scholarly journals Information Professional Job Advertisements in the U.K. Indicate Professional Experience is the Most Required Skill

2009 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 158
Author(s):  
Stephanie J. Schulte
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Private School ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Web Design ◽  
Professional Experience ◽  
Professional Skills ◽  
Job Advertisements ◽  
Information Professionals

A Review of: Orme, Verity. “You will be…: A Study of Job Advertisements to Determine Employers’ Requirements for LIS Professionals in the UK in 2007.” Library Review 57.8 (2008): 619-33. Objective –To determine what skills employers in the United Kingdom (U.K.) want from information professionals as revealed through their job advertisements. Design – Content analysis, combining elements of both quantitative and qualitative content analysis. Orme describes it as “a descriptive non-experimental approach of content analysis” (62). Setting – Data for this study were obtained from job advertisements in the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professional’s (CILIP) Library and Information Gazette published from June 2006 through May 2007. Subjects – A total of 180 job advertisements. Methods – Job advertisements were selected using a random number generator, purposely selecting only 15 advertisements per first issue of each month of the Library and Information Gazette (published every two weeks). The author used several sources to create an initial list of skills required by information professionals, using such sources as prior studies that examined this topic, the Library and Information Science Abstracts (LISA) database thesaurus, and personal knowledge. Synonyms for the skills were then added to the framework for coding. Skills that were coded had to be noted in such a way that the employer plainly stated the employee would be a certain skill or attribute or they were seeking a skill or a particular skill was essential or desirable. Skills that were stated in synonymous ways within the same advertisement were counted as two incidences of that skill. Duties for the position were not counted unless they were listed as a specific skill. Data were all coded by hand and then tallied. The author claims to have triangulated the results of this study with the literature review, the synonym ring used to prepare the coding framework, and a few notable studies. Main Results – A wide variety of job titles was observed, including “Copyright Clearance Officer,” “Electronic Resources and Training Librarian,” and “Assistant Information Advisor.” Employers represented private, school, and university libraries, as well as legal firms and prisons. Fifty-nine skills were found a total of 1,021 times across all of the advertisements. Each advertisement averaged 5.67 requirements. These skills were classified in four categories: professional, generic, personal, and experience. The most highly noted requirement was professional experience, noted 129 times, followed by interpersonal/communication skills (94), general computing skills (63), enthusiasm (48), and team-working skills (39). Professional skills were noted just slightly more than generic and personal skills in the top twenty skills found. Other professional skills that were highly noted were customer service skills (34), chartership (30), cataloguing/classification/metadata skills (25), and information retrieval skills (20). Some notable skills that occurred rarely included Web design and development skills (6), application of information technology in the library (5), and knowledge management skills (3). Conclusion – Professional, generic, and personal qualities were all important to employers in the U.K.; however, without experience, possessing these qualities may not be enough for new professionals in the field.

scholarly journals The LIS Blogosphere Contains Tags that Can Be Categorized and It Disseminates Professional Content

2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 138
Author(s):  
Virginia Wilson
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Online Education ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Social Web ◽  
General Category ◽  
Professional Information ◽  
Information Scientist ◽  
Personal Interests

