The SOUCABL Conference: Chapter 2
Presentations
Abstract: In February 2020, my library funded a cross-campus social entrepreneur pitch competition for the first time. In 2019, my new library dean learning of my involvement in UNCG’s cross-campus entrepreneurship program offered to provide some funds for a student entrepreneurship competition. Given the already existing opportunities on campus for entrepreneurship students, I suggested a focus on social entrepreneurship. He agreed and our entrepreneurship program coordinator loved the idea. As coordinator of the competition, I had to make decisions on what the student (or student teams) would submit, the amount of primary and secondary research required, the evaluation rubric used, strategies for promoting submissions, how the pot of award money would be shared, and who the judges would be. The final presentations of the competition became part of the schedule of our day-long Entrepreneurship Everywhere Symposium in February 2020. In this presentation, I will discuss the challenges (expected and unexpected) I faced in planning this event, how I decided what kind of business model and financials to require, the nature of the evaluation rubric, and other interesting aspects. PowerPoint slides available here.
Abstract: Strategic thinking is a core competency in business, and learning to effectively analyze one’s competitive position is an essential function of strategic management. Through strategic planning, organizations establish their high-level, long-term direction allowing for purpose-driven decision making that anticipates obstacles and leverages opportunities. The research skills and resource knowledge necessary to effectively produce these plans can take years to cultivate. At Western Carolina University, the College of Business Strategic Management Capstone students have one semester and one hour of library instruction to piece it all together. As if the stakes weren’t high enough: Strategic Management Capstone students work with real, local business owners as part of WCU’s mission as a regional comprehensive university. While a service-focused and skill-enhancing experience, the variable needs of small and micro-businesses throughout their growth cycles combined with inadequate data, limited institutional resources, and the gravity of tangible client expectations creates a palpable tension around this course. In this presentation, I will discuss past pitfalls, missed opportunities, and the approaches I have found successful in making the most of one-shot instruction for Strategic Management students.
"Business Librarian and MBA Student: Peer and Practitioner," Allison F. Gallaspy, Tulane UniversityAbstract: Confession: I failed at getting my group members in an MBA class to cite resources from library databases in a research project. If my role as a peer researcher isn’t enough to get students to see the value in developing good information practice, what does that mean for the work I do as a practitioner? This presentation will describe the assumptions I made about part-time MBA students’ information behavior, attempt to ascribe some motivation to their choice of resources via interviews, and begin to define what good information practice would look like for a part-time MBA student.
Abstract: Since July 2016, the College of Charleston (CofC) Libraries’ Research & Instruction Department has been collecting data via an array of Springshare products and tools widely used in academic and research libraries (e.g., LibAnswers/LibChat, LibCal, LibGuides statistics, and LibInsight analytics) that demonstrate student usage of point of need instruction (PONI) services. PONI services are defined at CofC Libraries as information literacy and/or research transactions initiated by students rather interactions facilitated through prearranged or scheduled instruction—usually in the form of one-shot library instruction—or credit-bearing courses. This presentation will describe the methods used to collect, analyze, and share data in order to expand and improve services to students enrolled in programs offered by the Cof C School of Business. Specifically, the presenter will parse data collected to determine trends in students’ preferred days and times for in-person, or face-to-face, research consultations, patterns in the content covered in consultations, and the ratio of PONI transactions to scheduled interactions. Pending construction of new advising spaces, the presentation will also include analysis of data collected during the initial implementation of liaison librarian office hours in the Student Success Center, which is funded by and located in the CofC School of Business.
