УДК 027.7

KOBELEV O. M.

Department of Information, Library and Archival Affairs, Kharkov State Academy of Culture

(Kharkov, Ukraine), e-mail k_a_n_@ukr.net, ORCID 0000-0002-6322-0735

INFORMATION ANALYTICS IN THE ORGANIZATIONAL

STRUCTURE OF LIBRARIES OF TOP-RATED

UNIVERSITIES IN UKRAINE

Objective. To study of the organizational information and analytical structures of libraries of top-rated universities in Ukraine, in particular, of 4 domestic universities that entered the World University Rankings 2019. Methods. The methodological basis of the study is the basic provisions of the general theory of social communications. Comparative analysis, sociocommunicative, information, adaptive and other approaches are used. Results. The form of organization of information and analytical activities in the library depends on its place in the library system and the existing organizational structure therein. There are two options for its organization. The first option involves the distribution of tasks between the existing library departments. The second one is the creation of an independent analytical unit in the organizational structure of the library. In the libraries of the universities under study, information and analytical functions are performed by other departments, primarily by the information and reference (bibliographic) units, information service as well as scientific and methodological (research) departments. Conclusions. Thus, information and analytical activity, even for scientific libraries of leading Ukrainian universities, remains primarily a tool for improving internal library processes, and not a separate product (service) that is purposefully produced and offered to readers. Meanwhile, the intensification of the use of information and analytical technologies in libraries, the creation of specialized units therein is one of the effective tools for optimizing library work.

Key words: library; information analytics; information and analytical activity; organizational structure; information and analytical unit

Introduction

The complexity and ambiguity of processes occurring in the world, the diversity and redundancy of information, the need for its selection, the lack of reliable knowledge are prerequisites for activation of the information-analytical activity (IAA) in modern society. Social processes, the study of which is necessary for the effective management of complex social systems, are associated with the analysis of such a volume of factual data that at a certain stage of the study there is a need for more advanced methods of concentrated presentation of this information. Hence the ever-increasing role of the information-analytical component arises in the activities of leading libraries both in the world and in Ukraine.

Methods

The methods used are determined by the specifics of the study and are based on the use of a set of approaches and methods. The methodological basis of the work is the basic provisions of the general theory of social communications, which reflect the diversity of manifestations, the fundamental purpose of social communication in the system of social relations. The application of the socio-communicative approach made it possible to clarify the scope and content of the concept “information analytics”; to prove the communication essence of the information and analytical activity of libraries, to determine its place and functions in the social communications system of modern Ukraine. The information approach, in combination with comparative analysis, allowed us to trace the evolutionary processes of the information and analytical activity of libraries and identify the main factors of its development, to identify the prerequisites for the development of information and analytical activity in the library, to identify and characterize the main stages and patterns of its evolution, the impact on library activities and on the formation and functioning of the library social institution within the conditions of changes in the sociocultural environment.

The systematic approach made it possible to identify the structure, connections and functions of the information and analytical activities of libraries in the field of meeting public information needs, to identify trends in its development as a necessary prerequisite for improving the quality of meeting users' information needs by the libraries in Ukraine. The use of the adaptive approach allowed considering of the information and analytical activities of libraries as a mechanism for libraries to adapt to the changes in the modern turbulent social and communication environment.

Results and Discussion

Studies of IAA in the libraries of Ukraine provide the opportunity to state that information analytics in libraries is an evolutionarily objective process, an indicator of strengthening of their communication functions in the context of complicated social and communication interaction. A significant influence on the development of information and analytical activities in libraries has such a factor as the transformation of the library itself, which has now become a leading communication center, having gone a long way from the accumulation, storage, processing and distribution of documented information, organizing information services to working with knowledge constructs. Among the range of issues solved by library analytics we can name the following: analysis and evaluation of rapidly growing data flows, including network ones, their processing and production of information and analytical products in accordance with the needs of the corresponding category of users; their preparation for use in a convenient form through the study and forecasting of the information needs of users, (Voroshilov, 2008; Gordukalova, 2009; Ilganaeva, 2007; Kobelev, 2012).

