Does quality assessment matter in an academic library?: A case study of the University of Namibia library
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Date
2021
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Abstract
Reliable tools for measuring service quality and demonstrating the impact of services are becoming more and more important in library sector development. Measuring quality is not only an administrative factor. In-depth quality assessment is also needed for a library to inclusively identify and respond to current and emerging needs of its stakeholders and various user groups. In this context, the paper analyses quality assessment methods used in the University of Namibia (UNAM)
Library from 2012 – 2019 with the main focus on the international standardised customer satisfaction LibQUAL+ survey, carried out in 2012 and 2014. The paper provides an analytical assessment of the use of LibQUAL+ at UNAM library, describing challenges, benefits and outcomes of the use of the method. The authors conclude that LibQUAL+ proved to be a very informative tool providing
critical information for strategic planning. The use of a scientifically developed standardised tool had the additional advantage that the institution’s management trusted the results. The paper further discusses the practical implications of how the results of LibQUAL+ informed strategic planning and improvement of services, presents an analysis of the reasons for discontinuation the use of LibQUAL+
instrument, and concludes with a brief description of complementary methods that can be used to assess aspects that customer satisfaction-based methods do not cover, namely external quality reviews and benchmarking. The purpose of the paper is to provide an analytical view of challenges and benefits of quality assessment processes in one academic library for the benefit of strategic planning
processes in other libraries
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Keywords
Quality assurance, LibQUAL+, Customer satisfaction surveys, Service quality
Citation
Niskala, R., & Leonard, A. (2021). Does quality assessment matter in an academic library?: A case study of the University of Namibia library. In C. Mnubi-Mchombu., Nengomasha, C., W. Uutoni (Ed.), Proceedings of the 24th Standing Conference of Eastern, Central and Southern African Library and Information Associations, pp. 302-320.