Outsourcing Digital Reference: The User Perspective (Article – KBlum)

            Outsourcing is not a new venture for academic libraries. Since the early 1980’s libraries have been outsourcing various tasks and functions such as cataloging, vending, and photocopying. Only recently, with the advances in “digital reference technology,” have academic reference librarians branched beyond assisting students at the traditional reference desk setting.

            Academic libraries now offer students the opportunity to elicit the assistance of the reference librarian remotely via the library web site. Real time chat sessions and 24/7 reference services are becoming the norm in many colleges and universities.

            Staffing academic librarians 24/7 is considered not to be cost-effective and a poor use of librarian resources (not to mention, trying to find a librarian willing to work the graveyard shift!). Outsourcing the 24/7 reference service may be one cost-effective approach to meeting the needs of the students.

            There are a variety of organizations and companies that offer digital referencing. Librarians by Request’s (Tutor.com), Ask a Librarian, is one of the leading providers of digital referencing. Tutor hires librarians who work from home to staff the 24 hour service. OCLC’s (Question Point) offers similar services in a collaborative effort with other libraries.

            The subscription price for outsourcing digital reference will often depend on the number of hours being covered, the specific hours covered and the FTE of the population being served.

            The academic library provides a profile of its college/university, student population, and specific library services (policies, collections, databases etc…) to the outsourcing company. This enables the outsourced reference librarian to have a knowledge base in order to effectively answer reference inquiries.

            For instance, Southeastern Louisiana University (SLU) began outsourcing its digital reference in 1997. After a few years of collaborating with other university libraries as a means to defray costs, SLU decided to go-it-alone and contracted with Librarians by Request (LBR). The Southeastern reference librarians staffed the digital reference service 50/hrs/wk. Librarian by Request (LBR) staffed the reference services the remaining 118hrs/wk.

            Evaluation of the service is an ongoing process, accomplished through user surveys. Key findings in a recent survey are as follows: 76 % of the users indicated a preference for the service in the afternoon and evening (only six percent preferred the service after midnight); 84 % were satisfied with the overall experience (speed of responses, answers and friendliness) and 93 % indicated they would use the service again. Users were more satisfied with the SLU librarians as compared the LBR professionals (LBR librarians had more difficulty answering questions related to local issues).

Outsourcing reference services can be a cost effective approach to offering students and faculty24/7 access to a professional reference librarian, however, it is crucial that the distance reference servers are adequately educated regarding issues relevant to the college/university and local community.

Hill, J. (2007). Outsourcing Digital Reference: The User Perspective. Reference Librarian,       47(2), 57-74. Retrieved October 10, 2007, from Hawthorne Press database.