Institutional Repository Librarian

OU Libraries seeks an innovative, collaborative, and highly motivated individual to serve as OU’s Institutional Repository Librarian of SHAREOK, the joint institutional repository for OU, Oklahoma State University, and the University of Central Oklahoma. SHAREOK is hosted by OU Libraries, and it currently contains more than 80,000 items, encompassing faculty and staff publications, student works, open educational resources, research datasets, and more. Successful candidates will have a strong understanding of project management responsibilities related to digital repositories, digital asset management systems, or similar digital initiatives as well as knowledge of the scholarly publishing life cycle. This position develops, implements, and assesses policies, workflows, and documentation to streamline the mediated deposit of faculty, staff, and student scholarship in SHAREOK and improve the user experience, in collaboration with colleagues. Reporting to the Director of Open Initiatives and Scholarly Communication within OU Libraries, the Institutional Repository Librarian will be integral to increasing awareness and uptake of SHAREOK as a self-archiving tool, thereby broadening access to the research output of OU.

Position Responsibilities:

• Manage internal policies, workflows, and documentation for SHAREOK; conduct quality control checks of procedures to increase efficiency, clarity, and alignment with strategic goals.
• Coordinate audits of existing OU content in SHAREOK; assess current metadata best prac-tices, collaborate with colleagues to create metadata profiles, and lead the development of natural language annotations as appropriate.
• Investigate institutional repositories of peer institutions, to improve the overall usability, discoverability, and interoperability of SHAREOK. Assist in planning, testing, and implementing software updates and development projects.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for SHAREOK platform support, liaising with relevant library units to troubleshoot and resolve issues.
• Regularly review and revise public-facing documentation based on user feedback; provide SHAREOK outreach to internal stakeholders and the broader campus community and serve as a resource for copyright and licensing questions related to repository content.
• Maintain in-depth knowledge of repository best practices and current and emerging standards and trends, including but not limited to those from CRL and COAR.
• Regularly review, compile, and report analytics related to SHAREOK submissions and user traffic.

Professional Contributions and Activity:

• Actively participate in statewide planning, development, and decision making for SHAREOK. Advocate for changes to improve the performance, reliability, and sustainability of the repository.
• Pursue professional development opportunities in support of OU Libraries and the growth and promotion of SHAREOK, including ongoing participation in the professional community.
• Contribute to initiatives of OU Libraries including working groups and committees.

Required Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree.
• Demonstrated skill in effective and persuasive written and oral communication, including public speaking.
• Ability to consult and collaborate with diverse individuals and groups.
• Ability to define and prioritize goals and coordinate timelines suitable for staffing and technology resources to achieve or exceed desired outcomes.
• Ability to assess and learn new technologies quickly.
• Ability to work creatively in a rapidly changing environment.
• Ability to take initiative and be self-directed.
• Commitment to open access as a fundamental element of the mission of academic libraries.
• Ability to work effectively with individuals of diverse backgrounds in a respectful, equitable and inclusive way.
• Demonstrated ability to manage and maintain short-term and long-term projects.
• Demonstrated success in cultivating and developing collegial relationships with students, faculty, and staff.
• Demonstrated ability to work strategically and collaboratively with stakeholders to build programs and initiatives.

Preferred Qualifications:

• 12 months of recent experience working with institutional repositories or digital asset management systems.
• Master’s degree in Library Science or equivalent from an ALA-accredited program or advanced degree in a relevant field.
• Knowledge of and experience with institutional repositories, digital asset management sys-tems, or related tasks (e.g., creating digital records, quality checking metadata, assessing copyright compliance).
• Understanding of the scholarly publishing lifecycle, including author agreements and publisher self-archiving policies.
• Basic knowledge of relevant metadata schemata (e.g., Dublin Core, MODS, PREMIS) and prior experience with metadata cleanup or standardization projects.
• Experience working in a university setting.
• Demonstrated project management experience.
• Working knowledge of web accessibility best practices and strategies for improving platform usability, discoverability, and/or interoperability.
• Prior experience with providing end user platform support, technical troubleshooting, user testing, and/or platform development.
• Ability to communicate and translate technical processes, metadata standards, and legal terminology to non-specialists.
• Ability to analyze complex problems and formulate strategies to solve them.
• Comfort with quantitative data and analysis.

Applications

All applications must include a cover letter, resume and list of three professional references. Hiring will be contingent upon submission of academic transcripts. Interested individuals may review the full position description at libraries.ou.edu/jobs. To apply for this position, go to https://jobs.ou.edu and search for job number 222707.

Diversity Statement

The University of Oklahoma is committed to achieving a diverse, equitable, and inclusive university community by recognizing each person's unique contributions, background, and perspectives. The University of Oklahoma strives to cultivate a sense of belonging and emotional support for all, recognizing that fostering an inclusive environment for all is vital in the pursuit of academic and inclusive excellence in all aspects of our institutional mission.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The University of Oklahoma, in compliance with all applicable federal and state laws and regulations, does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, genetic information, gender identity, gender expression, age, religion, disability, political beliefs, or status as a veteran in any of its policies, practices, or procedures. This includes, but is not limited to, admissions, employment, financial aid, housing, services in educational programs or activities, and health care services that the University operates or provides.

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