A Review of: Aharony, N. (2009). Librarians and information scientists in the blogosphere: An exploratory analysis. Library & Information Science Research, 31(3), 174-181. Objective – This study analyzes library and information studies (LIS) oriented blogs to determine the content, and looks at tags and folksonomies of these blogs to determine whether they form a consistent, coherent scheme or whether they are lacking in internal logic. Design – A qualitative content analysis of tags assigned to 30 LIS blogs. Setting – The research took place on the internet from May to July, 2008. Subjects – Thirty LIS blogs were examined, each of which was written by a librarian or an information scientist. Methods – The researcher reviewed 100 blogs that were found by browsing the Top 25 Librarian Bloggers as published by the Online Education Database in 2007 and by searching Technorati, one of the main search engines for blogs, using the term “library and information science.” Thirty blogs were chosen for analysis based on two criteria: the blog had to be written by a librarian or an information scientist, and the blog had to be active during the period studied (May-July, 2008). A content analysis was undertaken on the tags assigned to the 30 blogs by categorizing the tags that appeared as tag clouds (visual representations of user-generated tags in which the tags used more frequently are depicted in larger, bolder font) in Technorati. In order to validate the Technorati tags, the researcher’s coders read and analyzed all the blog posts over the given time period. The categorization consists of five major categories, each with several subcategories. The categories were developed using a clustering approach, with new categories coming into being when a tag did not fit into an already established category. Main Results – The tag categorization resulted in five broad categories, each with several sub-categories (a few of which are listed here): 1. General (Nouns, Disciplines, Place Names) 2. Library-related (Web 2.0, Librarians’ Activities, Catalogues) 3. Technology-related Products, Technology – Types, People) 4. Information-related (Access to Information, Information Sources) 5. Social web-related (Names of Blogs, Names of Social Networks) The tag analysis resulted in the following percentages of distribution: • 33.62% of the tags associated with LIS blogs were general in nature • 20.21% of the tags were technology-related • 19.12% of the tags were library-related • 14.60% of the tags were information-related • 12.90% of the tags were related to the social web These percentages add up to 100.45%. The author makes no mention of this oddity and it is assumed to be an error. The researcher attempted to determine if tags and folksonomies form a consistent scheme. In reporting her findings, she concluded that four major categories of professional-related content were revealed, which reflect the blogger-librarians’ fields of interest. The prominence of the general category revealed that bloggers’ personal interests and experiences were written about more often. As well, it appears that although bloggers seem to assign non-related tags randomly, the analysis shows that tags still can be categorized. Conclusion – The researcher concludes that this study is helpful for librarians and information scientists because it can help them to navigate the LIS blogosphere. She reports that the categories of tags beyond the general category, which mainly contains tags related to bloggers’ personal interests and experiences, shows that blogs can contribute to professional development. Although more informal in nature, the research has shown that LIS blogs do contain professional information, and it behooves professionals to become familiar with the tag scheme in topic oriented blogs, and to try to work within the scheme to make use of the content within. The researcher suggests further ideas for research, including the differences in LIS blogs written by a single blogger as compared with blogs written by multiple authors, as well as gender differences between male and female authored blogs. The author also suggests further research on multimedia blogs such as photoblogs, and audio and video blogs.

scholarly journals Birds of a Feather Flock Together: The Congruence of Personality Types within Librarians’ Subject Specialties

2008 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 57
Author(s):  
John Loy
Keyword(s):  
Personality Traits ◽  
Customer Service ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Service Orientation ◽  
Emotional Resilience ◽  
Work Style ◽  
Reference Librarians ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Work Drive ◽  
E Mail

A Review of: Williamson, J.M., A.E. Pemberton, and J.W. Lounsbury. “Personality Traits of Individuals in Different Specialties of Librarianship.” Journal of Documentation 64.2 (2008): 273-86. Objectives – To investigate the personality traits of a range of librarians and information professionals using the Personal Style Inventory (PSI), and to investigate whether the personality traits of those in person-orientated library specialties differ from those in technique-orientated specialties. Design – Self-selecting survey. Setting – Solicitations to complete the survey were sent out via 10 e-mail discussion lists, and paper copies were made available at the annual American Library Association conference in 2002. Subjects – 2,075 librarians and information science professionals. Methods – Participants completed the survey either in print format, as an e-mail attachment or a Web form. The survey format was an adaptation of the PSI scale using 13 of the accepted 16 scales, namely: • adaptability • assertiveness • autonomy • conscientiousness • customer service orientation • emotional resilience • extraversion • openness • optimism • teamwork • tough-mindedness • visionary-operational work style • work drive Responses were analysed using a two-step cluster analysis technique, and participants were grouped into seven clusters. Main Results – The largest group of respondents was cataloguers at 23.7%, followed by other (health or law) 19.1%, academic reference librarians 13.2%, special librarians 12.3% with all other groups in single figures. Respondents were divided up into the following seven clusters. • Cluster 1, the “unadaptive” group -- so labelled because several unadaptive traits such as low emotional resilience, low optimism, low teamwork, and low work drive are included. • Cluster 2, “adaptive academic reference librarians” -- high on customer service orientation, extraversion and teamwork, and low on tough-mindedness. • Cluster 3, “adaptive cataloguers” -- low on customer service orientation and possessing a more operational work style. • Cluster 4, “adaptive special librarians” -- high on autonomy, customer service orientation and extraversion. • Cluster 5, “adaptive distance education librarians, public librarians, records managers, and school librarians” -- possessing a visionary work style and scoring high on adaptability, assertiveness, customer service orientation, emotional resilience, high extraversion, openness, optimism, and teamwork; scoring low on tough-mindedness. • Cluster 6, “adaptive other information professionals” -- also possessing a visionary work style and with high scores on adaptability, assertiveness, autonomy, customer service orientation, emotional resilience, extraversion, openness, optimism, teamwork, and work drive. • Cluster 7, “adaptive archivists and systems librarians” scoring high on assertiveness, openness, and tough-mindedness. Most clusters were comprised of a single occupational group, with only Clusters 1 and 5 made up of individuals from more than one group. Conclusion – The results indicate that different librarianship subspecialties can be differentiated by personality traits, and that individuals are likely to be drawn to either person-orientated or technique-orientated library specialties depending on their personality traits.

