CIBERCharleston Observatory Keynote

Raising Spirits in this Tough Economy
First results from CIBER’s Global Library Survey
David Nicholas (CIBER), Christopher Warnock (ebrary)

and Mark Kendall (YBP Library Services)
Background
Background to the Charleston Observatory
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009
Established Spring 2009, the Observatory:
Is a research adjunct for the Conference, the medium by

which some of the great ideas generated are turned into
robust research projects. Provides continuity and build.
Is a place where information experiments can be

undertaken, where evidence can be collected in a robust
and validated manner, and where diverse information
communities can come together and share their data to
the benefit of all.
Promote international and cross-sector research

collaboration; global problems require global solutions.
Background to this survey
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009
This is the Observatoryʼs first project and it was chosen

by a large panel of librarians.
Have buy in from the commercial community and is co-

sponsored by Baker & Taylor’s YBP Library Services and
ebrary®.
More specifically the study:

a) examines the changes that libraries are making, where
budgets and resources are being focused and why;
b) determine practical/positive things being done; and
assist the community as a whole by increasing co-
operation, share best (innovative) practice, and
identify priorities.
Survey demographics
Survey demographics by sector Q1 Sector
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=835 global, all sectors, percentages)
University or college (public) 39.5
University or college (private) 24.1
Further education or community college 6.9
High school or secondary school 2.0
National library 1.6
Government 5.4
Public library 6.3
Hospital 1.0
Corporation (for profit) 5.3
Corporation (not for profit) 2.4
Other 5.5
Survey demographics by size Q2 Number of users
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=744 global, all sectors, percentages)
Less than 1,000 16.7
1,000-4,999 24.5
5,000-9,999 14.5
10,000-19,999 15.9
20,000-39,999 17.2
40,000-59,999 4.2
60,000-79,999 1.6
80,000-99,999 1.1
100,000-249,999 1.6
More than 250,000 2.8

Survey demographics by consortium Q4 Consortium membership
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=532 academic libraries, worldwide, percentages)
Is your library a member of a consortium?
No
10.7%
Yes
Not sure 87.2%
2%
Survey demographics by authority Q5 Purchasing authority
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=733 global, percentages)
What role do you personally play in major

library purchasing decisions?
I make the final decision 41.5
I make formal recommendations 36.8
My views are sought informally 14.3
I do not play an active role 7.4

Survey demographics by region Q6 Region
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=589 academic libraries, percentages)
55.3 In which country are your main

headquarters located?
34.2
10.5
USA Canada Rest of the world

Survey demographics by country Q9 Country
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=589 academic libraries, percentages)
UK 15.2%
Ireland 1.6%
China 1.3%
India 1.2%
Mexico 1.1%
Finland 1.0%
Pakistan 0.9%
Malaysia 0.8%
Norway 0.8%
South Africa 0.7%
FORTY NINE OTHER COUNTRIES 34.2%

The financial outlook
Total library budgets
including personnel, services and infrastructure and resources
The financial outlook total budget Q12 Total budget for current year
What is your total library budget for the current

financial year, including personnel, resources
and operational costs?
<$US2m 50.2
$US2m-$US4m 19.0
$US4m-$US8m 11.4
>$US8m 14.5
The financial outlook total budget Q13 Total budget change
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=479 academic libraries, percentages within region)
How does your total library budget for this financial year,
compare with last year? [do not allow for inflation]
40 40
North America
Rest of the world
11
8
5 5
4 3
1 1 0
0
-4 -3
-7 -7 -6
-9 -9 -10
-13
-15
-20% or more -15% -10% -5% -5% or less Same +5% or more +5% +10% +15% +20% or more
The financial outlook total budget Q14 Total budget change
How does your total library budget for the next financial
year, compare48with this year? [do not allow for inflation]
44
North America
Rest of the world
6 7 7
4 3
2 1 1
0 0
-1 -2 -1
-4 -5
-10
-12 -12
-15 -14
-20% or more -15% -10% -5% -5% or less Same +5% or less +5% +10% +15% +20% or more
The financial outlook total budget Q17 Future budget
Where do you anticipate your library budget will be in two

years’ time, compared with today [do not allow for inflation]
37 36
North America
Rest of the world
14
10
9 8 8
6
3
0 1 0
-2 -3
-3 -4
-6
-7 -7
-11
-13 -12
-20% or more -15% -10% -5% -5% or less Same +5% or less +5% +10% +15% +20% or more
The financial outlook total budget Q18 Changes in priority
What change do you expect or plan for your library

expenditures in the following areas over the next two years?
Services 1 22 58 16 3
Infrastructure 6 18 47 23 7
Personnel 5 27 49 16 2
Resources 9 33 30 23 5
Large decrease Small decrease No change Small increase Large increase

Library personnel budgets
The financial outlook staff Q20 Nature of any staff cuts
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=89 academic libraries, worldwide, mean ratings)
North America How are those staff cuts most likely to fall?
Rest of the world
1.5
Regrading 1.8
1.9
Redundancy or layoffs 1.8
2.6
Voluntary redundancy or early retirement 2.9
3.5
Freeze on recruitment 3.4
2.2
Salary cuts 1.8
2.1
Unpaid holidays 1.7
significant 2.6
Cuts in hours 1.9
difference
3.0
Restructuring 3.0
3.7
Not replacing staff who retire or leave 3.4
Mean responses, 1=very unlikely, 4=very likely

