Do you enjoy thinking about how to make library collections easier to search
and browse? Want to work on the best digital library team around? Come join
our team at Stanford! You'll have great colleagues, world-class collections,
and an outstanding digital library infrastructure to work with. We offer
Silicon Valley competitive salaries in an academic setting. Our work is open
source, and we provide plenty of support for participation in code4lib. Feel
free to contact Bess ([log in to unmask]) with any questions about this
position.

  
Discovery Engineer, Digital Library Systems and Services - 52253

Description

  
Job Objective:

  
Stanford University Libraries (SUL) is seeking a talented software engineer to
support the discovery and delivery of digital library content. This is a four-
year term position with the possibility for renewal.

  
The Discovery Engineer will primarily develop digital library software to
enable management, indexing, and online discovery of digital library
materials. This position is part of the Application Development team in the
Digital Library Systems and Services (DLSS) unit of SUL.

  
The Discovery Engineer will be primarily focused on enhancing discoverability
of SUL content via SearchWorks (http://searchworks.stanford.edu), specialized
collection websites, and on the open web. As a member of the DLSS development
team, the Discovery Engineer will also contribute to the overall development
of the Stanford Library's web and digital library infrastructure, and help
plan, specify, and build the technologies needed to support the University's
goal of ubiquitous access to scholarly information.

  
Primary Responsibilities:

  
• Enhance SearchWorks and other digital content delivery environments (50%).
As part of a team of digital library experts, enhance functionality, add data
sources, and integrate external services to maximize access to library assets
and value to patrons. Participate in the design and development of all levels
of the "discovery stack", including engineering for web, application & data
store (solr, et al.), data processing flows, user-centered design and
analytics. Understand, apply and assist in the creation of access systems
appropriate for different resource types (e.g., catalog records, archives,
digital collections, full text, media, web harvests, research data) and
different user needs.

  
• Develop workflows, metadata creation strategies, and presentation strategies
for archival materials (e.g., Encoded Archival Description documents; born
digital archives; digitized archives) (20%). Provide engineering support for
archival processing at Stanford, including implementation / integration of
different systems to support processing and access to archival materials,
e.g., ArchivesSpace, Online Archives of California, EAC-CPF, Stanford Digital
Repository, SearchWorks, etc.)

  
• Track and apply known and emerging best practices in digital resource access
for both human and machine users, such as schema.org, RDF, linked data, and
(web) analytics. (20%) Expand DLSS's current web analytics program and propose
new strategies for leveraging analytics data to improve discoverability of SUL
content. Contribute to data modeling, transformations and engineering efforts
to leverage and bridge both XML- and RDF-based metadata and object
representations.

  
• Contribute to and help drive open source and community
efforts that further Stanford's library services (10%). Represent Stanford and
help enhance critical projects, including Hydra (http://projecthydra.org/) and
Blacklight (http://projectblacklight.org) and Fedora Commons to serve as a
full text, image and media delivery environment.

  
Qualifications

  
Required Qualifications and Demonstrated Experience:

  
• Expertise in Ruby and Ruby on Rails, both for application development and in
engineering an enhanced framework, including plug-ins, engines and gems, for
developing library and repository applications.

• Demonstrated ability to develop new programming skills
quickly, and to grasp unfamiliar architectures and application designs
quickly.

• Demonstrated ability to write solid, simple, elegant code
both independently and in a team-programming environment and within schedule
limitations.

• Demonstrated expertise with XML and related tools and technologies (e.g.,
XML schema, schema management and databases, XSLT, X-forms).

• Experience with relational database design and management. Experience
implementing database applications for SQL Server, Oracle, or MySQL.

• Demonstrated ability to work independently on a project from specification
to launch; communicate effectively, orally and in writing; and work with all
levels of staff, vendors, and consultants.

• Demonstrated success working in a team environment applying user-centered
design and agile development practices.

• Demonstrated proficiency applying best practices to technical projects,
especially test-first development and automated testing. Also must make
effective use of team collaboration tools, build management, and version
control systems.

• Quick and self-bootstrapping learner. Particularly adept at quickly learning
new scripting and programming languages.

• Four-year college degree or equivalent with five to seven years demonstrated
experience required.

• At the 4P4 level, more than seven years relevant experience and demonstrated
expertise in advancing discovery in a complex information environment
required.

  
  
Desired Knowledge and Skills:

  
• Advanced degree desired

• Demonstrated knowledge and expertise in the requirements, issues and methods
of discovery, search and/or information retrieval, especially in an academic
environment and/or web environment.

• Demonstrated success participating in community-based open source projects,
specifically those relevant to the Stanford Libraries' Digital Library
architecture, such as Fedora, Blacklight, Solr or Hydra.

• Demonstrated success participating in and contributing to open source
software development projects.

• Demonstrated experience with library applications and technology, including
experience participating in relevant library open source efforts.

• In-depth knowledge of library policies and practice, metadata standards and
the scholarly communication framework

• Familiarity with the process of digitizing images, text, audio and video in
cultural heritage institutions.

• Familiarity with RDF, semantic web, and linked data technologies and
practices

• Familiarity with XML schemas used to describe digitized cultural heritage
materials, such as TEI, MODS, METS, and EAD.

• Familiarity with web technologies, specifically crawlers, search engine
optimization and web analytics.

• Prior, successful experience working as a professional in an academic,
archival and/or library environment.

  
Official application must happen via Stanford HR system, here:https://stanford.taleo.net/careersection/jobdetail.ftl?job=10519&lang=en&sn
s_id=mailto



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