2009 Awards for Excellence

Citation

(2009), "2009 Awards for Excellence", Performance Measurement and Metrics, Vol. 10 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/pmm.2009.27910baa.002

2009 Awards for Excellence

Article Type: Editorial From: Performance Measurement and Metrics, Volume 10, Issue 2

The following article was selected for this year's Outstanding Paper Award for Performance Measurement and Metrics

``Telling the story: qualitative approaches to measuring the performance of emerging library services''

Peter BrophyCentre for Research in Library & Information Management (CERLIM), Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to show that libraries are facing challenging environments in which services and content must be delivered into the users' workflows and ``lifeflows''.Design/methodology/approach - An understanding of linguistic codes and language games, and similar concepts, will help librarians to appreciate the enormous challenge of becoming an accepted member of each user community.Findings - In order to assess performance in this changing environment, much greater emphasis will need to be placed on qualitative methods, including ethnographic approaches, externally-moderated, reflective self-evaluation and narrative-based practice.Originality/value - Libraries themselves are changing and, most of all, are being challenged to reinvent themselves within the workflows and lifeflows of their users. If this challenge is to be met then innovative yet robust methods need to be developed to assess performance in this new milieu.

Keywords: Ethnography, Information services, Language, Linguistics, Qualitative methods

www.emeraldinsight.com/10.1108/14678040810869387

This article originally appeared in Volume 9 Number 1, 2008, pp. 7-17, Performance Measurement and Metrics

The following articles were selected for this year's Highly Commended Award

``An approach to evaluating Latin American university libraries''

Ana Reyes PaciosNidia Lubisco

This article originally appeared in Volume 9 Number 2, 2008, Performance Measurement and Metrics

``When the evidence is not enough: organizational factors that influence effective and successful library assessment''

Steve HillerMartha KyrillidouJim Self

This article originally appeared in Volume 9 Number 3, 2008, Performance Measurement and Metrics