Library Project Cataloguer (Fixed-Term) - Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

Location: San Francisco, CA
Salary: 29.53-39.58 Hourly
Employment Term: Fixed-Term Three Years
Employer Contact: careers@famsf.org

Reporting to the Head of Library and Archives, the fixed-term Library Project Cataloguer works to ensure accurate description of library resources to improve discovery in an effort to support the mission of the library and archives at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco (FAMSF). This position catalogues and classifies a variety of materials in many different languages including: monographs, serials, electronic or digital resources, and special collections materials, all according to current library standards. Although the FAMSF OCLC instance is accessible to the public, the library is not open to the public at this time with its primary users being curatorial and conservation staff. This position will be responsible for addressing and eliminating an extensive backlog of library materials by cataloguing them using OCLC WorldShare.

The Library Project Cataloguer position is a grant-funded role with a fixed-term of three years.

Typical Duties and Responsibilities:

1. Original and Copy Cataloguing  
   1. Performs original, complex adaptive, and copy cataloguing in all formats and maintains records for library materials to facilitate access and discovery. Formats include, but are not limited to: monographs, serials, pamphlets, ephemera, and rare books. 
   2. Corrects, updates, and maintains OCLC holdings data to include the full cycle of creation, updating and deleting based on library holdings records as part of data enhancement projects to ensure that records align with institutional standards and professional best practices, including RDA, MARC21, OCLC, and LCSH.
   3. Works within OCLC WorldShare and may support metadata creation for other platforms.
   4. Responsible for oversight of all aspects of record quality, authority control, and catalogue integrity.
   5. Cataloguing duties include bibliographic pre-order search and verification, creating original records as required, copy cataloguing, retrospective bibliographic conversion, and editing records such as serials records. 
   6. Metadata work may involve mapping metadata between schemas, adapting metadata for contribution to specific discovery platforms or research interfaces and utilizing metadata to improve discoverability.
2. Collection analysis
   1. Assists in backlog inventory project(s) and the ongoing deselection or storage of the collection.
   2. Supports large initiatives including retrospective reclassification of collections to support collection analysis, maintenance, and preservation.
3. Other
   1. Develops training materials and documentation for library staff in the application of metadata standards and cataloguing policy and procedures, workflows, and local practice.
   2. Makes recommendations for the upgrade of electronic and manual resource tools.
   3. Problem solves and troubleshoots technical issues.
   4. Assists with installation, integration, migration, and implementation of library software.
   5. Provides expertise regarding innovations and trends relating to the discovery and access of library materials and proactively work in partnership with departmental staff to improve access and workflow efficiencies.
4. Performs other duties as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications:

Education: MLS/MLIS/MSLIS from an ALA-accredited program. 

Work Experience: At least 2 years post-MLS cataloguing and technical services experience in an academic, special, or public library.

Skills and Abilities:

• Experience with cataloguing tools and systems such as OCLC’s WorldShare.
• Knowledge of cataloguing standards and best practices such as MARC21, RDA, ULAN, ATT, LCSH, LCNAF, and other controlled vocabularies.
• Experience working in library systems and knowledge of typical cataloguing workflow; including collaborative problem-solving, implementing protocols and maintaining awareness of professional best practices.
• Preferred working knowledge of the library’s OPAC, Microsoft Office, Google Workspace, and ability to learn and integrate new software into workflows as needed.
• Preferred knowledge of art history and experience cataloguing art and history materials primarily in English but also in various European languages.
• Demonstrated understanding of the broad scope of library operations with ability to understand how their role interacts with the rest of the organization.
• Ability to establish priorities, meet deadlines, and handle multiple assignments concurrently while advancing both individual and departmental goals. 
• Ability to identify challenges and opportunities, engage others in their resolution and recommend appropriate courses of action.
• Demonstrated ability to evaluate online resources in terms of content quality, functionality and user interface issues.
• Consistent display of strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated analytical, organizational, and decision-making skills with an attention to detail.
• Ability to work independently and in a team environment with a diverse population of staff.
• Awareness of the role of knowledge systems in systemic oppression, remediation of institutional biases inherent in cataloguing and metadata, and collection assessments of diverse cultures and perspectives.

Working Conditions:

• While performing the duties of this job, this position is required to stand, walk, sit, use hands, reach with hands and arms, climb stairs and ladders, balance, stoop, kneel, crouch, talk or hear, and maneuver in a compressed stacks environment;
• This position must routinely lift and/or move up to 30 pounds. 
• Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision and distance vision.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate to quiet.

Additional:

Schedule: This 3-year, fixed-term Union position is eligible for a hybrid schedule with a minimum of four days per week onsite, and with the understanding that it may vary depending on operational needs. This position has an expected timeline of January 2025 to December 2027.

The benefits package includes medical, dental, vision and 401(k), and paid time off.

The hourly rate for Step 1 of 7 on the union wage scale for this role is $29.53.

Application deadline: Monday, October 21, 2024 (9pm PDT)

If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please contact HumanResources@famsf.org.

We recommend all new COFAM employees be vaccinated against COVID-19 but it is not required. Please contact humanresources@famsf.org with any questions.

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COFAM is the Corporation of Fine Arts Museums and is the privately funded non-profit corporation which supports the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, a department of the City and County of San Francisco.

COFAM is proud to be an equal opportunity employer and is committed to a policy of nondiscrimination in all phases of employment in accordance with all federal, state, and local laws. Pursuant to the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance, we will consider for employment qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records.

Comprising the de Young Museum in Golden Gate Park and the Legion of Honor in Lincoln Park, we are the largest public arts institution in the City of San Francisco and one of the largest art museums in the United States. The de Young, designed by Herzog & de Meuron and located in Golden Gate Park, showcases American art from the 17th through the 21st centuries, international contemporary art, textiles and costumes, and art from the Americas, the Pacific, and Africa. The Legion of Honor displays a collection of over 4,000 years of ancient and European art including Auguste Rodin's The Thinker and houses the Achenbach Foundation for Graphic Arts in a Beaux-Arts style building overlooking Lincoln Park and the Golden Gate Bridge.

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