EFQM Librarin

On May 22 and 23, the Libraries and Documentation Service (SBD) of the University of Valencia participated in the international LibrarIN conference, held at the University of Alcalá. The event brought together 150 library professionals, who attended 80 presentations in parallel sessions focused on innovation, leadership, and the transformation of libraries.

Representing the SBD were Cristina Tomás, Director of the service, and Concha González, Quality Officer, who presented the paper entitled: "Collaboration for the development of benchmarking actions among certified university libraries by the EFQM Excellence Model."

The presentation highlighted the collaborative efforts of libraries from the Universities of Alcalá, Barcelona, Granada, Seville, Valencia, and Zaragoza - all of which are certified under the EFQM Excellence Model - together with the University of Barcelona, which also follows this model as a reference. These institutions have established a collaborative framework to promote benchmarking actions and the exchange of best practices, aiming at continuous service improvement, innovation, and sustainability.

Key outcomes of the working group included:

• The signing of an institutional collaboration agreement

• The creation of a shared workspace

• The design of 25 benchmarking indicators

• The development of a Return on Investment (ROI) calculator, a comparison tool, and a results report

The LibrarIN Conference featured top-level international speakers, such as Stuart Snydman, Director of Technology Services at Harvard Library, who discussed how Google and Artificial Intelligence are reshaping access to knowledge in libraries.
Paul Windrum, Director of the Centre for Innovation in Health, Leadership and Learning at the University of Nottingham, also offered insights into transforming libraries into collaborative spaces and social and cultural meeting points, far beyond what Jorge Luis Borges could have imagined.

The presentation by Concha González and Cristina Tomás is available in the RODERIC repository of the University of Valencia.