120 · Representative Documents: Planning and Progress
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
New Service Models. Report to the Provost. Executive Summary
http://www.library.illinois.edu/nsm/actionplan/NSM_Report_09_ES.pdf
New Service Models
Report to the Provost
June 4, 2009
(Rev. July 6, 2009 Executive Summary and Table of Contents added September 4, 2009)
Executive Summary
The New Service Models (NSM) program was launched during the fall of 2007 to address strategic challenges
and operational concerns facing the University Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign. This
report reviews the changes made to Library services during the Program’s first two years and provides an
update on current program plans and initiatives.
The NSM program was designed to address the question of how to sustain the Illinois tradition of excellence
in Library services while navigating transformations in academic libraries and scholarly communication.
Confronted by rapidly escalating economic challenges to our traditional model of departmental library
service, as well as by sea changes in the way that scholarly information is created, disseminated, used, and
stewarded for the future, the Library undertook a broad and inclusive approach to identifying opportunities
for strategic investment in resources, collections, facilities, and information technology, as well as
opportunities to engage its users in far‐ranging discussions of the future of Library services. This report
includes a summary of the most significant of these challenges, but more detailed discussions are provided in
earlier NSM program reports, available at http://www.library.illinois.edu/nsm/.
The NSM program has been carried out using a project‐based approach that allows for emergent design of
NSM initiatives, as well as for inclusion of Library users from across campus in the planning process. Teams
designated to lead the planning and implementation of discrete NSM activities are composed of Library
faculty and staff members, as well as faculty from campus programs with identified interests and concerns
related to the specific project. NSM teams are charged with communicating and consulting with the broader
groups represented by team members. Over the past two years, this approach has allowed not only for direct
user involvement in the planning of NSM program activities, but also in an unprecedented number of
meetings with faculty groups, library committees, campus academic leadership, and the campus community,
at large. Although this report describes the broad approach taken to the design of NSM teams and their
ongoing communication and consultation processes, detailed accounts of several of these meetings are
available through the NSM program site, available at http://www.library.illinois.edu/nsm/.
Several significant changes have resulted thus far from the NSM program, including the transition of the
Labor &Industrial Relations Library and the Library &Information Science Library to “embedded librarian”
service models, and the integration of the Afro‐Americana Library Unit, the City Planning &Landscape
Architecture Library, and the Physics &Astronomy Library into complementary service units. Other outcomes
include enhancing access to scholarly resources, print and digital, changes to the Library organization of
services, and investments in collection management that have resulted in enhanced access to thousands of
previously unprocessed materials. Finally, the NSM program has supported the design and development of
innovative service programs outlined in the University Library’s Strategic Plan, including the establishment of
the Scholarly Commons and a Library‐wide approach to health information services. The report includes a
description of each of these programs, as well as several others completed to date or planned for FY10.
The report concludes with three appendices: 1) a timeline of major NSM program activities planned for FY10
2) an overview of tangible costs and benefits associated with discrete NSM program activities and 3) a
summary of changes to the June 4 draft based on review and discussion after its release.
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
New Service Models. Report to the Provost. Executive Summary
http://www.library.illinois.edu/nsm/actionplan/NSM_Report_09_ES.pdf
New Service Models
Report to the Provost
June 4, 2009
(Rev. July 6, 2009 Executive Summary and Table of Contents added September 4, 2009)
Executive Summary
The New Service Models (NSM) program was launched during the fall of 2007 to address strategic challenges
and operational concerns facing the University Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana‐Champaign. This
report reviews the changes made to Library services during the Program’s first two years and provides an
update on current program plans and initiatives.
The NSM program was designed to address the question of how to sustain the Illinois tradition of excellence
in Library services while navigating transformations in academic libraries and scholarly communication.
Confronted by rapidly escalating economic challenges to our traditional model of departmental library
service, as well as by sea changes in the way that scholarly information is created, disseminated, used, and
stewarded for the future, the Library undertook a broad and inclusive approach to identifying opportunities
for strategic investment in resources, collections, facilities, and information technology, as well as
opportunities to engage its users in far‐ranging discussions of the future of Library services. This report
includes a summary of the most significant of these challenges, but more detailed discussions are provided in
earlier NSM program reports, available at http://www.library.illinois.edu/nsm/.
The NSM program has been carried out using a project‐based approach that allows for emergent design of
NSM initiatives, as well as for inclusion of Library users from across campus in the planning process. Teams
designated to lead the planning and implementation of discrete NSM activities are composed of Library
faculty and staff members, as well as faculty from campus programs with identified interests and concerns
related to the specific project. NSM teams are charged with communicating and consulting with the broader
groups represented by team members. Over the past two years, this approach has allowed not only for direct
user involvement in the planning of NSM program activities, but also in an unprecedented number of
meetings with faculty groups, library committees, campus academic leadership, and the campus community,
at large. Although this report describes the broad approach taken to the design of NSM teams and their
ongoing communication and consultation processes, detailed accounts of several of these meetings are
available through the NSM program site, available at http://www.library.illinois.edu/nsm/.
Several significant changes have resulted thus far from the NSM program, including the transition of the
Labor &Industrial Relations Library and the Library &Information Science Library to “embedded librarian”
service models, and the integration of the Afro‐Americana Library Unit, the City Planning &Landscape
Architecture Library, and the Physics &Astronomy Library into complementary service units. Other outcomes
include enhancing access to scholarly resources, print and digital, changes to the Library organization of
services, and investments in collection management that have resulted in enhanced access to thousands of
previously unprocessed materials. Finally, the NSM program has supported the design and development of
innovative service programs outlined in the University Library’s Strategic Plan, including the establishment of
the Scholarly Commons and a Library‐wide approach to health information services. The report includes a
description of each of these programs, as well as several others completed to date or planned for FY10.
The report concludes with three appendices: 1) a timeline of major NSM program activities planned for FY10
2) an overview of tangible costs and benefits associated with discrete NSM program activities and 3) a
summary of changes to the June 4 draft based on review and discussion after its release.
