Operationalising the Focus/Values/Purpose Matrix

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the Focus/Values/Purpose Matrix, first presented at the 2nd Northumbria International Conference on Performance Measurement which attempts to define three significant factors that contribute to the extent to which a library and information service organisation has a “culture of assessment” that informs its strategic planning, allocation of resources, and the use it makes of evaluation in these activities.Design/methodology/approachThe underlying assumption is that the ability of a library to understand customer requirements, and deliver high quality service is influenced by its commitment to a “culture of assessment”. This assumption, and the matrix itself have been tested empirically, and positive placement on each of the axes was shown to correlate with an enhanced ability to deliver customer satisfaction, as assessed by a SERVQUAL type gap analysis. In that research each organisation's placement on the axes was assessed using documentary evidence and interview data from each library. An attempt to determine placement on the axes using survey data was unsuccessful. Other instruments to evaluate an organisation's culture of assessment have been developed, but they are developed from a management perspective, and take a top‐down approach to organisational culture.FindingsThe study finds that a new survey instrument is being developed and tested, that attempts to translate the theoretical model of the matrix into a workable instrument which would measure these factors in a wider range of institutions, using an approach that is more integrated with the perspectives of staff at all organisational levels on the understanding that a culture of assessment must permeate all staff levels to be translated into service quality.Originality/valueThe newly developed instrument is intended to be administered to an organisation's staff, and attempts to capture the views, practice and culture of the organisation using statements about the personal and organisational value placed on evaluation, and knowledge of activities that demonstrate that measurement is incorporated into planning procedures. The instrument, which has been developed through a series of focus groups, and testing in six university libraries, and which has inbuilt checks for construct validity, and consistency, is now ready for testing in a larger range of libraries, and correlating with scores of customer satisfaction.