Academic and public libraries are continuing to transform as the information landscape changes, expanding their missions into new service roles that call for improved organizational performance and accountability. This extensively revised and updated edition explores further the ways technology influences both the experiences of library customers and the ways libraries themselves can assess those experiences. With a focus on real-world application, the authors challenge conventional thinking about the utility of input, output, and performance metrics by suggesting new ways to think about the evaluation and assessment of library services; explain service quality and customer satisfaction, and demonstrate how they are separate but intertwined; identify procedures for qualitatively and quantitatively measuring both service quality and satisfaction; encourage libraries to take action by presenting concrete steps they can take to become more customer-centric; and offer a range of customer-related metrics that provide insights useful for library planning and decision making, such as surveys and focus groups. This book shows how to nurture an environment of continuous improvement through effective service quality assessment.

Understanding ends and means -- A look in the library mirror -- "Your mission, should you choose to accept it..." -- Measuring and evaluating the components of high-quality service -- What can go wrong with numbers? -- Different ways of listening to customers -- Managing the three Cs (comments, complaints, and compliments) -- Listening through surveys -- Listening through focus group interviews -- Customer-related metrics and requirements -- Satisfaction and service quality: Separate but intertwined -- Interpreting findings to improve customer service -- Embracing change-continuous improvement.