and Usability Studies on Fondren Library’s Mobile Website.

Executive Committee Meeting Summaries Feb. 2- March 2, 2017

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Feb. 2, 2017

1) The group planned the agenda for the University Committee on the Library meeting February 14 at noon. A discussion, with presentations, of the Fondren Fellows was planned, along with a guided discussion of the ways the library can improve its support for research and experiential learning.

2) Lisa and Melinda updated the group on the strategic planning process and the agenda for the Town Hall planning update on February 10.

3) The group agreed with Denis’s proposal that we retain in the system user information only for the current and one previous checkout. There will be a spring purge of the database.

4) Visitor privileges, such as checking out books and accessing electronic resources, were discussed. In general, off-campus access to electronic resources requires some official status as current faculty, staff or student. Some electronic resources are available to Rice alumni via the Alumni Association website.

Feb. 16, 2017

The group discussed salary administration for FY18.

Mar. 2, 2017

1) The group discussed proposed library hours for the academic year 2017-2018. Announcing early closure on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving and the day before the Winter Recess continues not to be advisable before the President has confirmed early closure for the university. In recent years, this confirmation has been issued in plenty of time to announce a change in library hours. Gate data for days classes are not in session was reviewed and found not to support eliminating evening hours on those days.

2) The Library Service Platform review group submitted its recommendations on Feb. 28. The Executive Committee will discuss the report at a meeting later in March, as the March 16 meeting has been cancelled.

3) Lisa and Melinda updated the group on the strategic planning process. There was discussion of how the “pitches” solicited from the staff will be evaluated by Sara and those she asks to help. The deadline for these pitches has been extended to Mar. 17.

4) Denis suggested that all members encourage their staff members to complete the university IT online security training.

C-MACS: Who Are Our Customers?

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February C-MACS

It is a great thing to watch a committee work out solutions to big questions. The C-MACS committee is doing that now as we study Fondren Library’s customer service.  In the last month members looked at the customers served by their departments.  The committee has members covering almost every aspect of Fondren.

They analyzed the Customer Persona: Who are they?  What do they want?  What do they need?  What are the challenges?  What is unique about them?

At the February meeting the committee analyzed the Undergraduate and Graduate Persona. The committee will next build a Fondren-wide persona from the findings.  It is a time consuming process that requires C-MAC to hold a special two-hour session this month to finish with persona such as Faculty, Staff and others.

This analysis will then be used to determine what customer service training the staff can use to do an even greater job that we already do.

We so appreciate the guidance from Melinda English of Rice HR.

Last month I missed writing about the good work Joe Goetz and Debra Kolah did finding stories of great customer service. Sometimes we may have doubts about our customer service but the 2017 Survey of All Students gave us high marks.  Every department has stories to tell from customers at all levels.  I especially enjoy the words used over and over to describe us:  tenacity, focused, knowledge of job, getting things done, proficiency, dedication, optimism, enthusiasm, flexible and responsive.

It is important to keep gathering these stories of success. The DMC and Kelly Center gather feedback from their sessions.  Fondren 101 includes a feedback survey.  Did you know we even have reviews on Yelp?

Keep sharing stories of good work by the staff.

—-Bill Coxsey