American Association of Law Libraries Releases Report on Economic Value of Law Libraries

The American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) has released a report on the Economic Value of Law Libraries:

"Occasioned by a widely shared sense that law libraries are undervalued by their organizational owners, the study examined current practices among law librarians for reporting on library services and activities. The study confirmed that commonly used methods offer room for improvement based upon the evolving role of the law library. There may not be a 'silver bullet' solution that will heighten organizational stakeholders' appreciation of the library's value, but it behooves the librarian to measure the right things and communicate appropriately — in ways meaningful for decision makers — about their services and the impact those services have. The study presents 20 best practices. Four strategies for communicating qualitative measures and five strategies for communicating quantitative measures are defined. In addition, the study identified five actions librarians can take to enhance the likelihood of being heard by decision makers."

"Briefly put, the overall takeaway from the study is: 'It's not about the library. It's about the relationship the librarian has with those who do or could benefit from the library'."

"Specifically, library directors must assert their leadership and proactively implement strategic processes that align with the institutional mission and goals. Library directors are responsible for identifying opportunities, shifting services, and demonstrating law library contributions to institutional goals and stakeholder priorities."

Jean P. O'Grady, the author of the blog Dewey B Strategic, has written a critical post about the report. The title Long on Rubrics-- Short on ROI makes it easy to guess what she thinks.