Collections Strategist

Description

The University of Alabama Libraries seeks an experienced, analytical, and detail-oriented individual with an enhanced understanding of library collections to fill the position of Collections Strategist. Reporting to the Head of Electronic Resources and Scholarly Communications, this position leads the strategic evaluation of the University Libraries collections lifecycle, leverages knowledge of local and global publishing trends to enable dialogue around best practices in the licensing and acquisition of materials, identifies opportunities for continuous improvement in strategic planning initiatives, and creates reports and business analytics using disparate and aggregated data to inform decisions in a variety of contexts. This position will offer assistance for project management using tools such as Jira and Asana, and regularly monitor workflow progress while working collaboratively with faculty and staff within the department. The Collections Strategist will analyze multiple aspects of University Libraries existing collections, fostering a shared vision toward collections growth and expansion, increased efficiencies and effectiveness of workflow processes, and exceptional stewardship of resources. This position will actively compare, and contrast University Libraries print and online collections against regional and national peers, monitor emerging trends among R1 institutions, make recommendations related to new content purchasing and delivery models, and advise University Libraries Leadership as needed to ensure collections funding is used most effectively in support of undergraduate and graduate teaching, learning, and research. This position will support data visualization, and analysis and reporting using standard programming languages and tools to include Excel, Tableau, Power BI, R, OpenRefine, Python, SPSS, and NVivo. The person in this position will be encouraged to pursue grant writing opportunities and submission of projects relevant to the mission of University Libraries and the University of Alabama.

As a tenure-track faculty librarian in the Resource Acquisition and Discovery unit, this position contributes to the overall management of the area, helping to ensure the completion of area objectives in an efficient manner in support of university and library strategic goals. The successful candidate must have a willingness for continual learning, development, and application of additional expertise through work-related experiences and professional development opportunities. The successful candidate must possess the ability to deal with change, ambiguity, and complex problems that are typical of an academic setting.

Position responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Collating data from multiple systems, including the ILS, the discovery system, DSpace, ArchivesSpace, and ContentDM and providing business analytics outputs for decision-making.
• Developing scheduled and ad hoc data-informed reports illustrating unit progress and and predictive modeling.  
• Identifying opportunities for strategic acquisitions.
• Evaluating existing collections and expenditures for further breadth and depth of growth.
• Supporting University Libraries planning and assessment initiatives.
• Staying abreast of local, regional, national, and global trends in subscription and licensing models.
• Collaborating with colleagues to improve unit workflow and organizational processes.
• Responsibilities change as the University Libraries continues to evolve.

Prior to employment the successful candidate must pass a pre-employment background investigation. 

SALARY/BENEFITS: 12 month tenure track faculty appointment at the Assistant or Associate Professor rank. Salary is $80,000.00 - $100,000.00, commensurate with qualifications, experience, and advanced degrees. Strong benefits, including professional development support, tuition fee waiver, and matching retirement contributions. 

TO APPLY: Applications are accepted online only at https://careers.ua.edu. Click Faculty Jobs, then University Libraries. Please include your application, Curriculum Vitae, and names, addresses, phone numbers, and e- mail addresses of three references, including one current supervisor.

Consideration of applications will begin immediately and will continue until position is filled. Applications received by December 2, 2024, are assured of receiving full consideration.

For questions regarding the search, contact Michael Arthur, Senior Associate Dean, at [email protected].

Requirements

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: 

• Master’s degree in Library and Information Science from an ALA-accredited program.
• Experience in an academic or research library or equivalent.
• Strong analytical skills and ability to create and utilize data-informed collection analysis.
• Knowledge of academic library functions.
• Demonstrated experience compiling and reporting academic library statistics.
• An understanding of the principles and current trends in research libraries, collections, and publishing models.
• Excellent interpersonal, oral, and written communication skills.
• Proficiency with creating and analyzing detailed spreadsheets and preparing data visualizations of complex data sets.
• Ability to meet the requirements for tenure and promotion.
• Commitment to conduct research and scholarship consistent with the requirements of a tenure track appointment; commitment to engage in continuing professional development and service.
• Attention to detail with a high degree of accuracy.
• Ability to successfully initiate, track, and manage projects.
• Demonstrated capacity to manage multiple tasks simultaneously and quickly adjust to changing priorities and deadlines.
• Demonstrated ability, interest, and willingness to assume additional and/or new responsibilities, along with the ability to set and model high performance standards.
• Enthusiasm for an innovative and evolving work environment.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Demonstrated experience with collection analysis.
• Demonstrated experience with collection development, acquisitions, and vendor relations.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively and cooperatively within a research library environment. 
• Demonstrated experience with technical services systems and reporting.
• Experience with qualitative and quantitative research methods, as well as their appropriate analytical counterparts.
• Knowledge of project management applications such as Jira, Asana, etc.
• Knowledge of tools to support data visualization, analysis, and cleanup, such as Excel, R, OpenRefine, Python, SPSS, NVivo, and/or ArcGIS.
• Experience with data visualization platforms such as Tableau, Power BI, etc.
• Current record of scholarship in peer reviewed journals and through conference presentations.  
• Experience submitting grant proposals.