In the specific context, a wide range of methods can be used for a plan
to gather information from the university’s librarians. One method is the use
of interviews so that the librarian can be asked relevant questions. Another
method to collect data involves the use of a questionnaire. It can contain
insightful questions that can help to capture relevant details from the
librarians. The final method that can be used is documentation reviews. It
can provide anin-depth insight into the current activities and the expectations
that the librarians have from the new automated system (Overview and
information gathering tools: Literacy basics, 2021).Out of the viable methods,
the two most feasible and effective methods are personal interview and
questionnaire. The personal interview is suitable since it can helpto engage
with the librarians and get a thorough idea of what they want the new
automated system to simplify for them. The use of a questionnaire can give
anobjective insight into their input. It can help to devise a concrete blue
print on which the new automated system will be based upon. These
methods can simplify the data-garnering process and influence the quality of
the automated system that can be introduced in the library, which contains
1000 books on diverse subjects. At a university’s library, the circulation
desk is where patrons come for assistance, so three methods I would use
to gather the information would include:
• Requesting information from librarians for background knowledge of the
services provided by the circulation desk. This information will allow
me to do an analysis of how the tasks are being delegated or
handled, as well as the procedures settings at the circulation desk.
• Observing the activities of patrons and librarian at the circulation
desks. Using observation, I can gather the volume and frequency of
tasks/ activities at the circulation desk. This will be helpful to
categorize / prioritize the interface /GUI design.
• Interviewing librarians and patrons for the needs of automation tasks.
Each patron that comes to the library might have different needs –
from checkout, return, pickup holds, pay fines, etc. so the services
provided by the librarians are vary for each patron. There are
activities that can be completely automated (i.e., self-checkout, extend
loan time, pay fines), some activities can be partially automated
(pickup holds or request inter-library holds). So, interviewing both
librarians and patrons will help collect users’ expectations and design
of the automation system.
The two methods I think would be best to record the information in this
case would be voice recording (for interview) and a list notes using
spreadsheets to categorize and prioritize information. If I were to schedule a
meeting with librarians to discuss the functioning, I would consider an
interview process, observations, and questionnaires. For the interviews, this
would be a one-on-one with the employees and librarians that can answer
my questions and get a better understanding of the functionality of the
library. Observations are when I would just monitor the overall day-to-day
activity in the library to make notes for myself of my observations, then I
would go over them with the head of the facility. Lastly, questionnaires,
surveys, and checklists are another way to gather information without the
stress of having one-on-one. Most of the time, this can shed some light of
the excellent practices being performed. Also, this can also allow individuals
to not be targeted if they highlight critical errors. For the two methods to
record information, there really isn’t a wrong answer. It depends on the
person taking record of the different methods above. Most individuals use
notes and then consolidate them into a report on either a word document
or spreadsheet. Just to eliminate any confusion of what was actually said, I
would use a recording device just to simply document the words to be
later transcribed at a later time. The way I would approach the project is
by:
• Methods to gather information
1. First – I would conduct interviews. For theinterview I would prepare
and use both open and closed ended information. Thefirst interviews
would be with mangers and higher level leaders. From this Iwould
get a high level understanding of what the goal of the job is and
the tasksneeded to be completed. I would also ask what the goal of
the new program indetail. Next I would conduct interviews with the
librarians and supervisors tounderstand how the tasks are completed in
detail
2. Second – I would do observations of the tasks beingperformed to see
first hand what is being completed.
3. Third – I would look and review all thedocumentation I could find
on the current systems
4. Forth – I would completed follow up interviewswith selected people
with very specific closed questions on gaps in the processof
information I collected.
• Methods used to record the information gathered
1. The first method I would use is taking notes
2. Second I would record the interviews and observations.That way I
could go back later to review in case I am missing notes.
The three different methods that I would use to gather information from the
librarians are, one, using questionnaires. I would have the library team and
users fill out questionnaires geared towards gathering input about what they
think can be improved about the system. Second, I would use interviews to
dig deeper and get a more individualized introspective about the current
system and what the would like to see improved on. The third approach
would be documentation review. I would review previous and current
documentation about the operations of the library to see how they operate
and try to incorporate as much of what works as possible so that
integration can be smooth. I would definitely use voice recorders during
interviews, to easily reference accurate information. I would also take good
old fashioned written notes during the process and organize my note taking
at the end of each day of research for easy reference.
The following are some of the finest approaches to get information from
librarians in order to properly create an application for the university
library's automation requirements. Interviewing You are welcome to ask the
librarians questions about the systems they presently use and any areas they
would want to see improved. By conducting group, individual, or
combination interviews, you may discover firsthand what works and what
doesn't. You may also discover how the new program can increase librarian
productivity and make their work easier.
