Clothes may disguise a fool but his voice will give him away: the challenge of smart service delivery for off-campus students

Abstract

Serving remote clients is now one of the most challenging issues for almost all libraries, since our web, database access and other tools mean that physical access is far less necessary than ever before. This situation is even more critical at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) where 80% of students are classified as 'off-campus' or external. In all likelihood, we will never see or meet these clients face-to-face. USQ's implementation of the DocEx system in 2004 provided a streamlined, integrated web requesting and document delivery service to our off-campus students. This paper explores the technologies and skills involved in the project, client and staff reaction, and project management issues encountered along the way. Advantages to date are documented, and future plans outlined.