Discovery Librarian

Description

POSITION OVERVIEW

Position title: Associate Librarian, Career Status or Potential Career Status

Salary range: The UC academic salary scales set the minimum pay determined by rank and salary point at appointment. See the following table(s) for the current salary scale(s) for this position: https://www.ucop.edu/academic-personnel-programs/_files/2023-24/july-2023-acad-salary-scales/t26-b.pdf. A reasonable estimate for this position is $76,631-$89,916 .

Percent time: 100%

Position duration: This is a full-time potential career appointment.

APPLICATION WINDOW

Open date: November 14, 2023

Next review date: Wednesday, Jan 3, 2024 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.

Final date: Thursday, Feb 29, 2024 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time)
Applications will continue to be accepted until this date, but those received after the review date will only be considered if the position has not yet been filled.

POSITION DESCRIPTION

The University of California, Berkeley Library seeks a creative, collaborative, and user-centered librarian to support world-class research and teaching through the management of the Library’s discovery services. The position will design and imagine ways to make the Library’s discovery platforms, services, and tools more inclusive and welcoming to the campus community. They will provide expertise in user behavior analysis and bring accessibility standards to our Library discovery services and will manage and identify usage patterns in the Library’s discovery products to recommend and deploy improvements to the user experience. They will also integrate new collections into discovery and highlight them for users in alignment with the Library mission to provide access to scholarly resources, including datasets, digital collections, and more.

The Environment

The UC Berkeley Library is an internationally renowned teaching and research facility at one of the nation's premier public universities. A highly diverse and intellectually rich environment, Berkeley serves a campus community of 30,000 undergraduate students, over 11,000 graduate students, and 1,500 faculty. With a collection of more than 13 million volumes and a collections budget of over $15 million, the Library offers extensive collections in all formats and robust services to connect users with those collections and build their related research skills.
The Library Information Technology (Library IT) Division, a division within the UC Berkeley Library, is charged with the design, development, management, and maintenance of flexible and reliable technology environments for the Library, specifically: the development and management of digital collections and services and their associated digital discovery and access platforms; creation of digital content; digital preservation tools; the development of a fully accessible and responsive library web presence that applies user experience principles and strategies; the development and support of server based technologies for the delivery of library services; the maintenance of library management and discovery systems; the management of the library’s computing services including desktop support, software, and library labs for library staff and public; and the development and delivery of frameworks and applications to support collaborative storage, delivery, and preservation of information resources. The digital and library technology applications and collections developed and managed by Library IT are research vehicles that are used by library patrons ranging from UC Berkeley faculty, students, and staff, other institutions and the general public.

The Systems and Discovery Services Department, within the Library IT Division, provides UC Berkeley Library-wide support for Alma, UC Library Search, and other related discovery programs and applications. The Systems and Discovery Department leads and coordinates the oversight, management, and optimization of the Library’s systems and discovery platforms and applications in order to best meet the dynamic needs of UC Berkeley Library users. This department regularly consults with staff across the Library to transform and improve the integrated library system (ILS) and discovery related workflows, processes, and policies. The department currently consists of the Head of Systems and Discovery Services and a Senior Analyst.

This position will be part of the Systems and Discovery Services Department. The Discovery Librarian will report directly to the Head of Systems and Discovery Services.

Responsibilities

The Discovery Librarian will be primarily responsible for management, maintenance, enhancement, support, and advocacy of UC Library Search, related discovery products, and tools which facilitate access to resources. As the lead for UC Library Search, the Discovery Librarian will serve on various Systemwide ILS (SILS) teams at Berkeley and at the UC-wide level. The position will coordinate ongoing discovery feature testing, configuration changes, troubleshooting, and participate in communities of practice related to access and discovery tools.

In partnership with the Head of Systems and Discovery Services Department, the Discovery Librarian will collaborate with stakeholders across the Library to identify pain points and discovery solutions to improve the user experience of UC Library Search. This position will contribute to the development of user-centered access and discovery practices, strategies, and services which advance the University Libraries’ commitment to equity and inclusion.

