LibQUAL+™ Process Management: Using the Web as a Management Tool

1. LibQUAL+™ Process Management:Using the Web as a Management Tool Project web site: old.libqual.org Amy Hoseth New Measures Project Assistant Association of Research Libraries Consuella Askew LibQUAL+™ Program Specialist Association of Research Libraries ALA Midwinter Conference San Diego, California January 10, 2004

2. Objectives • Identify key elements that contribute to a successful survey implementation • Learn how the LibQUAL+™ Web site can help you manage your survey

3. What is LibQUAL+™? LibQUAL+™ is a suite of services that libraries use to solicit, track, understand, and act upon users’ opinions of service quality. The program’s centerpiece is a rigorously tested Web-based survey bundled with local training that helps libraries assess and improve library services.

4. Step 1: DefineConsider participation in LibQUAL+™ • When deciding whether to participate, consider project requirements: people, supplies, technology • Also consider your institutional goals: what do you want to get out of the survey?

5. Registration and Costs • 2004 participation fee: $2,250 per survey implementation (we expect same fee for 2005 • Other potential costs include: • On-campus marketing and promotion • Travel costs • “Cost” of staff time on project • Registration runs from September-December

6. Technology • Work with IT department to select e-mail addresses and compile mailing lists • Consider your hardware, software, and network connections • Prepare for any local network issues that could affect your survey

7. Sample Groups • Identify your sample groups (undergraduate, graduate, faculty, staff) • Determine your sample size • Sampling guidelines provided in Procedures Manual: http://old.libqual.org/Information/Manual/index.cfm • Minimum recommended sample size for a large institution: 900 undergraduates, 600 graduates, 600 faculty, 600 non-library university staff (optional), and all library staff (optional)

8. Survey Liaisons • Prepare for survey administration • Communicate with LibQUAL+™ team • Respond to user feedback • Work with local IT/academic computing contacts and ARL to resolve any local technical issues

9. Survey Communications How will you promote your survey and communicate results? • Advertising/marketing • Survey Web sites • Flyers and other handouts

10. Success Criteria • Dependent on your local situation • General criteria: • Data analysis yields representative and useable results • Response rates, completion rates, and representativeness

11. Process Timeline June-August September October November/December • Gather information about LibQUAL+TM survey • Review resources, budgetary requirements • Register for survey (registration runs through mid-December) • Designate survey liaison/ • committee/project team • Identify and initiate steps • to obtain human subjects • research approval from IRB • Identify sample groups • Identify best data source to • obtain valid e-mail addresses • for sample groups • Meet with person(s) who will be drawing e-mail addresses to determine process feasibility

12. Step 2: PrepareComplete required steps to launch your survey • LibQUAL+™ survey Management Center as a management tool • Several required steps before your survey can go “live” • Determine whether you need IRB approval

13. Survey Management Center

14. Manage Your Survey

15. Survey Preferences Participants are asked to indicate/provide: • Support e-mail address • Language • Institution logo • Whether they want SPSS data files • Whether offering local incentive prizes • Dates of survey

16. Survey Customization • Choose five additional questions (if desired) • Provide library branch information • Define disciplines for your institution

17. Preview Preview your survey, exactly as it will appear to users • Data entered in preview survey is not recorded • Clicking on “Approve” turns on your actual survey URL

18. Representativeness Tell us about your institution: • User types (undergrad, graduate, faculty) • Number of users in each discipline • ARL statistical info. (number of volumes held, etc.) • Information will be used to determine representativeness of your sample

19. Step 3: ImplementLaunch the survey on your campus • Send survey invitation and URL • Typical survey run is 3 weeks • Send 2-3 follow-up reminders to users • Respond to user feedback

20. Monitor the Survey Track your survey’s progress in real-time • Number of surveys completed, day-by-day • Surveys completed by user group • Average completion time • Turn off survey when finished

21. Step 4: Wrap-upClose down your survey and receive results • Survey closes to public in early May • Contact local incentive winners (if you offered a local prize) • Provide feedback to the LibQUAL+™ team about your survey • Receive survey results data

22. Local Incentives • Provides list of randomly selected users for local incentive prizes • Available as soon as you turn off your survey run, or when survey closes to the public (whichever is first)

23. Post Hoc Questionnaire Provide the ARL team with information about your survey run • Sample size • Number of e-mails sent • Incentives offered • Marketing/promotion methods

24. Evaluation Survey Your opportunity to provide feedback to the LibQUAL+™ team and evaluate your institution’s survey experience

25. LibQUAL+™ Resources • Project Web Site <http://www.libqual.org> • LibQUAL+™ Procedures Manual <http://www.libqual.org/Information/Manual/ index.cfm>

26. LibQUAL+™ Contact Information • Martha Kyrillidou • Senior Program for Office of Statistics and Measurement • martha@arl.org • Consuella Askew • LibQUAL+™ Program Specialist • consuella@arl.org • Amy Hoseth • New Measures Project Assistant • amyh@arl.org • Jonathan D. Sousa • Technical Applications Development Manager • jonathan@arl.org