scholarly journals A Graduate Degree in Library or Information Science Is Required, but not Sufficient, to Enter the Profession

2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 85
Author(s):  
Nazi Torabi
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Information Science ◽  
Graduate Degree ◽  
Entry Level ◽  
Job Advertisements ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Job Postings ◽  
Online Library ◽  
Job Ads ◽  
Technical Services

A Review of: Reeves, R., & Hahn, T. (2010). Job advertisements for recent graduates: Advising, curriculum, and job-seeking implications. Journal of Education for Library and Information Science, 51(2), 103-119. Objective – To analyze the current state of the job market for recent MLS or MLIS graduates. Design – Content analysis of job postings. Setting – Online library or archival job advertisements published between 15 April, 2006 and 10 May, 2009 and collected from two national library publications (American Libraries and Library Journal), two electronic lists (Maryland's iSchool Discussion list and the Archives and Archivists list sponsored by the Society of American Archivists), two Internet job banks (USAJobs.gov and LISJobs.com), and several local chapters of library and archival organizations in the South Atlantic region of the United States. Subjects – 1,042 online library or archival job advertisements. Salary data were obtained from 401 available online job advertisements. Methods – The methodology for collection and content analysis of job ads was adapted from earlier studies, with slight modification wherever appropriate. The following criteria for selecting the ads were applied: • Ad says "entry-level" • No mention of professional experience • No experience or duties impossible for entry-level librarians to gain • Only ads that required an MLS or MLIS degree from an ALA-accredited institution • Part-time or temporary positions of less than nine months were excluded The authors removed duplicated job postings and identified three major areas of content analysis. Table 1 lists a brief summary of these areas and further sub-categories for each area. The content analysis was performed using a custom Microsoft Access database for data organization and storage and Microsoft Excel spreadsheet for data manipulation. SPSS was used for statistical analysis. Main Results – The two largest represented institution types for library positions were academic (63.6%) and public (17.5%). For archival positions, the academic (62.7%) and “other” (25.4%) institutions rank first and second. When the job ads were broken down into the position types, which were covering a wide range of responsibilities, the greatest numbers of entry-level library positions are found to be public service (52.2%) and technical services (23.9%) positions. The two largest represented position types in archives are technical services (50.7 %) and generalist (40.5%). While average salaries increased slightly over the four years of study, there is a more significant increase in the salaries of positions posted in 2009. The highest average salaries were found to be $43K for archivists working for government and $60K for library positions in the “other” category. In addition, the number of entry-level positions has increased from year to year over this period. Social competencies such as communication, collaboration and team work, and service orientation were the most emphasized traits for novice librarians and archivists. General information technology skills and knowledge of technical services were the most common skills required for both library and archive positions. Overall, the entry-level job postings did not require non-professional experience. However, 13.6% of the library and 18.7% of the archival positions required supervisory experience. Experience with preservation of physical objects and the knowledge of programming and mark-up languages were also common requirements for archives positions. Instructional and reference experience ranks the second and third essential skills for librarians. Conclusion – Based on the research results, a graduate degree in library or information science is required, but not sufficient, to enter the profession. Practical experience, either through internships, co-op programs, or part-time or full-time employment, is essential for new graduates seeking employment, but the majority of postings do not require a subject expertise, second Master’s degree, or knowledge of a foreign language. Since the job content analysis in this study only evaluated broad components of library services and archival operation, it might not provide sufficient data on new trends in the job market for the MLS curriculum review.