Library services and infrastructure budgets
The financial outlook services Q22 Nature of any service cuts
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=57 academic libraries, worldwide, mean ratings)
Where are those service or infrastructure

North America
Rest of the world
cuts most likely to fall?
3.0
Reduced opening hours
2.6
2.3
Building plans shelved
2.6
2.3
Planned IT projects put back
2.4
2.6
Reduced library training or instruction
2.5
2.7
Reduced enquiry desk services
2.9

Library resources budgets
The financial outlook resources Q24 Current resources spend
In percentage terms, roughly indicate the

balance of your spending on library resources
this year across the following categories?
Databases Print books (incl. monographs) Databases

25.3% 25.5% 15.1%
Print books (incl. monographs)
36.7%
Serials (p/e)
16.5%
E-books
5.2%
Serials (p/e)
14.0%
Serials (p-only)
12.2%
Serials (e-only) E-books
15.7% 5.3%
Serials (e-only) Serials (p-only)
17.8% 10.6%
North America Rest of the world
The financial outlook resources Q26 Resource cuts
North America Are you planning to cut your resources

Rest of the world budget over the next two years?
27.9
Yes
15.1
29.4
No
47.9
42.6
Too early to say
37.0
The financial outlook resources Q27 Nature of any resource cuts
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=89 academic libraries, mean ratings)
North America Where are those cuts in resources most likely to fall?
Rest of the world
3.3
Print books 3.4
3.4
Monographs 3.4
2.3
E-books 2.2
3.5
Serials (p-only) 3.5
2.5
Serials (e-only) 2.8
3.0
Serials (p/e) 2.8
3.0
Database subscriptions 3.1

Balancing the budget
Trade-off analysis
Balancing the budget Q28 Making cutbacks
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=376 academic libraries worldwide)
23.9 40.2 35.9
Cut staff Cut resources Cut services

Balancing the budget Q29 Greater co-operation
6.2 84.1 9.7
Staff savings Resource savings Operational savings

Balancing the budget Q30 Seeking additional funding
48.6 9.0 42.4
A bigger share of the institutional cake

Introducing or increasing charges
Looking for external funding
Balancing the budget Q31 Digital purchasing options
27.8 14.7 23.2 11.0 23.3
Digital collections
Individual titles from publishers
Individual titles from vendors
Automated book vendor approval plans
Patron-driven access model
Balancing the budget Q32 Doing things differently
55.9 34.6 9.5
Accelerating the shift to e-only

Directing users to free electronic resources
Outsourcing services or infrastructure
Balancing the budget Q33 Smarter management
23.7 13.5 40.5 22.3
Getting a better understanding of costs

Better benchmarking and PIs
Demonstrating value through better usage and outcomes data
Greater pressure on vendors
Balancing the budget Q34 Overview
20.8 26.3 20.6 32.3
Making cutbacks
Greater library co-operation
Seeking additional funding
Doing things differently
Looking forward
Views on the future
Looking forward Q34 Views of library opinion formers
CIBER Charleston Information Observatory 2009 (n=356 academic libraries, mean ratings)
To what extent do you agree or disagree

North America
Rest of the world
with the following statements?
0.23
The economy will recover in the next two years
0.26
0.53
The impact on libraries will be severe and long lasting
0.26
0.19
Library budgets will suffer in the next two years but then recover
0.22
0.90
The downturn will focus resources where the greatest value is delivered
0.94
0.84
The downturn will focus library thinking on return on investment
0.82
Mean responses,
-2=strongly disagree,
+2=strongly agree

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Raising Spirits in this Tough Economy

First results from CIBER’s Global Library Survey

David Nicholas (CIBER), Christopher Warnock (ebrary)

Established Spring 2009, the Observatory:

Is a research adjunct for the Conference, the medium by

Is a place where information experiments can be

Promote international and cross-sector research

This is the Observatoryʼs first project and it was chosen

Have buy in from the commercial community and is co-

More specifically the study:

University or college (public) 39.5

University or college (private) 24.1

Further education or community college 6.9

High school or secondary school 2.0

National library 1.6

Public library 6.3

Corporation (for profit) 5.3

Corporation (not for profit) 2.4

Less than 1,000 16.7

More than 250,000 2.8

Is your library a member of a consortium?

What role do you personally play in major

I make the final decision 41.5

I make formal recommendations 36.8

My views are sought informally 14.3

I do not play an active role 7.4

55.3 In which country are your main

USA Canada Rest of the world

South Africa 0.7%

FORTY NINE OTHER COUNTRIES 34.2%

What is your total library budget for the current

Where do you anticipate your library budget will be in two

What change do you expect or plan for your library

Large decrease Small decrease No change Small increase Large increase

Mean responses, 1=very unlikely, 4=very likely

Where are those service or infrastructure

Mean responses, 1=very unlikely, 4=very likely

In percentage terms, roughly indicate the

Databases Print books (incl. monographs) Databases

North America Are you planning to cut your resources

Mean responses, 1=very unlikely, 4=very likely

23.9 40.2 35.9

Cut staff Cut resources Cut services

6.2 84.1 9.7

Staff savings Resource savings Operational savings

48.6 9.0 42.4

A bigger share of the institutional cake

27.8 14.7 23.2 11.0 23.3

55.9 34.6 9.5

Accelerating the shift to e-only

23.7 13.5 40.5 22.3

Getting a better understanding of costs

20.8 26.3 20.6 32.3

To what extent do you agree or disagree

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