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Director of Collection Strategies

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Position description

Rank and Salary Scale
Associate Librarian - Librarian - Potential Career

Organizational Unit
Content and Discovery

Position Overview
The University of California, Riverside (UCR) seeks a collaborative, user-oriented, and assessment and evaluation driven Director of Collection Strategies. The successful candidate will lead a department devoted to collaborative, stakeholder focused evidence-based collection development and management.

Located an hour’s drive to the east of Los Angeles, an hour west of Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley, an hour east of ocean beaches, ninety minutes north of San Diego, and an hour south of mountain ski resorts, UCR is located in an area of dramatic landscapes and rich cultural traditions. The University is a dynamic, aggressively-developing land grant research institution dedicated to preparing its diverse student body to be successful competitors in the world marketplace of ideas. UCR boasts the first new School of Medicine to open on the West Coast in 43 years; a new School of Public Policy; and the Bourns College of Engineering, ranked 10th in the world according to an international ranking organization.

UCR is a world-class research university with an exceptionally diverse undergraduate student body. Its mission is explicitly linked to providing routes to educational success for underrepresented and first-generation college students. A commitment to this mission is a preferred qualification.

The UCR Library is a critical partner in preparing UCR’s students to be globally competitive while simultaneously preparing them for careers in the Inland Empire and beyond. The mission of the UCR Library is no less than to bring the world’s information resources to the UCR community and to ensure that UCR students, faculty, and staff have the skills to fully exploit those resources to change the world for the better.

The UCR Library is a team of intensely collaborative, forward-thinking colleagues dedicated to providing excellent services to our students, faculty, and community members in a rapidly evolving information environment. The successful candidate will be technologically sophisticated; committed to problem-solving in local, regional, national, and international arenas; and able to develop innovative solutions to complex problems; and a dynamic and effective leader.

The UCR Library is comprised of three facilities housing more than 3,800,000 volumes, 940,000 electronic books, 97,000 print and electronic journals, and 2,300,000 microforms. The Library provides services to more than 22,000 students and nearly 2,000 faculty and other academics in an institutional environment planning for and experiencing extensive growth. The successful candidate will join an enthusiastic staff of 131 FTE librarians, support personnel (including student FTE) in building a research library of excellence within a dynamic and diverse university ranked among the top 50 in the nation. The UCR Library is a member of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL). Among the unique collections of the UCR Library is the Eaton Collection of Science Fiction and Fantasy, the Water Resources Collections & Archives, the Rupert Costo Library of the American Indian, the Paul Chou Collection of Chinese history and culture, the George Brown Papers, the Tomás Rivera Papers, and the Inland Empire Memories Initiative. Information about the UCR Libraries is available at http://library.ucr.edu.

The UCR Library is an integral part of the University of California library system. With collections totaling 30 million volumes, UC’s more than 100 libraries are surpassed in size on the American continent only by the Library of Congress collection. In addition, UC’s California Digital Library (CDL) provides the core of the University's digital collections. CDL also assists UC to share resources and holdings more effectively, and provides leadership in applying technology to the development of library collections and services. Organizationally situated within the UC Office of the President, the CDL operates in close collaboration with all UC campuses and their libraries.

Responsibilities:
Reporting to the AUL for Content and Discovery, the Director of Collection Strategies will provide leadership in the development and implementation of user-focused and evidence-based collection management and transformative collection initiatives. The Director will be responsible for the direct supervision of a team currently comprised of three collection strategist librarians, a department coordinator, and student assistants.

