Libraries, Leadership, and Synergies – Collections Analysis Skills, Part 1: Introduction to Analytical Skills, Practical Projects, and Training Guidance

Collections analysis positions are relatively new, reflecting steadily rising need for data-informed collections decision-making. Growing complexity raises the need for analytical expertise, spawning the rise of collections analysis positions. Recent library articles about collections analysis initiatives portray analytical skills and processes, software, analytical tools, and programming languages in applied settings. Yet despite the inspiration provided by these practical examples of analytical projects, the literature on systematic skill development is scant. This three-part series of articles sets out to close this gap: This first article inventories key collection analysis skills from recent job postings and introduces recent analytical projects reported in library literature. The next article will continue with a wide sweep of resources for systematic skill-building and career planning for the growing realm of data and analysis.