Benchmarking as an Assessment Tool for Cataloging

Abstract

The authors conducted a survey on the topic of benchmarking as a tool for assessment in cataloging. While assessment is popular in libraries, little research has been done on benchmarking in cataloging, a gap that this study attempts to fill. The authors developed a survey that gauged the respondents' use of benchmarking, their goals for benchmarking, and how they applied what they learned to make improvements. The survey was administered on the AUTOCAT electronic distribution list in May 2013. There were 92 completed surveys, with 20 libraries reporting that they had used benchmarking as an assessment tool.

Keywords::

• cataloging
• assessment
• evaluation
• benchmarking
• survey
• AUTOCAT