Accountability and accreditation for special libraries: it can be done!

Brigitte Glockner

Manuscript received September 2003

In affluent times special libraries proliferate in government departments and private industry, but when money becomes tight special libraries are vulnerable because management subscribes to the myth that every bit of information their enterprise might need will be freely available on the internet: it is therefore very important to be able to convince management of the library's worth, and accreditation will be a primary tool for this task. The key elements of accountability and accreditation are:

Customer focus.

Leadership and management.

Human resources management.

Information management.

Safe practice and environment.

Improving performance.

Accountability

Webster's defines accountability as 'the state of being accountable, subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible, answerable.' There are generally three primary levels of accountability: fiscal, process and program. Fiscal accountability is usually the first to be reviewed to establish how funds allocated have been spent: process accountability determines whether any element in an organisation has carried out an agreed course of action and program accountability is concerned with what products were delivered to whom, and how effective they were.

When reading for this paper, I came across The OZ principle: getting results through individual and organizational accountability by Roger Connors, Tom Smith and Craig Hickman. Naturally I thought 'OZ' to mean Australia, when in fact it refers to the Wizard of OZ. I can recommend this book as both informative and entertaining when describing the pitfalls and successes of process and program accountability: whereas normally accountability leads people to assign 'individual responsibility', the OZ principles' definition of accountability works best when people share ownership for both circumstances and results. Connors talks about the thin line which separates success from failure: below it is self-victmisation and failure, and above the line accountability and success.

The victim cycle has six points:

• Ignore or deny the problem.
• 'It's not my job'.
• Point the finger at someone else.
• Auto-confusion and asking someone to 'tell me what to do'.
• Covering your tail.
• Wait and see.

There are only four steps to accountability and success:

• See the problem.
• Own it.
• Solve it.
• Do it.

Personal accountability means to accept full responsibility for the outcome. As Conners et al (1994) say: 'The Do It step bestows accountability, not just activities, circumstances, of feelings but for future accomplishments. When you combine the notion of accountability with the objective of accomplishing better results, you create an empowering and guiding beacon for both personal and organizational activity' (p171).

Surely, we all take responsibility for our actions? Unfortunately, in the society in which we live, particularly in the organisational context, it often seems easier to blame someone or something else for the problems we encounter. If we wish to succeed in obtaining sufficient resourcing to enable us to provide a dynamic library and information service, it is very important that we adopt the 'OZ principle' of above-the-line accountability For us, being accountable means that we have to apply all three levels of accountability:

Fiscal - we can prove how we spend our budgets.

Process - we can explain why we bought certain resources for our libraries.

Program - we can show that those resources are used and useful to our clients.

Special libraries and information services have always been under pressure to prove their worth to the parent organisation. It is vital that we embrace accountability in our daily working life.

Accreditation

There are three aspects of accreditation:

Institutional Health libraries are usually accredited as part of the hospital's or health service's institutional accreditation. The accrediting organisation is the Australian Council of Health Care Standards (ACHS) and not the Australian Library and Information Association (ALIA).

Personal The term 'continuing professional development' (CPD) is often used instead of personal accreditation. Increasingly, members of professional bodies are required to undertake continuing professional development activities to retain their status. In its Charter of Renewal, ALIA has agreed 'That there be formal recognition for accredited continuing professional development activities for librarian and library technician members'. This is fostered through the mentoring programs and conferences.

Service The American Library Association (ALA) actively promotes the concept of service accreditation. It has set up an 'Office for Accreditation' where interested persons can find out what programs ALA accredits. However, these programs deal mainly with the educational aspect of librarianship.

In 1996 the Nebraska Library Commission produced Public Library Accreditation Guidelines, which were to be phased in over a three-year period. Libraries that meet the basic guidelines are eligible for state funding to public libraries. Chris Fowler and Val Trinder of the Health Libraries & Information Confederation (HeLicon) produced a 'Checklist to support assessment' for the accreditation of library and information services in the health sector for the United Kingdom. This checklist can be compared to the accreditation process by the ACHS for health services in Australia. It is a very detailed list and tailored for the requirements of the National Health Service (NHS). ALIA plays a vital role in the recognition of library and information studies courses through its Board of Directors. However, there is at present no mechanism whereby an Australian library service is accredited by the professional organisation.

When an organisation decides that it needs a library and information service it usually has some preconception of what it wants - at least at the outset. It is essential to establish from the outset what the organisation's expectations are regarding:

The information required and the format in which it should be presented. Will the information mainly reside in books, journals, catalogues or audio-visual materials? Management may believe that all necessary information is available in electronic format now, and will be in the future. This is a very common misperception, but it is a critical one, and it is important to check if it is really the case.

The physical environment. What are the dimensions of the area set aside for a library and information service? Will the users consult and access materials within it or from a remote location? If the information is contained in electronic format, very little space may be required, but books and journals need quite considerable space, as does audio-visual viewing equipment. Any growth factor of the collection also needs to be considered.

The budget. Unrealistic allocations may render the fulfilment of the organisation's expectations impossible. It is vital to determine what the implications and structure of the budget are: is it for materials only, or does it include salaries? Does it cover consumables, equipment and services?

