Developing New Service Models for the Library of the Future

As acting director of Reference and Research Services, Matthew Sheehy is the man behind the latest innovations of Ask NYPL. We sat down with him to find out how he became a librarian, to learn more about the history of Ask NYPL, and why he likes to wear the color purple.

Why are you a librarian?

I do not have a lifetime love of libraries. I knew where my public library was when I was a kid, but cannot claim to have fallen in love with libraries at that point. I started out as a struggling musician, and wound up working as a bio-medical service technician. I think I gleaned many benefits from this first career, including a commitment to customer service, and an ability to think flexibly and more easily embrace nontraditional approaches to library services.

In time, I realized that I was ready for something new, and I decided I wanted to commit my life to scholarship. I entered a graduate program in musicology at the University of Buffalo, and during my time there, I discovered within myself a fascination with the organization of information, and the idea of helping many other scholars document the human experience. This interest overrode but did not extinguish my interest in musicology, and I graduated from UB with two Masters Degrees.

I do credit my first music bibliography teacher James Coover for cultivating my interest in librarianship. He made librarianship sexy, and made me feel like a swashbuckler for following in the tradition. I still feel that way about the profession.

You wear a lot of lavender. Tell us more about that.

There are all sorts of interesting things connected to the color purple. Purple is the color of spirituality, royalty and healing. For me, though, I am afraid the banal truth is that I just like the color. I have had two purple motorcycles and every house my wife and I have lived in together (including our pop-up camper) has had a purple door. It is becoming a very trendy color this spring, but I was wearing it before it was cool, and will be wearing it even after it has passed from the store windows.

How did Ask NYPL get started?

Back in the 1960s, Ask NYPL began as Telephone Reference. Online access to information was unknown at that time, so it was a very busy call center.

Ask NYPL as we know it today began when Telephone Reference, which had already evolved to include email and instant message, was organizationally moved to the Reference and Research Services department and the range of services were expanded to include things like 24/7 librarian access and the new "text-a-librarian" service.

The idea of "Ask" as a rebranding of the service came when looking for a department code. Often I am asked that ASK stands for. My answer is that it is a verb, reminding us that on many levels, we are here to answer questions as well as ask questions ourselves.

How many librarians are behind Ask NYPL and how many questions do you get per month?

We currently have 6 librarians, two information assistants, and two SLAA's helping with the service. I have stepped up on occasion, but it has only given me more respect for what this staff does. We get over 9,000 questions per month, over 5,000 coming in from telephone calls, still the busiest service.

How long does it usually take to get an answer?

We try and answer within 24 hours, but sometimes there is research that needs to be done and it can take up to a week. We try and let the user know if the question will take a long time and offer the option to contact Ask NYPL Express, the fee-based unit in Reference and Research Services. If the user is willing to wait, we are committed to providing free research services to everyone that "asks."

Are most patrons from the New York area?

We get questions from around the world - sometimes even in other languages. I recently answered a question in Indonesian. We also offer Spanish chat and email reference.

What are the ways patrons can connect with Ask NYPL?

Patrons can call 917-ASK-NYPL (917-275-6975). We take calls Monday to Saturday 9 am to 6 pm, EST. Patrons can also text us at 66746 starting the question with the words "Ask NYPL...", chat with us online, send us an email, and finally, we will still answer written correspondences. The mailing address is Ask NYPL, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, 476 Fifth Ave, New York, NY 10018.

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us.

Matthew Sheehy started with the NYPL in 1999 as a non-print cataloger for the circulating collections. Drawn towards public service, he briefly worked at the Library for Performing Arts before taking on a leadership role at Stony Brook University's Music Library in 2000. He returned to NYPL in 2006 as Chief of Access and Reader Services for the Humanities and Social Sciences Library (now the Stephen A. Schwarzman Building) to pursue the opportunity to manage a large collection and create new service models designed to enhance the library experience. In 2009, Matthew became the Acting Director of the newly created Reference and Research Services Department, which provides the Ask NYPL service.