Our once and future website: working group update

Formed in May 2016, the Libraries Website Working Group was charged to evaluate and define the structure, responsibilities, and goals of the University Libraries’ website, and delivered its final report in November 2016.

One of the key outcomes of the group’s report was to move the web management structure from a multiple team/group structure to more of a product owner model. The end result is a round table of individual product owners, managers and the Author Expert Team, with Karen Estlund serving as the overall Website Product Owner. This new management structure provides increased agility with component product owners evolving, contingent on future needs and projects.

Another component of the Website Working Group’s report was the creation of new, efficient workflows for various web-related issues, such as maintenance, content, design, and new projects. Additional information about these workflows as well as the new website management roles and goals can be found on the Libraries’ new Website Management intranet page (link requires Libraries employee login).

One thing that has not changed is the continual look forward approach to the web presence of the Libraries. Some current and future website projects are as follows:

  • integrating LibCal into the Libraries webpages for group study room reservations, coming for the Fall 2017 semester
  • redesigning the About, Services, and Research landing pages
  • enhancing the A-Z Database list with subject categorization
  • making the Libraries’ digital collections easier to find and use
  • promoting access and use of open educational resources
  • enhancing the staff directory and staff profile pages
  • making key portions of the Libraries website available in other languages, starting with Mandarin and Korean

Lastly, the Website Working Group’s report established a six-month pilot phase, now in progress, after which the group will reconvene to assess the new structure and processes. Group members welcome feedback, which can be provided by via Website Feedback link in the footer on every page of the Libraries’ public and staff intranet sites.