ABSTRACT
A typical reference department is made up of professionals who interact daily, share common experiences in serving common clients, and share a common reference collection. In Mercy College Libraries’ Branch and External Services Division the challenge is to maintain uniform quality standards of library service and library instruction throughout a “reference department” made up of four geographically separated libraries, with each librarian serving a different population. In training, motivating, supervising, and evaluating professionals in such a department, the manager must utilize the benefits of centralization while fostering the enthusiasm and creativity that can be generated from this diversity. Management of such a unit also presents special challenges in ensuring that each library and librarian is committed to the same principles and standards of service and is performing at the same high quality level. An essential component to such management must be an effective formal and informal feedback system which allows for continual communication to flow in both directions.
