Information Support Assistant

Post Details

*2 positions available*

Part time - 1x 36%fte position (13 hours per week) and 1 x 19%fte position (7 hours per week) available

Open ended

£22,214 p.a. pro-rata

The closing date for applications is midnight on Thursday 02 May 2024.

Interviews are expected to take place on Tuesday 14 May 2024.

The University will pay a supplement per annum pro rata to spine point 10 with effect from 24 October 2023, to align with the Real Living Wage (RLW) which equates to £22,464 p.a. This RLW supplement will be reviewed annually to take account of future increases and RLW rates.

There is an expectation that work will be undertaken in the UK.

This role is not eligible for sponsorship. Applicants require to have existing right to work in the UK.

The University of Stirling recognises that a diverse workforce benefits and enriches the work, learning and research experiences of the entire campus and greater community. We are committed to removing barriers and welcome applications from those who would contribute to further diversification of our staff and ensure that equality, diversity and inclusion is woven into the substance of the role. We strongly encourage applications from people from diverse backgrounds including gender, identity, race, age, class, and ethnicity.

The Post

Information Support encompasses the physical and digital library and archive services for the University community. The team plays an essential role in providing support to our staff and students, so that they can fully utilise the resources and services in support of their studies, research or work. Information Support Assistants are responsible for the delivery of excellent customer service and support to library users, including supporting the circulation of library stock (issue, discharge, re-shelving, holds management, etc.). They are a key operational support role which ensures the library and its services are able to operate efficiently. Duties include the staffing of library reception, supporting users to access the building and services; resetting of and support for library equipment and furniture; coordinating maintenance issues with other University departments or external contractors, etc.

The postholder will additionally provide operational and administrative support across the library team, including process driven tasks in support of acquisitions, digitisation and reading lists, etc. The postholder will be cross-skilled and will provide support across these boundaries.

The Information Support Assistant is often the first staff member a library visitor engages with, and the delivery of excellent customer service is paramount. The postholder will be supported to handle library enquiries and general service enquiries, following ITIL standards and processes, endeavouring to maximise the number of issues resolved at the first point of enquiry. The post-holder will make frequent use of UniDesk, our ITSM platform, which is used to record and manage logged calls and the associated workflow around them. The post-holder will triage support calls, escalating within them to others when required. The library service desk operates across a variety of channels including email, live chat, self-service and face-to-face.

Additional Information

One of the roles is expected to be weekend only, as follows:

13 hours (Evenings and weekends)

7 hours (Sat/Sun only)

Description of Duties

Provide a high quality, customer-focussed support service to library users and colleagues

• Provide circulation support to users, including assistance with self-service facilities, account enquiries, issue/discharge of library materials, etc.; and support the circulation function through re-shelving, holds management, etc
• Support library users at the library reception, providing a warm, friendly welcome and assisting with initial enquiries (typically related to access arrangements, lost ID cards, lost property, directional/signposting facilities or services and others)

Support the effective operation of the library building and its services

• Support the effective circulation of library materials through holds management, re-shelving of materials, assistance with stock editing, etc
• Ensure the safe operation of the library, including the monitoring and assistance with fire alarms (and subsequent evacuation procedures), security barriers, reporting faults with E&CS (and monitoring progress in fault resolution), monitoring and reporting health and safety issues
• Ensuring library furniture is arranged and reset in accordance with operational requirements (e.g. in support of events, or as required by social distancing and after student use)
• Patrol the library to support users with any encountered noise or other compliance issues, escalating persistent issues to senior staff as may be required
• Replenishment of consumable goods within the library, including print suppliers, toilet/washroom supplies, etc

Communicate effectively, both internally and with users, ensuring accuracy, timeliness and clarity at all times

• Ensure that current issues or activities are communicated internally within and across teams and shift patterns, to ensure successful and timely resolutions
• Ensure that communication with library users is consistent with customer service standards, particularly in the event that library regulations may need to be reiterated

Maintain accurate records in the Library Management System, E&CS fault logging, the ITSM platform and other systems or databases

• Ensure accurate logging of support or service requests and responses, reading list data sets, user or circulation data, and other data entry or maintenance

Contribute to the ongoing development and delivery of the library

• Liaise with colleagues to regularly review processes and procedures, providing feedback and suggestions to improve operational efficiency and effectiveness
• Train and support colleagues, sharing new knowledge, documentation or changes to process and procedure

Provide a wide range of support to the library and the wider Information Services directorate

• Assist library users/visitors to make full use of the services and facilities, including the efficient management of bookings, and other administrative tasks
• Assist with collection management tasks, physical processing of acquired library materials and other tasks in support of the acquisition and management of a sizeable library collection. This may include support for specific collection management projects, including the disposal and/or rearrangement of stock
• Contribute to the full range of support activities across the University Library as business needs may require, including for example digitisation & document delivery, acquisitions, reading lists, opening or closing the building, etc

Essential Criteria

Qualifications

• Educated to Standard Grade (or equivalent) level, including English and Mathematics

Knowledge & Experience 

• Experience of working in a library or similar customer service environment, and delivering excellent customer service
• Experience of using digital tools, such as LMS, Microsoft 365 (including Teams, SharePoint, Forms, Outlook, Office, and others), etc
• Team worker with a proven track record of working within a team environment

Skills & Attributes  

• Excellent customer service skills  
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to communicate appropriately and effectively with a wide range of users, in person, over the phone, digitally and in writing
• Highly organised approach to managing workload, with the ability to work calmly and systematically in a busy environment; prioritising work as required in order to meet agreed deadlines
• Excellent IT skills, including advanced familiarity with common applications and relevant systems and online services
• Meticulous attention to detail, working to a high level of accuracy

Desirable Criteria

Qualifications

• CILIP Certification (ACLIP) or above, or currently working towards this
• Customer Service certification or qualification
• Further education qualifications, such as Highers, SVQs, etc

Knowledge & Experience

• Knowledge of current Health & Safety practices, including Fire Safety etc
• Experience of providing a range of operational library support, such as re-shelving, circulation support, user enquiries, opening/closing buildings, etc

For a full description of duties and essential/desirable criteria please click the apply button, which will take you directly to the University Website.