Specific responsibilities include:
● Provides dynamic, strategic vision and leadership in planning and managing all aspects of the Collection Strategies department, including employee supervision, developing systematic assessment measures and metrics, and defining departmental scope, goals, and policies;
● Provides effective departmental management through development and implementation of initiatives, professional use of assessment and evaluation techniques, and ensuring accountability-driven performance expectations;
● In collaboration with the AUL for Content and Discovery oversees budget allocations, expenditures, and procedures for developing and maintaining sustainable library collections;
● Provides mentoring, training, coaching and professional guidance to direct reports;
● Collaboratively develops and implements evidence-based processes to analyze, acquire, assess and evaluate library content;
● Leads in the provision of effective communication, engagement, and collaboration with Faculty and other stakeholders in developing collection assessment metrics and measures;
● Collaborates with the Director of Distinctive Collections and other stakeholders to identify, develop, maintain, and assess selected areas of Distinctive Collections;
● Collaborates with the Directors of Distinctive Collections, Research Services, and Teaching and Learning on effective and efficient outreach strategies to UCR faculty and researchers;
● Builds intensely collaborative relationships with all library units involved in the development and maintenance of library collections and content;
● In collaboration with the AUL for Content and Discovery and the Director of Research Services develops and implements UCR Library policies and infrastructure around Open Access and Transformative collection models;
● Collaboratively develops and implements policies, procedures, and guidelines for lifecycle management of collections in all formats;
● Coordinates local vendor license negotiations and collaborates with the California Digital Library and other UC campuses on shared licensing;
● Collaborates and liaises with the Research Services Department and the Digital Library to develop policies and assessment tools, and preservation strategies for datasets and other electronic collections;
● Participates in Library strategic development as part of the Library Leadership Team;
● Provides effective communication to library and UCR-wide stakeholders on new and existing content;
● Participates in general administrative duties, library-wide activities, committees, special projects and library programs; represents the UCR Library on various University of California standing committees and ad-hoc groups.

Required Qualifications:
● Master of Library and Information Studies from an ALA-accredited institution or equivalent;
● Experience in effective systematic library collection evaluation and assessment;
● Demonstrated understanding of assessment and evaluation methodologies and tools;
● Successful record of management and administration of a department or service, along with the ability to articulate vision, set direction, and accomplish initiatives in rapidly changing environments;
● Demonstrated ability to plan, coordinate, and manage projects;
● Ability to effectively communicate and collaborate with faculty and other stakeholders in developing collections;
● Strong data analysis skills including gathering, interpreting, and presenting information;
● Ability to analyze, implement and adapt to evolving technologies;
● Evidence of increasing professional and/or scholarly achievement;
● Excellent organizational skills, and effectiveness in balancing multiple assignments and projects;
● Excellent interpersonal, organizational, problem-solving, and time-management skills;
● Effective written and oral communication;
● Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to work successfully in an intensely collaborative environment with a broad range of people from culturally diverse backgrounds including healthcare providers, colleagues, administrators, students, faculty, donors, and alumni.

Preferred Qualifications:
● Three or more years of significant program or departmental management experience;
● Advanced coursework or other professional development activities related to assessment or evaluation models in academic library collection development;
● Academic degree in a related field and/or advanced coursework at the post-graduate level;
● UCR is a world-class research university with an exceptionally diverse undergraduate student body. Its mission is explicitly linked to providing routes to educational success for underrepresented and first-generation college students. A commitment to this mission is a preferred qualification.

● UCR librarians are members of the Librarians Association of the University of California (LAUC). Research, publication, and/or service to the University and profession are expected for continuing advancement.

Salary and Benefits:
Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience within a range of $64,395 - $98,775.

Appointment at rank of Associate Librarian to Librarian - Potential Career depending upon qualifications and experience. Advancement through the librarian ranks at the University of California is through a series of structured, merit-based evaluations, occurring every two to three years, each of which includes substantial peer review. Excellent retirement system, health, and vacation benefits.

Application Information:
Submit resume, statement of contributions to diversity, and names and contact information of at least three references, and a letter of interest addressing qualifications and experience related to the primary duties of the position through APRecruit (https://aprecruit.ucr.edu/JPF01059). The search will remain open until the position is filled; for best consideration application should be received by March 8, 2019.

The University of California 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, age, disability, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Application Requirements

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

  • Cover Letter

  • Statement of Research (Optional)

  • Statement of Teaching (Optional)

  • Statement of Contributions to Diversity - Statement addressing past and/or potential contributions to diversity through teaching, research, professional activity, and/or service.

  • Misc / Additional (Optional)

Reference requirements
  • 3-5 required (contact information only)

Job location

Riverside, CA