Fix Discovery & Access First: The Fastest Way to Restore the University Library’s Strategic Value

Introduction

Universities are investing heavily in digital transformation — learning platforms, AI tools, research analytics, and cloud infrastructure. Yet one critical system is quietly failing its users:

the university library experience.

Not because the library lacks content.
Not because librarians lack expertise.
But because students and researchers cannot reliably find and access what already exists.

Before adding AI, analytics, or new subscriptions, high-performing institutions take one step first:

They fix discovery and access.

The hidden problem: content exists, trust does not

Most universities already pay for:

Thousands of journals
E-book collections
Institutional repositories
Research databases

Yet students still say:

“I can’t find what I need.”
“I found it, but I can’t open it.”
“Google works faster.”

This is not a training issue.
It is a system design issue.

When discovery or access fails once, users stop returning. That’s how the library becomes invisible — regardless of budget.

What “discovery & access” really means (for leaders)

Discovery
Can users search everything from one place and get relevant results?

Access
Can they open the full text immediately — on-campus or off-campus — without confusion?

If either breaks, usage collapses.

Why this matters strategically

1) Library usage becomes a budget question

Low usage leads to:

questioned subscriptions,
constant budget pressure,
difficulty proving institutional value.

Sooner or later, leaders ask:

“Why are we paying for resources nobody uses?”

2) Discovery is now competing with AI and search engines

Students compare the library experience to:

Google
ChatGPT
research AI tools

If the library is slower or more confusing, it loses instantly.

3) Fixing discovery & access is the highest-ROI move

Compared to new databases, AI pilots, or website redesigns, improving discovery & access:

costs less,
delivers results faster,
increases the value of every existing subscription and collection.

What leading universities fix first

1) One search experience, not many

Users should never have to decide:

which catalog,
which database,
which repository.

A single discovery experience (with a unified index) reduces confusion and boosts usage quickly.

2) Frictionless access (especially off-campus)

Users shouldn’t need to understand:

proxies,
VPNs,
license rules.

Best practice is simple from the user perspective:

single sign-on,
automatic off-campus routing,
clear “Full Text Available” indicators.

3) Library integrated into learning, not separated from it

The library should show up inside:

LMS (Moodle / Canvas / Blackboard),
course reading lists,
teaching workflows.

When discovery is embedded where learning happens, usage rises without marketing.

What this is not

Fixing discovery & access does not require:

replacing the whole ILS,
buying an AI chatbot first,
migrating everything at once,
major organizational disruption.

In most cases, it’s an overlay improvement — delivering fast impact while keeping core systems stable.

How we work together (workflow)

Below is a practical workflow universities use to move fast while controlling risk.

flowchart TD
  A["1) Executive alignment (30–60 min)"] --> B["2) Rapid audit: discovery + access pain points"]
  B --> C["3) Define success metrics (KPIs)"]
  C --> D["4) Target architecture + integration plan"]
  D --> E["5) Pilot (limited faculties / programs)"]
  E --> F["6) Fix & harden (relevance, dedupe, SSO, off-campus)"]
  F --> G["7) Rollout + LMS embedding + communications"]
  G --> H["8) Measure results + optimization cycle"]

  B --> B1["Inputs: systems list, auth flow, top databases, sample searches"]
  F --> F1["Outputs: fewer access failures, higher full-text click-through"]
  H --> H1["Outputs: dashboards, insights for subscription decisions"]