The evolution of the social communications system resulted in the establishment and development of library information and analytical production, the emergence of its new electronic forms – corporate information retrieval systems, virtual reference services, library systems based on multiple communication channels; abstract, factual databases, which in the information product and service market are gradually becoming competitors for its other entities; creation of special information and analytical services, the activities of which are based on the use of own generated resources as well as global network resources as information ones. (Kobelev, 2012; Kolesnykova, Matveyeva, Manashkin, & Mishchenko, 2019; Kolesnykova, Pominova, & Kolesnykov, 2016).

The form of organization of IAA in the library depends on the size of the latter and its existing organizational structure. In small libraries, all the duties of conducting informational and analytical work can be performed by one person; the large and medium-sized ones require collective efforts. There are two options for organizing the information and analytical activities of libraries. The first one involves the distribution of tasks of information and analytical activities between the existing departments of the library. This makes sense for those libraries where the creation of an information-analytical unit (department) on the ongoing basis is impractical or impossible, for example, due to lack of resources (financial, personnel, etc.) for its maintenance.

The second option is the creation of an independent analytical unit (service, department) in the organizational structure of the library. We consider this form of organization of library IAA more promising, allowing to build the work of analysts by different types and areas of activity more efficiently.

But at the same time, the results of studying by O. Kobelev and N. Chzhen (2014) of the sites of leading domestic libraries revealed a dominant trend in the distribution of functions and tasks of IAA among individual library departments. In particular, among 32 analyzed libraries, only 6 have 9 specialized departments of information analytics. In most of the leading Ukrainian libraries, information and analytical work is "scattered" across several departments. First of all, these are information-bibliographic (reference) departments and departments for scientific and methodological work.

The same trend was confirmed by the analysis of the organizational structures of the libraries of top-rated universities in Ukraine, in particular, 4 domestic universities that entered the World University Rankings 2019, which includes more than 1250 universities in the world selected by their main tasks: teaching, research, knowledge transfer and international authority. Evaluation is based on 13 carefully calibrated performance indicators. The following Ukrainian universities entered this ranking: Ivan Franko Lviv National University; Lviv Polytechnic National University; Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University. The organizational structure of the scientific libraries of these universities has no specialized information and analytical departments, despite the fact that they are actively involved in this activity. Of particular note is the presence of analytical units in the university organizational structure, for example, the Information-Analytical and Career Center of Ivan Franko Lviv National University, Documentation Center of V. N. Karazin Kharkiv National University, etc. In the libraries of the universities under study, information and analytical functions are performed by other departments, primarily by the information and reference (bibliographic) units, information service as well as scientific and methodological (research) departments. This gives reason to state that information and analytical activity, even for scientific libraries of the highest rated universities in Ukraine, remains primarily a tool for improving internal library processes, and not a separate product (service) that is purposefully produced and offered to readers. This situation, in our opinion, is due to several factors. Firstly, these are financial problems, which, unfortunately, are faced by libraries of even the most successful universities. Secondly, there is the lack of trained analysts. Indeed, the creation in the library of a stable system for the production of high-quality analytical information depends not only on the level of its information, organizational, technological and financial security, but also on the state of organizational and personnel support. Yet it should be noted that this resource of information and analytical activity of the library is just beginning to take shape.

Conclusions

The prospects for further research on the IAA development in the library and information sphere are to intensify the use of analytical technologies in libraries, restructuring libraries and creating specialized information and analytical units therein as one of the means of adapting them to a new social and communicative reality.

In this context, the development of theoretical, methodological, personnel, organizational, technological and other areas is promising for optimizing the information and analytical activities of Ukrainian libraries in the context of formation of a knowledge society.

