THE UNIVERSITY OF NOTTINGHAM
Recruitment Role Profile Form

Job Title: Library Adviser

School/Department: Libraries and Research and Learning Resources - Customer Services

Salary: £17,210 - £20,400 per annum, pro rata depending on skills and experience. Salary progression beyond this scale is subject to performance

Job Family and Level:Administrative, Professional and Managerial Level 2

Contract Status: Permanent

Hours of Work: 21.5 hours per week:

Monday 5 – 10pm

Thursday 1 – 7pm including 30 minute unpaid break

Friday 5 – 10pm

Sunday 10am – 5pm including 1 hour unpaid break

The post holder will also be required to work on one public holiday or University Closure day per annum. This will be agreed in advance, by mutual consent wherever possible, dependent on operational requirements. It may be in a different library from the normal place of work, and may be at a different time from the normal hours of work but will not exceed the longest shift in the normal work pattern.

Location: The role holder may be asked to work in other libraries.

Reporting to: Senior Library Adviser

Purpose of the New Role:

Our vision is of a Library that puts students and academics at the heart of everything we do, enabling us to provide a consistently excellent service aligned to the teaching, learning and research priorities of the University. Our shared ethos is that we Aspire to be WISE: Welcoming, Inspiring and Supportive of Everyone. Library Advisers form a key part of the frontline delivery of this vision in all the University’s libraries, actively promoting and supporting the use of a wide range of high quality resources and services.

Library Advisers work confidently with a diverse mix of customers, including students, academic staff and members of the public, encouraging them to explore our services, identifying relevant print and digital resources, encouraging best practice and troubleshooting problems. For many of our customers they are the first point of contact and the range of knowledge and skills required is broad, encompassing both library and IT.

Our service is constantly developing to reflect the changing needs of the University and Library Advisers need to be able to learn quickly and embrace this dynamic environment. They often work without direct supervision, using their initiative within guidelines, and deputise for the Senior Library Adviser to ensure that services respond to changes in demand and continue to run efficiently.

Main Responsibilities / % time per year
1. / To provide a comprehensive frontline help and enquiry service (physical and virtual) including welcome and orientation support for students at key times of the year
  • maintain and develop a good knowledge and understanding of library services (including basic IT services) and be able to answer a broad range of enquiries, by phone, online and face to face
  • maintain and develop a good knowledge of the relevant information resources (both print and digital) in certain subject areas
  • know how to access a wide range of different types of resources, provide guidance on usage and troubleshoot common problems
  • offer help and advice in a friendly and efficient way using good questioning skills to identify good solutions
  • understand and use the appropriate referral routes for more complex queries
  • actively promote and support the use of library resources and services, offering help appropriately
  • maintain and develop a good knowledge of the sources of self-help available for customers
  • maintain and develop a working knowledge of accessibility issues relevant to library buildings and services
  • work constructively within and across teams to deliver the best service possible, responding flexibly to changing service needs
/ 60%
2. / To support the efficient running of library services including lending and self-service, equipment loans, inter-library loans, printing, copying, scanning, AV and IT equipment
  • Use the access management and security systems to ensure appropriate use of services and resources
  • Support the self-service machines and the issue, return and renewal of library materials on the library management system
  • Use the library management system accurately, efficiently and within LRLR and University guidelines
  • Work confidently with financial transactions and take payments by cash, cheque or cards. Check transactions on Agresso as necessary
  • Support and troubleshoot common problems with a wide range of equipment e.g. print/copy/scan devices, AV and IT equipment, specialist microform readers

3. / To actively demonstrate a commitment to high quality service delivery
  • respond positively to customer feedback
  • actively communicate with customers and colleagues to ensure delivery of the best service possible
  • actively identify and promote best practice
  • contribute to the review of services, highlighting any discrepancies or improvements that might be made
  • maintain an awareness of library services as they develop
/ 10%
4. / To deputise for the Senior Library Adviser when required so that services continue to run efficiently. To support the Senior Library Adviser by assisting in the training of new or existing staff. / 10%
5. / To assist in the day-to-day management of library materials and equipment
  • Shelve and shelf tidy library items, including heavy books according to Library of Congress classification schemes
  • Retrieve and process any requested items or new stock, ensuring that they are available in line with expected timelines
  • Carry out moves of library materials
  • Actively maintain a safe working environment, escalating issues where appropriate
  • Receive, check and distribute mail
/ 5%
6. / To understand how the Library interacts with other University stakeholders e.g. Disability and Academic Support, Security, Estates, Finance, Nottingham Hospitality. To know who the key contacts are across the Library and the University, and know when and how to refer to them. / 5%
7. / To ensure that library customers adhere to the regulations about behaviour in order to maintain an acceptable standard and a suitable learning environment in the library. / 5%
8. / To pursue a programme of continuing personal development, including development of specialist skills and knowledge required for the role. Attendance outside the role holder’s normal working hours may be required. / 5%
Any other duties appropriate to the role and level

Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications & Experience

Essential / Desirable
Qualifications/ Education /
  • Good standard of education evidenced by A-levels
  • GCSE Maths and English at grade C or above, or equivalent
/
  • NVQ level 2-3 Information and Library Services or Customer Services

Skills/Training /
  • Evidence of a positive, flexible approach to delivering a consistently excellent service
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills enabling you to work confidently and effectively with a wide range of customers
  • Good knowledge of using core IT systems (e.g. Microsoft Office applications, email, internet) to support your own work and to troubleshoot basic IT enquiries
  • Proven ability to work effectively and efficiently both when alone and as part of a team
  • Proven ability to work accurately and pay attention to detail
  • Evidence of an ongoing commitment to update your knowledge and gain new skills quickly
/
  • Good knowledge of Aleph or a comparable library management system
  • Good knowledge of the types of information resources and services relevant to University libraries

Experience /
  • Proven ability to deliver a friendly, helpful service in a busy environment, dealing confidently with a variety of customer service demands
  • Proven ability to work with customers to identify their needs and recommend solutions, including the skills to work with complex and/or unfamiliar language/vocabulary
  • Proven ability to proactively offer support and promote services to customers
/
  • Significant relevant library experience in a face to face role giving a good understanding of core services
  • Experience of supporting students and academics using print and digital information resources
  • Experience of working with students in higher education
  • Experience of using a till and taking card payments
  • Experience of supporting high demand frontline equipment such as printers, scanners, copiers, AV equipment
  • Experience of supporting informal training of staff

Statutory/Legal

Decision Making

i)taken independently by the role holder

Proactively offer support to customers
Respond to all enquiries and decide which is the best solution, identifying appropriate resources/services
Judge when to refer more complicated queries and decide who is the appropriate contact
Prioritise requests for support from customers
Assess equipment problems and decide on the best course of action
Organise and prioritise competing demands within their own workload
Take action on minor breaches of regulations
Adjust fines and print credit as appropriate, according to guidelines
Resolve minor complaints from customers, according to guidelines
In the absence of the Senior Library Adviser to take most decisions related to the day to day running of the service within supervisory guidelines

ii)taken in collaboration with others

Liaison with other staff across the Library and the University to find the best solutions to complex problems
Suggestions for improvements to our services

iii)referred to the appropriate line manager (please name) by the role holder

Complex complaints that cannot be resolved at the frontline (Senior Library Adviser)
Difficult situations with customers that cannot be resolved at the frontline (Senior Library Adviser)
Serious breaches of regulations (Senior Library Adviser)
Suggestions for procedural or policy changes (Senior Library Adviser)
Purchasing decisions (Associate Director via Senior Library Adviser)

Libraries, Research and Learning Resources (LRLR) at the University of Nottingham

The University of Nottingham’s position as a world-class University is confirmed by its ranking in the global league tables. We are ranked in the UK and European top 30 and in the top one per cent of all universities worldwide. In order to build upon this position our Global Strategy 2020 sets out goals and actions that target areas of challenge while laying the foundations for ongoing success into the future. The Strategy aims to strengthen and enrich our core activities of Education and Research; address the changing expectations of our students; target investment in research strengths; focus on enhancing quality; and continue to differentiate The University of Nottingham on the basis of an outstanding student experience and our distinct approach to internationalisation.

The Libraries, Research and Learning Resources (LRLR) department provides a full range of library and learning technology services to the University. LRLR puts students and academics at the heart of everything, working in partnership with academic and professional service colleagues to provide the right environment for learners, teachers and researchers to discover, develop, use and share information and learning content in support of knowledge creation and dissemination. We work closely with colleagues at our international campuses, and share the same library systems and virtual learning environment.

LRLR provides a comprehensive range of services, including eight libraries in the UK; over one million print books and journals; 450,000 electronic books and 40,000 ejournals; four million manuscripts including special collections of international importance; and a full range of learning technologies including Moodle. Services are provided over extensive hours, seven days a week, and 24/7 at key times.

The department has approximately 180 FTE staff distributed around the University’s campuses in the UK, and grouped into six sections: Learning Technology, Manuscripts and Special Collections, Research and Learning Services, Customer Services, Content and Discovery, and Strategy and Planning.

Our wide-ranging services include:

  • frontline lending and enquiry services across eight libraries
  • managing a variety of study spaces
  • information skills teaching
  • acquiring, managing and promoting printed and electronic information resources for research, learning and teaching, including Manuscripts and Special Collections
  • delivering eLearning services and development of new technologies

If you are emotionally intelligent, committed to working in partnership with customers, adaptable to change and you meet the essential specifications of the role, we’d really like to hear from you.

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