In some ways it is easier to set up a new library and information service than to step into an existing one where all the concepts mentioned above may be invisible or unstated, blurred or lost by a succession of either librarians or managers, or so ingrained in the organisation's structure they are very hard to change. These are usually the library and information services that are most at risk of downsizing, amalgamation with another service, or closure, and which are most in need of accreditation.

Key principles of accountability and accreditation

The following derive from the accreditation guidelines of the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards and its EQuiP process.

Customer focus

What are the organisation's aims and objectives? How do you find out if there is a change in direction or new projects are taken on board?

Action required: Development of a Collection Development Policy that reflects the organisation's aims and objectives. Become actively involved in the organisation.

Leadership and management

What is the organisation's structure? To whom is the librarian responsible?

Action required: Obtain an organisation chart [if there is one]: study it. Determine how accurately it reflects the actual organisation and the way it works, and progressively map the informal pathways which the chart may not reflect.

Human resources management

Are there sufficient professional staff members to carry out an effective library and information service consistent with its own objectives and those of management? Does the service need clerical assistance? Would it be prudent to employ a combination of librarians and library technicians?

Action required: Job descriptions and position classifications for all staff members.

Information management

What information management system will be or is being used? Is it bought-in or home-grown? What is the budget allocation? Who is going to support the system? How is the collection organised? What classification scheme will be used? Is it the most appropriate classification scheme when considering the content of the collection? Is there a thesaurus? How are subject headings or search terms determined?

Action required: Determine which is the best information management system to suit your needs within financial constraints. Consult with information systems personnel if they are willing and able to support the system you have chosen. Develop a 'service level agreement' with them to ensure this. Choose an appropriate classification scheme. Choose an appropriate thesaurus for subject headings and/or search terms. Investigate the feasibility of forming partnerships or become a member of a document delivery system for inter-library loan purposes.

Safe practice and environment

Does the library equipment and furniture comply with occupational safety and health standards? Have the standards and guidelines endorsed by ALIA been considered?

Action required: Familiarise yourself with the requirements for a safe environment. Rectify problems where possible. Alert management of concerns regarding occupational safety and health issues.

Improving performance

Once the base library and information service has been established the librarian should look at improving the service.

Action required: Evaluate the service. Determine the library users' satisfaction with the service. What previously unperceived needs emerge? How can they be met? What order of priorities should apply?

The role of ALIA

ALIA could play a pivotal role in establishing an accreditation process for special libraries. This might be an additional service provided under the umbrella of the Board of Directors. Institutional membership of ALIA should be essential before an application for accreditation can be processed. Once membership has been verified, ALIA can send out an 'accreditation kit' to the library and information service in question. Such a 'tool kit' should contain standards and/or guidelines for the service to be accredited. It also needs to contain a 'check list' of topics to be considered, ALIA work-level guidelines, useful websites and other references. The 'accreditation kit' would be provided by ALIA on a cost-recovery basis with a nominal amount charged for administrative expenses. It is suggested that ALIA appoint accreditation surveyors in each state. These surveyors would be librarians who have a proven track record as leaders in the library and information management profession. Accreditation surveys would be conducted by three persons. In case of a dispute, a surveyor from another state would be consulted. The complete survey report is signed by all three accreditation surveyors and then tabled at Board of Director's meetings for verification.

The accreditation check list

The following check list can be developed to embrace all aspects of a library and information service in detail. It will be a workable starting point to assess special libraries.

Once the survey report has been verified and agreed with the host organisation, and if the surveyors' recommendations were favourable, ALIA would issue a Certificate of Accreditation. Ideally, this would be presented to the librarian in charge of the library and information service at a function organised by the state's official ALIA representative. Formerly this function would have been part of a state's Branch Council of ALIA. The chief executive officer of the organisation would be notified of the librarian's achievements by the executive director of ALIA. This process would promote librarians in a more positive, quality-oriented light and also ensure a much higher profile of the library and information profession.

Conclusion

This way forward for Australian special libraries has been suggested because it will make them more relevant to the parent organisation and make librarians more accountable for their actions. It will give library and information services and ALIA much needed recognition. It will also increase ALIA's relevance to the profession and increase institutional and personal membership. Special librarians have to lobby members of the Board of Directors to make them aware of the accreditation issue and that they expect ALIA to implement it. It is recommended that ALIA embrace the concept of accreditation for special libraries by delegating the administrative duties to one of its staff members. The accreditation process needs to be widely discussed via ALIAnet, inCite and any other publications that are read by the library and information profession in Australia.

References

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Biographical information

This article derives from a paper presented at the 10th Asia-Pacific Special, Health & Law Librarians' Conference in Adelaide, 24-27 August 2003.

Biographical information

Brigitte Glockner is senior librarian Women's and Children's Health Service in Perth. She holds a Masters in Information and Library Studies from Curtin University of Technology, and in 1994 was the recipient of the Western Australian Special Librarian of the Year Award. Brigitte has worked in special libraries in Germany and South Africa. She started her career in Australia as a law librarian and was the convenor of the first National Law Librarians' Conference in 1983. Since 1985 she has worked as a health librarian. She has been an active member of ACLIS and ALIA and her special interest is the establishment of accreditation for special, health and law libraries. PO Box 134 Subiaco, WA 6904 ph: 08 9340 1498, fx: 08 9340 1332, brigitte.glockner@health.wa.gov.au