"Goals, Gifs, and Gaffs: Learning from a Failed Flipped Classroom," Catherine Staley, Loyola Notre Dame Library
Abstract: Busy business librarians with competing priorities can leverage their colleagues’ expertise and simple online tools to deliver quality learning experiences for students – well, maybe. In Spring 2019, I partnered with a faculty member to flip an instruction session for entrepreneurial students that didn’t go according to plan but has promise to success in future semesters. My primary responsibilities include managing the Research & Instruction unit and leading most of the Library’s outreach initiatives, so I needed to find a simple and sustainable way to prepare the students for a working session with me. I partnered with the Online Learning Librarian to create a guide with gifs and step-by-step directions for locating industry and consumer information; the students were meant to use the guide before I visited the class two weeks later for a workshop. The faculty member and I failed to put a mechanism in place, like a quiz or survey, to ensure the students would complete this pre-work, so the working session turned into a fast one-shot instruction session. In this session, I’ll share what I learned from this failure about designing flipped classrooms and how stretched business librarians can still deliver high-impact instruction with limited time and resources.
Abstract: During this session, the presenter will illuminate how students can use library resources to research future careers and occupations, and how this utilization can be promoted through cross-campus collaborations. The session will describe how an initial collaboration between Texas A&M’s Business Library and Collaboration Commons and the Mays Business School’s Center for Retailing Studies has grown into a robust collection of partnerships. What started as a table at a career fair has grown into workshops, research guides, and presentations, and has expanded to include other career centers and student affairs departments.
Posters
"Serving as a Business Liaison When It's Not Your Primary Job," Rod Bustos, Augusta University
Abstract: Working as a business librarian can be a full-time job in some cases. In others, the librarian may be assigned as a liaison in addition to other responsibilities such as those primarily focused on an area like systems or e-resources.
"The 1-2-3 of Market Data for Business Start-ups," Dan Le, Georgia State UniversityAbstract: The conventional way of teaching students how to find articles and business intelligence based on a class assignment can be esoteric for many student entrepreneurs without a business background. At LaunchGSU, a university-wide incubator at Georgia State University, only three business databases are used in the 1-2-3 of Market Data workshops: Ibisworld, University Internet Reporter, and SimplyAnalytics. These resources are data-driven and rich with infographics. When used successively, the student entrepreneurs can see the interconnection of the data and get a complete picture of their start-up proposals. This library instruction approach also supports the development of critical thinking for students by teaching them how to analyze, visualize, and map market data. How this method helped student entrepreneurs, and the challenges they faced when using these resources at LaunchGSU is included in the poster presentation.
Abstract: In the spring of 2018, the plagiarism committee at the business school reached out to the library for help providing instruction on academic integrity to their students. Using asynchronous components in the LMS, we designed a module to educate and assess student understanding. The resulting stand-alone module was added as a requirement for all introductory business classes.
Round Tables
Abstract: Business information literacy looks different from other forms of information literacy, and it can be difficult to find just one method that works for every class and/or professor. This round table discussion will promote the sharing of both successful and not so successful ideas in the hopes that everyone with come away with something useful.
Abstract: Many business librarians report obstacles and frustrations with getting involved with classes for research instruction, in-class team consultations, and other types of classroom engagement, at both the undergraduate and graduate level. In this round table, we will talk about the challenges but also our successes, sharing strategies that others might want to try.
Abstract: This topic is important to us as while the role of librarians is changing, the perception of librarians is not evolving at the same pace. The lack of shared understanding surrounding business information literacy between librarians and faculty just adds to the challenge. At this round table we will discuss how we've worked to change our perception to increase our impact.
Abstract: I'll share my experience of developing a set of 6 business information literacy modules that incorporate the ACRL information literacy framework concepts and we will discuss how we are all working with the ACRL framework.
"Company Research Strategies for Entrepreneurship: What to do when NAICS/SIC fall short," Tim Tully, San Diego State University
Abstract: “Based on my experience providing research assistance to entrepreneurs and students in entrepreneurship courses, I have found that the questions pertaining to company research can be some of the most challenging. Finding targeted lists of companies for sales leads, sourcing products or services, or performing a competitive analysis can be a very tricky endeavor if the product or service does not fit neatly into a NAICS or SIC classification (Tully, 2019).” In this round table, we will discuss ulterior strategies for developing lists of companies using library resources (both print and digital) as well as the free web.