Assistant Librarian for Electronic Resources

Special Information

This is a 12-month continuing status eligible (equivalent to tenure track) academic professional position at the Assistant Librarian rank. Retention and promotion are earned through achievement of a record of excellence in position effectiveness, scholarship, and service. Candidates from underrepresented backgrounds and candidates who have had experience working with students from underserved populations are encouraged to apply. This position is available immediately and will remain open until filled. To ensure early consideration, submit your application by July 9, 2021.

Immigration Suppt/Sponsorship

NAU will not provide any U.S. immigration support or sponsorship for this position.

Job Description

Northern Arizona University's Cline Library seeks a skilled, service-oriented, and forward-thinking Assistant Librarian for Electronic Resources.

In collaboration with library colleagues and others, the successful candidate will shape the future of Cline Library's electronic resources operations, which play a critical role in supporting student success and research excellence at NAU.

The librarian will acquire, license, manage, and support Cline Library's electronic resources; assess the value and impact of electronic collections; and work collaboratively with library staff, vendors, and campus IT staff to ensure convenient, seamless, and uninterrupted access to electronic resources. The librarian will also represent NAU in consortial projects with other Arizona universities.

This position reports to the Head of Content, Discovery, and Delivery Services.

Responsibilities

• Leadership and Management
  • Lead staff and student employees whose work supports the library's electronic resources (e-journals, e-books, streaming media). Manage individual performance and development. Foster an environment that promotes accountability, high performance, staff engagement, and a shared sense of purpose as well as a spirit of cooperation and collaboration.
  • Develop, oversee, and document sustainable workflows and staffing models related to the lifecycle of electronic resources.
  • Serve on CDDS leadership team, including contributing to the shaping of departmental staffing and operations. Collaborate and communicate effectively with leadership team colleagues to provide responsive services in support of library and university goals.
• Electronic Resources Management
  • Acquire, license, and activate electronic resources, working in collaboration with a variety of university departments and personnel. Review and approve e-resource invoices and track expenditures to ensure costs stay within budget. Supervise staff responsible for invoice management in Ex Libris Alma.
  • With university purchasing personnel, negotiate license agreements and contract renewals to optimize the use of library collection funds.
  • With university disability resources personnel and library e-resource vendors, ensure that licensed products meet accessibility standards.
  • Lead and/or participate in inter-university and/or consortial projects related to electronic collections, including collaborative purchase of electronic resources, cooperative collection development, and shared collections.
  • Manage and support electronic resources throughout their life cycle, with a focus on access. Investigate, troubleshoot, and correct holdings, access, and technical issues, collaborating with library and campus IT staff and vendors as needed. Provide timely, high-quality support to library staff and users.
  • Collaborate with collection management and cataloging staff to maintain accurate descriptive metadata, holdings, and vendor information in Alma.
• Oversee assessment of the electronic resources to ensure collections and expenditures are aligned with university goals, academic programs, user needs, and budget limitations. With unit staff, collect, analyze, report, and share data regarding cost and usage of electronic resources to inform library decision-making.
• Develop and maintain positive relationships and clear, open communication with library staff, users, vendors, and other stakeholders.
• Monitor trends in electronic resources, scholarly publishing, open access, library services platforms, and other areas related to position responsibilities. Maintain frequent communications with vendors, repositories, professional organizations, and colleagues and make recommendations that improve the library's ability to offer high-priority content at the most reasonable cost.
• Identify and pursue professional development and service opportunities that reflect a commitment to learning, innovation, and excellence in higher education and libraries. Share and integrate professional development and service activities in ways that reflect institutional goals and benefit users, colleagues, the profession, and the community (local, national, or international).

Minimum Qualifications

• ALA-accredited graduate degree from a library and information science program or an advanced degree in a related field.

Preferred Qualifications

• Knowledge of (coursework, workshops, or experience) systems used to provide access to electronic resources--e.g., library management systems, discovery platforms, link resolvers, proxy servers, etc. Experience with Ex Libris Alma and/or Ex Libris Primo.
• Knowledge of (coursework, workshops, or experience) e-resource licensing practices, including reading, interpreting, managing, and negotiating license agreements.
• Knowledge of (coursework, workshops, or experience) library budget processes.
• Knowledge of (coursework, workshops, or experience) e-resource evaluation, including collecting, analyzing, and communicating usage statistics or other data for decision- making.
• Ability to communicate and collaborate effectively with internal and external stakeholders. Ability to communicate specialized, technical information to a variety of audiences.
• Management or supervisory experience, including knowledge of human resources.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively with people from a variety of culturally diverse backgrounds.
• Ability to provide outstanding customer service to a diverse clientele (internal and external).
• Ability to set priorities, exercise flexibility in meeting objectives, and manage multiple projects and assignments.
• Ability to learn and apply new technologies to solve problems and/or improve efficiency.
• Knowledge of (coursework, workshops, or experience) project management and change management strategies.
• Knowledge of (coursework, workshops, or experience) e-resource scholarly communication and open access issues and opportunities.