User research. By putting up side-by-side comparisons, you may understand
firsthand how the system is now used and operated. This allows you to
comprehend the actions taken by the librarians, as well as any prospective
efficiencies or faster methods that would allow them to automate their
current approach. It also allows you to assess whether or not they have
upgraded from an obsolete legacy system to a more current type of storage,
such as Microsoft Azure or AWS for cloud storage, for maintenance and
updates.
Documents being examined. Document analysis may be used if there are any
anomalies in the way the librarians are currently recording their work and
the volumes. This allows your program to consider the documentation
component while developing it and allows for changes in how to keep track
of the books and what is owed, among other things. I would input the
information in two places: a Microsoft Word document and an Excel
spreadsheet. Notes may be added and prioritized in the word document by
utilizing categories. The spreadsheet will contain the number of volumes the
library has on hand, classifications, usage graphs, late returns, and so on.
In this type of scenario, the methods I would use to gather requirements
would be interviews, observation, and interface analysis (assuming that there
are interfaces). Interviews would be helpful to gather various opinions and
facts since each user brings a unique perspective to the table. I would
make sure to interview users from all permission levels and all job
assignments to get the fullest understanding of the requirements of each
person and position. I would also observe the users since it is valuable to
see how they currently do their job tasks and where efficiency can be
improved Finally, I would do an interface analysis. I would find out which
programs need to be able to access and exchange information with the new
system. In some cases, the information may be merely converted to the
new system, but there are times this is not possible. Through all three of
these methods, user expectations should be considered and managed.
The two methods I would use to record the information would be to
prioritize requirements and confirm, confirm, confirm. The first method of
prioritizing requirements is to attempt to determine which requirements could
potentially slow down or halt the project. Finding what the users would
consider deal breakers early in the process can help to mitigate or create
fixes early in the process. The second method I would use is the confirm,
confirm, and confirm the data. No matter how much I think I may
understand the requirements, confirming that I do is extremely important. I
may have no in-depth knowledge of library functioning and the library
employees may not have in-depth knowledge of systems development. To
make sure that both sides are understanding the other, many conversations
must occur, and probing questions must be asked. Understanding the needs
and requirements is one of the most important pieces to a project like this.
I would listen to the librarians to learn what problem they are trying to
solve with the automation and how they envision it to work. Any features
that they would like but you think is unnecessary, question on what they
think it’s needed. Then I would use the five W’s and one to help the
librarians answer who, what, when, where why and how. I would then
study and interview the librarians. Sometimes when asked direct questions, a
user may not give the information needed so watching their routine is
important. I would then copy the existing system that the librarians are
doing manually. Automate as much of the manual process as possible.
Finally, I would brainstorm with the librarians to gather all their ideas and
then sift through each to see which of those ideas is worth pursuing
further. Once the information gathering is completed, I would use Unified
Modeling Language which lets me show how parts of the system should
function. I would also use user stories as part of recording requirements.
This way I can show the librarians how the system will automate a certain
activity. ww To better understand how the librarians, go about their daily lives
I would first like to observe them. Not in a National Geographic, type of
way, but I would like to shadow a librarian to see what sections she uses
the most and how easy it is for her to find exactly what they’re looking
for. Secondly, I’d like to interview the librarians one by one, because each
answer in unique. I’m not a fan of group interviews because people usually
tend to get shy about what they find difficult. Lastly, I’d like to send
questionnaires to the librarians, so that they could do it in their own time
and anonymously. Having anonymous answers has its perks because people
usually tend to be blunter. I’d record the librarians answers using user
stories and use cases. When using user stories I would create two word
documents. One document will contain positive stories and the other would
state the negative stories. This will help define what needs to be worked
on first. When using Use cases, I would prefer to do them on an excel
sheet. I would do the same thing for excel sheets when it comes to
dividing them between negative or positive. The only difference would be
that in the extensions part of the use case, I would include my
observations of how I see the librarian going about that specific topic. One
on one interviews with each librarian would be a good one to use for
this. There are probably few librarians on staff for this size of a library
and getting with each one to find out what functionality the program would
need and what type of automation would be needed such as automatically
tracking the person checking out the book, how long they have had it, e-
mail reminders for overdue books etc. This information could also be
obtained with brainstorming, or a focus group comprised of the librarians to
discuss the programs needed functions. During the interview I would write
user stories laying out what the individual person would want from the
system being developed. This would be quick notes about what functions
they are looking for in the system and what they would want to see the
system do for them. These could be used during testing to see if the
functionality the user wants is working as they outlined. Another way to
