During my time in the New York City area, few things outside the financial services industry affected me more than the restuarants. Of those, few bring back fonder memories than my time in NYC than the Union Square Cafe and the restuarants that followe…

I’m not sure I agree. Customer service doesn’t just mean following up on complaints and providing timely support and service. It means giving the user what he/she wants.

I don’t think that “customer service” could ever be too prominent “in out imagining of what a public library can do.” Because, at the core of our existence is our user. We’re meaningless without them. And if customer service means giving them what they want, and doing that very, very well, then I don’t see how using the customer service mantra as a means to govern our activities can steer us in the wrong direction.

I’m one of those people who loves giving patrons deluxe library service, having worked in premium performing arts, restaurant and bookshop environments.

However I think public libraries need to take a critical look at the distinction between customer service as a policy/practice/priority, and as an overarching principle that tends to determine organisational strategy. The customer service mantra has been so drummed in at the managerial level that it is in danger of becoming not only an essential part of our practices and a major consideration in organisational strategy but THE overriding determinant. The problem with this occurs if an up-and-at-’em private-sector approach, so crucial in serving customers in person, elbows out or colours the understanding of other library values and ways of doing things. For me, these include performing sensitive outreach and community-building, encouraging the library’s use as a grass-roots political space, and avoiding becoming just a source of free entertainment.

I recognise that it’s not necessarily a case of ‘either/or’ in accomodating values and practices. However I think ‘customer service’ has the potential to become too prominent in our imagining of what a public library can do.