Outside in
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/DLP-05-2017-0015 |
| Date | 14 August 2017 |
| Published date | 14 August 2017 |
| Pages | 190-194 |
| Author | Robert Fox |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Librarianship/library management,Library technology,Records management & preservation,Information repositories |
DIGITAL LIBRARIES: THE SYSTEMS
ANALYSIS PERSPECTIVE
Outside in
Robert Fox
Hesburgh Library, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, Indiana, USA
Abstract
Purpose –Understanding the user’s viewpoint is crucial so that any website be considered successful.
Many organizations pay attention to their internal concerns first at the expense of the user. Libraries as
service organizations should be committed to understanding the top-level tasks of their stakeholders by
engagingin both cognitive and hierarchical task analysis.
Originality/value –One of the primary purposes of a libraryis to act as a facilitator to information. One
way to accomplish thatis via the library website. For the website to be effective, it is necessaryto understand
the top tasks that the user needsto engage in so that they can accomplish their goals.
Keywords Continuous improvement, User experience, Website design, Usability,
User centered design, Task analysis
Paper type Conceptual paper
Digital libraries: the systems analysis perspective
We have allhad experiences in our lives wherewe misunderstood whatsomeone was saying,
and it resulted in a rather embarrassing situation. We approach someone with the best of
intentions, and the encounter becomes uncomfortable for us. In fact, these situations are so
common that we make jokes about them. Here is a humorous story to illustrate the point: a
concerned woman had not heard from her elderly neighbor and asked her young son to go
check on her to make sure she was OK. “Billy, please go and find out how old Mrs Johnson
is”. So eight-year-old Billy went to go knock on Mrs Johnson’s door. When he returned, his
mother asked “So,how is she?”.“How is she?”he repeated “Well mom, I’ve never seenher so
angry! Shesaid it’s none of your businesshow old she is!”.
A similar phenomenon happens between managers and employees when the instructions
for how to complete work are not clearly defined. This leads to confusion and frustration in the
workplace. In the worst-case scenario, the employer will blame the employee for not completing
the work adequately even though the manager did not explain the context, purpose or steps
necessary to arrive at a successful outcome. The accountability equation in such a scenario is
transposed. If we take a deeper dive into the problem, there are a couple of useful observations
we could make. In such a situation, the manager is probably neglecting to take the employee’s
training and situational awareness into account. The context is also critical. Perhaps the task is
a familiar one, but the circumstances may be altered in such a way that the employee believes it
to be a new task.
Whether humorous o r in some sense tragic, the gap bet ween understanding or
expectations and reality can be significant and lead to significant consequences. Any
situation thatinvolves communication carrieswith it the risk of introducing thosegaps, with
the level of risk being proportionate to the impact of what is being communicated. As a
DLP
33,3
190
Received 4 May 2017
Accepted 4 May 2017
DigitalLibrary Perspectives
Vol.33 No. 3, 2017
pp. 190-194
© Emerald Publishing Limited
2059-5816
DOI 10.1108/DLP-05-2017-0015
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