record it would be as a use case. Explaining how they would want the
system to not just track when the book was checked out and back in, but
by who, how long they had it, when it should be returned, and including
an e-mail notification system to notify if the books are overdue and what
charges are incurred. It could also have details explaining what happens to
the book when it is returned such as information on where it goes so it
is put in the correct bin to be put back on the shelves, or to contact
another person if there is a waiting list for the book. ww A library's
infrastructure of programs and personnel is its most asset, providing the
foundation for everything it does and aspires to do, which is why
assessment is so vitally important. Librarians use a variety of research
methods to make decisions and to improve performance. Research can be
broadly defined as the careful, systematic, patient study and investigation in
some field of knowledge, undertaken to discover or establish facts or
principles. The 3 methods that I would use when it comes to gathering
information from a library are observations, interview, and existing record
reviews. When observing a library, I would watch how the librarians work
in their day-to-day activity. Watching how others work gets you a better
understanding of how librarians work and how they use the system. Next, I
would interview one of the librarians like how they are able keep track of
books using the system? Or how do you know when someone is borrowing
books and when it’s supposed to be returned? I’m sure these are the
things that is an important part of being a librarian. Lastly, I would
investigate record reviews. Records that are reviewed in research may be
either public or private. An example would be researching and collecting
information about a disease from patient medical records. Researching and
collecting information based on records is another way of understanding how
systems work. You could either ask someone about it or look through
records. These are ways that can help you gather information on what you
need to know and do. To record the collected information, I would use
my phone to record the interview questions I asked, so that I can listen
to it and understand how system works. Another method I would use is by
having written notes that you have jotted down in your notebook. That way
if there’s something you don’t understand you could always research online
to get a better understanding on what you don’t get.
Methods to gather information from the university's librarians.
Listen to Customers (and Users)
People develop skills in what the app does, its workings of it, and its
design. Problems to be solved quickly are often and a not clearly defined
explanation that a computer will solve the issue. Listening to the people as
much as I can on what is being said and ideas that can be implemented.
Focus is key to solving the problem instead of the solutions from the
people's perspective so that the necessities are flexible.
Use the Five Ws (and One H)
People have trouble describing what needs to be done. Help them by
asking the five Ws and an H (who, what, when, where, and why) and
one H (how).
Study Users
Interviews are fantastic to get information but sometimes it's not the best
because sometimes people will not give out the information that is being
asked. Questions can be hard to answer that the dev team will find
important to them.
Copy Existing Systems
Replacing systems with a new one by using replacing existing ones can be
of use for the requirements. This approach is linear.
Clairvoyance
People will look at the goals, see it through, and start increasing the
required parts.
Brainstorm
Using the copy and clairvoyance approach is great but its downfall is not
likely to have innovative solutions. Being creative is revolutionary!
Methods to record the information that is being gathered.
UML
User Stories
Using stories to explain what the system is doing with the user.
Use Cases
Interactivity between actors either from users or different parts of the
application.
Prototypes
A mockup that allows users to see what its design feels like and its
behavior from the descriptions from stories and cases.
Requirements Specification
Writing a simple and easy-to-learn specification for the software to fill out
forms.
Suppose I was to help a library to automate the 1,000 books that they
have that cover 5 subjects, I can't imagine what those subjects would be.
In that case, I first want to interview with focus groups of those of
different roles to determine what type of automation they are looking for
and how or who will be the author and customer of the system itself.
From there I would probably want to start brainstorming and thinking of
ways to get a basic prototype out to see what the conscious of the
concept is. I would probably give a survey to see what everyone’s thoughts
is and if it's looking good then I may go to complete the final product.
The best way I can foresee taking down the information is to keep my
stakeholders informed and show how I am progressing in finishing this
project. I could also make sure that if they think something is more
important than what others are calling for, then I can create a list that
shows prioritize requirements.
In order to efficiently collect and record information in a research project
which would automate the university's library it is important to first identify
the specific requirements. I would gather requirements by means of
interviews, user observations, and use cases. This information is then used to
create requirements and specification documents for the project.
First, I would interview stakeholders in the project to get their feedback
about the project and find out what their specific requirements would be.
These could include what they want the new system to do and how they
want to use it. I would also interview end users of the system to find
out about the features they think the system should have and how they
would prefer to use the system. If appropriate, I would also interview
people who have experience using the system currently to get feedback on
any problems they have encountered and how the system could be improved.
This would ensure that the new system meets the requirements of the users
who will be using it. It could also be used to make recommendations on
any new features or functionalities that would be useful to add.
