Well, both Sharon and I forgot about this, but we did have a chance to talk last week. She explained that she felt that when someone goes into a coffee shop, both the customer and the staff share an understanding of the interaction. There's not a lot of variability in what's expected by either party. But, using LP as the example, an alum of NYU may approach the desk with the understanding that as an alum s/he can still use Bobst. This is quite different from our policies, and conflict arises.
This blew my mind. Honestly, the idea of disconnect in common understanding never occurred to me, but of course this is an issue. When I go into McDonalds, I pretty much know what I'm getting myself into. I know what they have to offer and that's why I walked in the door. People walk through our doors misunderstanding what we offer on a daily basis. It would be like someone walking into a McDonalds and looking for a filet mignon on the dollar menu. A contract exists between server and served, and at a restaurant or store it's pretty much clear to both parties. In academic libraries, not so much.
So, what can we do about this? Certainly, simply being aware of this disconnect will help us all to bridge the gap i understanding that can challenge service excellence. As we all uncovered during our coffee shop observation, avoiding jargon, being open to questions and improving our communication with users on our signs, brochures, website, etc. can go a long way. We all have a responsibility to suggest areas of improvement when we see them. How can we help to build common understanding between library staff and library users?