REFERENCES

Voroshilov, O. (2008). Informacijno-analitichni pidrozdili bibliotek v umovah rozvitku elektronnogo seredovisha. Naukovi praci Nacionalnoyi biblioteki Ukrayini imeni V. I. Vernadskogo, 21, 16-23. (in Ukranian)

Gordukalova, G. (2009). Analiz informatsii: tekhnologii, metody, organizatsiya: uchebno-prakticheskoe posobie. St. Petersburgb: Professiya. (in Russian)

Ilganayeva, V. (2007). Analіtika v strukturі bіblіotechnoї dіyalnostі. Vіsnik Kharkіvskoї derzhavnoї akademії kulturi, 23, 109-117. (in Ukranian)

Kobelev, O. (2012). Informatsiina analityka v strukturi bibliotechnoi diialnosti v Ukraini: monohrafiia. Kharkiv: Kharkivska derzhavna akademiia kultury. (in Ukranian)

Kobelev, O., Chzhen N. (2014). Informatsiina-analityka v orhanizatsiinii strukturi providnykh bibliotek Ukrainy (za materialamy analizu yikh saitiv). Visnyk Knyzhkovoi palaty, 12, 26-28. (in Ukranian)

Kolesnykova, T. O., Pominova, O. V., & Kolesnykov, S. R. (2016). Obtaining of New Knowledge in Concerning «Air Conditioning» at the Railway Transport: Scientometric Aspect. Science and Transport Progress, 3 (63), 7-19. doi: 10.15802/stp2016/74708

Kolesnykova, T., Matveyeva, O., Manashkin, L., & Mishchenko, M. (2019). Railway transportation of dangerous goods: a bibliometric aspect. MATEC Web of Conferences, 294, 1-9. doi: 10.1051/matecconf/201929403014

КОБЄЛЄВ О. М.

Каф. «Інформаційна, бібліотечна та архівна справа», Харківська державна академія культури (Харків, Україна), e-mail k_a_n_@ukr.net, ORCID 0000-0002-6322-0735

ІНФОРМАЦІЙНА АНАЛІТИКА В ОРГАНІЗАЦІЙНІЙ

СТРУКТУРІ БІБЛІОТЕК ТОП-РЕЙТИНГОВИХ

УНІВЕРСИТЕТІВ УКРАЇНИ

Мета. Вивчення організаційних інформаційно-аналітичних структур бібліотек топ-рейтингових університетів України, зокрема, 4 вітчизняних закладів вищої освіти (ЗВО), які потрапили в World university rankings 2019. Методика. Методологічною основою дослідження є базові положення загальної теорії соціальних комунікацій. Використано порівняльний аналіз, соціокомунікативний, інформаційний, адаптивний та інші підходи. Результати. Форма організації інформаційно-аналітичної діяльності в бібліотеці залежить від її місця в бібліотечній системі та існуючої в ній організаційної структури. Можливі два варіанти її організації. Перший передбачає розподіл завдань між існуючими відділами бібліотеки. Другий варіант – створення самостійного аналітичного підрозділу в організаційній структурі бібліотеки. У самих же бібліотеках досліджуваних ЗВО, інформаційно-аналітичні функції виконують інші відділи, перш за все, інформаційно-довідкові (бібліографічні), інформаційного сервісу, науково-методичні (дослідні). Висновки. Таким чином, інформаційно-аналітична діяльність, навіть для наукових бібліотек передових університетів України, залишається, перш за все, інструментом для поліпшення внутрішніх бібліотечних процесів, а не окремим продуктом (послугою), які цілеспрямовано виробляються і пропонуються користувачам. Тим часом, активізація застосування інформаційно-аналітичних технологій в бібліотеках, створення в них спеціалізованих підрозділів є одним із ефективних інструментів оптимізації бібліотечної роботи.

Ключові слова: бібліотека; інформаційна аналітика; інформаційно-аналітична діяльність; організаційна структура; інформаційно-аналітичний підрозділ