The Complete Guide to Performance Standards for Library Personnel

Rating:
Summary: Down-to-earth, immediately useful manual.
Review: This title presents a readable overview of performance appraisal in libraries, followed by specific standards for almost any type of library position. Most standards given are measurable, although explicit measures are not always indicated. While standards for student assistants are NOT explicitly presented, several of the standards given for paraprofessional staff could be applied to student assistants, and there are several references given to other works on assessing students.

Ms. Goodson presents a sensible, step-by-step approach for reforming a library's appraisal process. In addition, she instructs both administrator and non-administrator how to proceed.

This book, while a little expensive for the personal bookshelf, is well worth the price for any library involved in any type of performance appraisal. In a library which is beginning a reform process, ideally every member of the reform team would possess a personal copy of the text (or at least the second chapter).