Private Practice, Public Gratitude: Following the Traces of Information Behaviours in Acknowledgement Paratext

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nadine Desrochers ◽  
Jen Pecoskie
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Private Practice ◽  
Information Sources ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Paper Award ◽  
Award Winner ◽  
Information Practices ◽  
Information Professionals ◽  
Analyse De Contenu ◽  
Publishing Practices

Using qualitative content analysis of award-nominated works, this research focuses on information practices documented within acknowledgement paratext in published codices. These paratextual records illustrate the permeability of the local and global contexts in writing and publishing practices. Interactions with information sources reveal gaps information professionals may be able to address.À l’aide d’une analyse de contenu qualitative d’œuvres primées, cette recherche porte sur les pratiques informationnelles documentées dans les entrées paratextuelles de remerciement de codex publiés. Ces entrées paratextuelles illustrent la perméabilité des contextes locaux et mondiaux dans les pratiques de rédaction et de publication. Les interactions avec les sources d’information révèlent des écarts que les professionnels de l’information pourraient être en mesure d’étudier.***Best Overall Paper Award Winner***

scholarly journals How Important Are Linguistic Competencies on the German Labour Market? a Qualitative Content Analysis of Job Advertisements

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 35
Author(s):  
Michael Hans Gino Kraft ◽  
Gerriet Hinrichs
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Labour Market ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Occupational Category ◽  
Scientific Discussion ◽  
Job Advertisements ◽  
Conceptual Problems ◽  
Essential Prerequisite

Linguistic competencies (LC) are in many companies and industries an essential prerequisite for employees to accomplish tasks and integrate into a job. Under this premise, this paper summarizes the arguments and counterarguments within the scientific discussion on the relevance of LC in Job advertisements (J-Ads) in the German labour market. The main purpose of the research is to uncover the different importance of LC in the respective officially occupational category (OC) to examine whether connections between required LC and the tasks from the J-Ads. Therefore, this research represents an analysis of LC with regard to J-Ads, which was conducted on the basis of a qualitative content analysis. For the methodology of the research, 180 J-Ads were examined on the criteria of KLdB 2010. The investigation took place in a period from November 2018 to February 2019. The paper provides first evidence for the different importance of LC for the different OC and indicates ambiguities within J-Ads. Given evidence there are considerable inconsistent discrepancies between the required LC for applicants and the tasks to be performed, which can lead to inefficiencies in the recruiting process. The study confirms and proves that, in addition to implementation and conceptual problems, some management questions regarding the exploitation of LC in J-Ads can also be optimized through improved awareness and clarification of the ambiguity of the competence term.

scholarly journals Communicating a Sales Job to Occupational Changers: A Qualitative Content Analysis of Online Job Advertisements

TEM Journal ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 853-857
Author(s):  
Gerriet Hinrichs ◽  
Henning Bundtzen
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis ◽  
Online Communication ◽  
Insurance Companies ◽  
Realistic Job Preview ◽  
Job Advertisements

This paper analyses insurance companies’ online communication to potential occupational changers into sales by a qualitative content analysis of corresponding online job advertisements. Since the addressees do not know this job in detail, a realistic job preview was expected. In the structuring part of the content analysis, the main categories of the online job advertisements were determined first, after which the summarizing part shows the contents in a first and second reduction. It turns out that neither the tasks nor the requirements or compensations are described sufficiently to enable potential candidates to assess their interest or suitability.

A Qualitative Content Analysis of Gender Transitions in the Workplace

2012 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie E. Brewster ◽  
Esther N. Tebbe ◽  
Brandon L. Velez
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Qualitative Content Analysis
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