DS – Artificial intelligence is obviously the big cloud on the horizon, and as has already been said, no one really knows what it’s full impact will be in the library or society. The key to both useful AI and useful metrics, and useful AI in metrics, is to probe the answers that are given and not just accept them vacuously. If we’ve used AI to classify a host of documents, or make recommendations, we need to check that classification is appropriate, to consider biases that may exist and who might be affected negatively by its use. We always need to return to the underlying aims, objectives and values of a service. To what extent is technology help- ing to serve all of a library’s users?
Is there a wider role for informa- tion professionals to be supporting organisations with this type of work, and if so how would you suggest they go about doing that and sharing their knowledge and skills?
rics that you have artificially bolstered may keep management happy in the short term, but it’s not sustainable in the long term.
What should we be aware of in terms of preparing for the future – and how can we think about future-proofing?
DS – There is plenty of scope for the infor- mation professional to support the wider organisation with web metrics rather than just measuring their own services. It is a natural extension of the work that a library already does with bibliometrics, but with a far wider range of publication, both formal and informal.
The key is for the library to show what it can do, to show web metrics in action. Metrics are everywhere, and there will inevitably be a tendency for people to believe that they don’t need help applying them properly. The library needs to lead by example and move beyond the sur- face-level answers, demonstrating the tools and technologies that can be used to give deeper insights.
Is there anything else we should be considering?
DS – Much of this conversation has focused on impact, and evaluative metrics inevitably drive most interest, but rela- tional metrics should not be ignored. Web metrics allows us to consider the network and clusters within it, rather than just the impact of individual points. New insights about our online presence may be gained by considering the network and our place in it: It’s not just that we are not being fol- lowed by people, but that we’re not being followed by the right people. Whatever metrics that are used, however, it is important we are using them responsi- bly. As managements become increasingly interested in league tables, it becomes increasingly important for the information professional to understand and highlight the limitations of metrics. IP
April-May 2024
INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL 29
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