I would observe the current use of the system and carry out detailed user
tests on a sample of users to find out the specific features and functions
that they would like to see in the system. 2 methods to document
requirements includes Prioritizing Requirements and Talk to the Right
Stakeholders and Users. I would use the 3 methods of 1) user observation,
2) user surveys in a workshop, and 3) brainstorming in a workshop. I
have some experience with these and had success. The user observation
would look like it sounds, visually observing the librarians at the front desk
during a work shift, noting how they are doing their work. The user
surveys in a workshop would be written questions for them to answer about
how they would like the automation to work. Lastly the brainstorming in a
workshop would be gathering any and all ideas on a large format like a
white board.My two methods of recording the information would be the
written papers from the surveys and digitally capturing (pictures) of the
brain storming activities. I believe both of these would fall under the
Design Tools method. The follow-up to confirm what I captured vs. what
the librarians wanted or needs expressed will be a critical step. During the
requirement gathering process I would use a few different methods to gather
information and record that information in a way the makes requirements
clear and covers everything that the clients need.
One method I would use is Document Analysis. This method is used for
examining the existing system being used within the library and taking a
look at the requirements for that system to determine what this system was
created for.
Method two would be interviewing the librarians to determine what their
goals and expectations are for the system.Method three would be Observation.
I would use this method to observe the current system being used to get
a better understanding of the system and its steps while also looking for
potential points to improve. As far as the recording methods go there are
two, I would use in this case. The first one would be the UML (Unified
Model Language) because it will allow me to record the information in a
way that will show how certain parts of the system should work. It works
by creating diagrams of two categories and then breaking them down into
specific types with a set of rules. The process isn't perfect but does a
good job of showing how the system should work based on the
requirements. Next, I would use user stories to record the information. This
way I can record the information from the librarians in a way that shows
how they would want to do something with the system. In order to
properly create an application for automation purposes for the university
library some of the top methods in which to gather information from the
librarians are the following.
1. Interviewing. Interviewing the librarians give you the opportunity to find
out what they have in place now system-wise and also what they personally
want to have improved. By doing either group interviews or individual or
both, you are able to know first-hand what things work as they should and
what doesn't work and what ways the new application can approve the
librarian's efficiency making their job easier.
2. User observation. By setting side-by-side observation, you can see
firsthand the current application and functionality of the system they have in
place. This allows you to know what steps the librarians make and what
possible shortcuts or shorter processes could allow them to automate their
current process. Also allows you to see if they are using an older legacy
system or could possibly update to more current means of storage like
AWS or Microsoft Azure for cloud storage for maintenance and updates.
3. Document analysis. Document analysis allows you to see how the
librarians currently document their work and the books and if there are
discrepancies with how they are currently doing their documentation. This
allows for your application when created to take into consideration the
documentation portion and allow for improvement on ways to keep track of
the books and what's owed etc. Two ways that I would record the
information would be with a Microsoft word document and an excel
spreadsheet. The word document would allow for notes to be entered and
prioritized based on categories. The excel spreadsheet will allow for the
number of books the library holds, categories, and graphs on usage along
with late turn-ins, etc. In order to assist the librarians in automating the
front desk activities, I would definitely use Interviews, User observation and
surveys to best understand the functionality of the library as well as the
desires and the end goal of the automation.
I would use the user observation technique and surveys most likely. I
would first conduct surveys with the librarians. I would want to know what
they use as their current processes for the front desk, and I would also
ask them what they would like to be automated in the process. I think
this is very important because often people want to automate a process but
do not necessarily know if that is even possible or if they may have to
change or alter the process to automate it.
Next, I would conduct user observation. I would want to see how they
execute the processes they told me about in the surveys. It is common
when people describe how things function or how they do things, that they
may not explain it correctly or leave out key details in the process that
they didn't feel were vital in order for us to automate things. The three
different methods I would use to gather information are Interviews,
questionnaires/surveys, and user observation. I think the best way to get
information is a conversation. I like the openness of this approach as I
feel you can get the most information this way. It is also important to
observe how they use the system now and seeing what works and what
does not. The last is a questionnaire or survey. My go to would be an
interview, there are situations where a yes or no is best.The two different
methods I would use to record the information I gathered would be Talk
to the Right Stakeholders and users and be transparent with requirements. As
above with information gathering. You need to talk to the right people.
First, you need to talk to the stakeholders. What is their understanding of
what is needed? Then you need to talk to the people who will use it.
