One of the IFLA Statistics and Evaluation Section goals for this year was to host professional development sessions on evaluation and impact.

In June and July, we conducted a Focus on Impact series. The online sessions including a panel, an open article discussion, forming a community of practice, an open topic listening session and keynote presentation. In November, the Public Libraries Working Group of our committee held a webinar on leveraging data collection tools to engage communities and enhance service and strategic planning in public libraries.

All sessions were recorded and are available for viewing at the Statistics and Evaluation Standing Committee IFLA (select Events and Workshops and the month of the activity).

Different days and alternate time zones allowed for more than 240 attendees over the course of the sessions, each representing double-digits numbers in terms of unique countries participating.  A summation of these activities are as follows:

The Focus on Impact Series

Panel Presentation – June 5th

The assessment of library impact can take many different forms. Three panelists with very different experiences shared their perspectives and experiences in this presentation. Grand Mutando discussed the African Capacity Building Foundation’s (ACBF) role in enhancing the community of practice and capacity development in Africa. Sherine Eid demonstrated how ISO 16439 acts as a guide for assessing library impact, and Dr. Leo Appleton discussed library assessment methodologies and practices.

Article Discussion – June 12th

Participants were asked to read an article and come prepared to bring questions and hear from the author, Kate McDowell, Associate Professor, University of Illinois on how to use data storytelling to demonstrate the impact of library services:  Kate McDowell (2024) Library Data Storytelling: Obstacles and Paths Forward, Public Library Quarterly, 43:2, 202-222, DOI: 10.1080/01616846.2023.2241514 https://doi.org/10.1080/01616846.2023.2241514

Forming Your Community of Practice – June 19th

In this webinar, participants learned what a Community of Practice (CoP) is and how it can support library assessment activities. The speakers, Joanna Logan, Quality and Planning Manager, Queensland University of Technology Simon Hart, Policy Planning and Evaluation Librarian, University of Otago, created a Value & Impact Community of Practice to assist staff at university libraries, in Australia and New Zealand, share best practices around evaluating and assessing their activities and services.

Let’s Hear From You About Impact Listening Session – July 10th

The Committee used this session to get input from participants on how our section can help interested people learn more about library assessment and promote impact. Committee members heard comments, questions, and success stories.

Redefining the Library Experience – July 10th

Dr. Lynn Silipigni Connaway, Executive Director, Research at OCLC was the guest speaker for this session that was focused on the OCLC report Redefining the library experience: Findings from the 2023 OCLC Global Council Survey.  The findings from this report are based on a global survey from the library community and include all library types. In total, more than 1600 responses were collected from respondents located in approximately 77 countries/territories.

Public Libraries Session

How Public Libraries Leverage Data Collection Tools to Engage Communities – November 26th

The Public Libraries Working Group of the Statistics and Evaluation Committee held this webinar on leveraging data collection tools to engage communities and enhance service and strategic planning in public libraries.  Public libraries in Canada, Norway, Poland, and Sweden discussed how they are employing diverse data collection methods to gather community feedback, shaping the future of library services. This session explored four international perspectives that showcased how these libraries use community engagement data to guide their service planning. Participants heard from Izabela Koryś, head of the Library Development Unit at the National Library of Poland; Shawn Mitchell, Toronto Public Library’s (TPL) Director, Policy, Planning & Performance Management; Jannicke Røgler, head of Trondheim Public Library; and Ann Lundborg who works with development issues within libraries and adult learning at the regional cultural administration in Skåne, Sweden.

– Bella Karr Gerlich, PhD, Chair, on behalf of the IFLA Statistics and Evaluation (STATSEVAL) Section