UC Berkeley librarians are expected to participate in library-wide planning and governance, and work effectively in a shared decision-making environment. Advancement is partially based upon professional contributions beyond the primary assignment; the successful candidate will show evidence or promise of such contributions to the Library, campus, UC System, and profession.

The UC Berkeley Library is committed to supporting and encouraging a multicultural environment and seeks candidates who can make positive and imaginative contributions in a context of ethnic and cultural diversity.

UC professional librarians are academic appointees and are represented by an exclusive bargaining agent, the University Council – American Federation of Teachers (UC-AFT).

This position is in the bargaining unit. Librarians are eligible for professional development leave, vacation leave, sick leave, and all other benefits granted to non-faculty academic personnel. The University has an excellent retirement system and sponsors a variety of group health, dental, vision, and life insurance plans in addition to other benefits.

Other

• This is an on-site position with the option for some remote work
• The incumbent will be required to get Primo VE Administrator certification from ExLibris within nine months of being hired
• If you require reasonable accommodation in completing this application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to the Library Human Resources Department.

Department: https://www.lib.berkeley.edu/

QUALIFICATIONS

Basic qualifications (required at time of application)

Advanced degree or enrolled in an advanced degree program.

Additional qualifications (required at time of start)

Advanced degree

Preferred qualifications

• Master’s degree from an ALA-accredited institution or equivalent international degree
• Minimum of two years of experience in an academic research library
• Commitment to diversity and an ability to demonstrate an understanding that diverse perspectives and differences in background, cultures, values and viewpoints are the foundation for an inclusive environment
• Ability to distill and communicate technical concepts to non-technical staff to promote knowledge sharing and facilitate troubleshooting of configurations, system behavior, and workflows
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
• Ability to work independently and in a collaborative team within a matrix reporting environment
• Commitment to continued personal and professional development
• Experience with or knowledge of integrated library systems, such as Millennium, Sierra, Alma, Folio, TIND ILS, Koha, WorldShare, etc.
• Experience with or knowledge of library discovery platforms such as Primo VE, Summon, EBSCO Discovery Service, WorldCat Discovery, etc.
• Experience with or knowledge of access and authentication software, such as EZproxy or OpenAthens
• Understand the workings of and developing trends in library discovery platforms and demonstrated experience of successful application
• Knowledge of structural and descriptive metadata standards
• Knowledge of WCAG and ADA compliance accessibility standards for digital content
• Experience with usability and/or user experience testing
• Experience with compiling and sharing analytics reports and performing data analysis

The Library is interested in finding the best candidate for the job and recognizes that the successful candidate may be one from a less traditional background. We encourage you to apply, even if you don't meet all of the preferred qualifications listed above.

APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

Document requirements

• Curriculum Vitae - Your most recently updated C.V.

• Cover Letter (Optional)

• Statement on Contributions to Advancing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion - Statement on your contributions to diversity, equity, and inclusion, including information about your understanding of these topics, your record of activities to date, and your specific plans and goals for advancing equity and inclusion if hired at Berkeley. More Information and guidelines.

Reference requirements

• 3 required (contact information only)

Apply link: https://aprecruit.berkeley.edu/JPF04145

Help contact: richard.brown@berkeley.edu

ABOUT UC BERKELEY

UC Berkeley is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. The excellence of the institution requires an environment in which the diverse community of faculty, students, and staff are welcome and included. Successful candidates will demonstrate knowledge and skill related to ensuring equity and inclusion in the activities of their academic position (e.g., teaching, research, and service, as applicable).

The University of California, Berkeley is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, or protected veteran status. For the complete University of California nondiscrimination and affirmative action policy see: http://policy.ucop.edu/doc/4000376/NondiscrimAffirmAct

In searches when letters of reference are required all letters will be treated as confidential per University of California policy and California state law. Please refer potential referees, including when letters are provided via a third party (i.e., dossier service or career center), to the UC Berkeley statement of confidentiality prior to submitting their letter.

As a University employee, you will be required to comply with all applicable University policies and/or collective bargaining agreements, as may be amended from time to time. Federal, state, or local government directives may impose additional requirements.

JOB LOCATION

Berkeley, CA