What are they expecting? What do they want? Then you need to need to
talk to everyone and make sure your understanding of what they want is
correct. I deal with this daily at my job. I create Tableau reports. I
always ask if the end users have a sketch of what they want. I find this
helps A LOT in the design phase and it helps get us in the same page.
I tend to keep it all in an excel spreadsheet. I also use a Rocketbook for
sketches and notes. The first thing I would do is watch the librarians in
their daily activities to see their workflow and the workflow of the library.
You can learn a good bit about the function of the library or other
system by observing the activity. The next thing I would like to do is
conduct interviews with the librarians to get their input about how they do
their job. I will also get their expectations of what the new automation
will be and how it will help them do their job. The last thing I would
like to do is conduct a survey of the customers of the library to get
their expectations of the new system and any suggestions or feedback of
the new system. ww
I would use audio visual recording of the observed workflow and the
interviews so I could go back and review them later. I would record the
survey in a computer so they can be searched and filtered to get a good
overview of the data needed to complete the task. ww
Methods to Gather Requirements:
1. Interviews
2. Questionaries or Surveys
3. User Observation
4. Document Analysis
5. Interface Analysis
6. Workshops
7. Brainstorming
8. Role-play
9. Use Cases and Scenarios
10. Focus Groups
11. Prototyping
Methods to Document Requirements:
1. Design Tools
2. Prioritize Requirements
3. Confirm, Confirm, Confirm
4. Talk to the Right Stakeholders and Users
5. Transparent Requirements Documentation
Gathering stakeholder requirements and communicating with them throughout
the design and development of the project helps to ensure that what you
provide to them will meet their needs. Designers and developers who ignore
their stakeholders and don't include them in the process significantly increase
the risks of the design and development efforts failing.I like to focus on
confirmation. I can't underscore how important appropriate confirmation with
all of the stakeholders is. Proper communication and confirmation help to
ensure that there are no misunderstandings with the requirements definitions.
It also helps to ensure that all of the stakeholders and all of the project
team members have a shared vision of the requirements and how they will
be implemented in the software application. Software engineering, project
management, project control, and implementation will run much more
smoothly, efficiently, and effectively with appropriate confirmation and
communication.
Interviewing and user observation are great ways to gather reequipments for
a new project. I did not even think about document analysis but it will
have good information about the current system and how it is spoused to
operate. A excel sheet would be a good way to get the observation and
reequipment recorded. I would think automation of the circulation desk at a
library would be like self check out at the works largest retailer. One of
the many project teams that I manage is working on a software application
development project and is currently finalizing requirements definitions. We
just had a requirements review meeting this morning and before the meeting,
I took a few minutes to examine existing documents for one of the
functional areas on the project. I was able to identify some key scoping
and requirements details that really benefited the team as I shared these
findings with them in the design review meeting. It is another example to
me of why the activities we are studying in this course are so important
and key to successful software engineering.
Interviewing key users and stakeholders should always be included in the
software engineering requirements gathering process. I am glad that you are
focusing on this activity. Doing so will help you to better understand key
user and stakeholder needs and will help you to better identify their
requirements and use these requirements to create a software application
design that will meet their needs.I think document analysis would be a
good way for gathering information and requirements. Based on the
information we have it seems that this library has been in place for a
while and has a system that they are currently using. Document analysis
focuses on examining the existing system to understand how it operates. It
also examines the requirements that existed when the original system was
created to get a better understanding of why the original system was
designed the way it was. Conducting an interview would be a great start
to gathering information, especially when implementing the five Ws and one
H. There are no right or wrong answers but from their perspective and
respectfully listening as they share their views. It is good to have a
reflection on topics of great importance for research purposes! Being creative
and having the innovation for an outside-of-the-box perspective is a good
understanding and usage when it comes to brainstorming an idea. Focusing
on quantity and trying to hold back on criticism is essential because it
creates an environment for thought production without worries of being told
that the information is irrelevant. I agree that communication is number one
when it comes to managing a project. Performing risk management and a
plan for any conflicts that might occur. interviewing others are a great of
knowing what they do at their job and how you can benefit from them. I
can agree with you that by interviewing someone, it would allow you to
focus on what they do at their job, so that you know what to do
depending on the task that is given to you. The interview enables the
employer to determine if an applicant's skills, experience and personality meet
the job's requirements. It also helps the employer assess whether an
applicant would likely fit in with the corporate culture. Part of brainstorming
is experimenting with what is most effective for your team and with the
emergence of remote brainstorming, there are many new exercises that teams
can conduct to find new ideation methods says .Embracing new brainstorming
methods, including asynchronous collaboration, is something that is vital when
moving forward and helps everyone approach innovation with an open mind.
