notsl—putting your vendors to work for you
DESCRIPTION
NOTSL—Putting your Vendors to Work for You. June 3, 2005 Cuyahoga County Public Library Parma, Ohio. Acquiring Books: Approval Plans and Cooperative Collection Management. Julia Gammon Head, Acquisitions University of Akron & Chair, OhioLINK Collection Building Task Force - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
NOTSL—Putting your Vendors to Work for You
June 3, 2005 Cuyahoga County Public Library Parma, Ohio
Acquiring Books: Approval Plans and Cooperative Collection Management
Julia GammonHead, Acquisitions University of Akron& Chair, OhioLINK Collection Building Task [email protected]
Points to Cover
“Invention” of Approval Plan
Approval Plans today Using Approval Plans
for Cooperative Collection Development in OhioLINK
After Lunch Speaker...
Pre-1950s Book Ordering
Hit-or-miss proposition Librarians ordered from: LC
proof slips, books reviews, faculty requests
Orders sent direct to publishers
Long delays Few vendors called No discounts
Book Buying in the ’50s
Farmington Plan Greenway Plan Public Law 480 Special Foreign
Currency Program None allowed returns
The ’60s Revisited…
Arrival of approval plan Libraries had $$$$$ Instructional programs
expanding rapidly Shortage of trained
professional staff
Who Invented the Approval Plan?
Richard Abel Reed College Bookstore,
Portland Oregon Don Smith librarian at
Washington State University News spread in the region Offered books and slip plans
Richard Abel Company
First mention in library press 1966 Librarians flocked to join Advantages:
– Fast– Reduced cost for libraries– Systematized collection of materials
Enter the 70s…
Abel’s fast growth caused problems
Financial problems Less money for libraries
to spend 1975 bankruptcy B.H. Blackwell bought
the assets and created BNA.
What’s in a Name?
“Approval Plans” “Gathering Plans” “Slip Plans” “Blanket Order Plans” “Standing Order Plans “Lease Plans”
Present Day: Approval Plans Still Flourish
Subject Based Publisher Based Foreign Imprints Language Based Children’s books
Critics say….
Abdicating selection responsibility to vendors
Vendor’s staff don’t know our needs
Library staff review of books takes more time
Inertia will cause acceptance of all books!
Advantages:
Speed of delivery Make sure you don’t miss it Allows time for collection
managers to focus on other things
Evaluations made with books in hand
Saves library staff time with vendor’s services
Allows library to take advantage of technology
How to Select an Approval Plan Vendor
Profile: Is it structured to work with your polices?
Publishers: Is the publisher base adequate?
Selections: Do the books sent match the profile?
Cost: Is there a discount?
Slips: Are slips and books provided?
Reports: Does vendor have useable reports?
Staff: How easy is vendor to work with ?
Process: Is it accurate, error free and smooth?
Thoughts on Implementation…
Do you have buy-in from selectors? Do you have the budget to afford the plan
you want? Do you have the procedures and staff in
place to make it work? Do you have a collection development policy
to assist in profiling with vendor?
Using Approval Plans (and more) for Cooperative Collection Development
in OhioLINK
OhioLINK’s Journey
Here I am at yet another OhioLINK committee meeting
and another sandwich.
The Committees
OhioLINK Collection Building Task Force
We meet often…..
+5,560 meetings +31,100 cups of coffee +18,200 muffins +20,800 lunches 4,000,000 frequent driver miles 65,000 hours singing with the radio 8,000 lunch upgrades
OhioLINK’s Collection Building Task Force (CBTF) Charge
To reduce unnecessary duplication
To increase local CD activities
To expand the amount spent on cooperative purchases
To move beyond books…
What did our OhioLINK collection look like in 1997?
Approval Plans: Duplication & Homogenization
In 1997 Tom Sanville, Director of OhioLINK found:
– Number of titles with 5 or more copies was increasing
– But number of unfilled borrowing requests was growing
Duplication and Homogenization? Why was this happening?
It was attributed to our approval plans. We were all buying, or not buying—
the same books!
Collection Building Task Force: Abridged History
1997 Discussions began 1998 Wrote statewide RFP 1998 Selected vendor—YBP 1999 Libraries began receiving books YBP—Began with 5 customers to 80+ now
What’s the value of working with a primary vendor?
Develop a relationship to force your agenda
Bigger stick to get what you want
Big & small will get favorable discount
Share ideas, processes & expertise
Remember: There are no economies of scale for the vendor
Early Myths & Misconceptions
We had a consortial approval plan “supra profile”
Participation was mandatory There were set copy limits There was no local
autonomy This was going to be a piece
of cake!
What barriers did we face?
Folks, It Ain’t Easy!
Cooperation takes work New relationships need to be developed Not all wanted to switch vendors Processes & procedures can become
entrenched Old habits die hard
How did we remove barriers?
Kept it voluntary Invited folks to participate in
the process “What it is and what it isn’t”
document Designed training &
education plan Found librarians “sell” better
than vendors Promoted our successes no
matter how small
What makes it work in Ohio?
Long history of cooperation
Shared catalog Shared GOBI Local decision making
Geographic proximity Compatible vendor Training, education &
marketing Trust & shared vision
YBP’s Tools: GOBI to the rescue
GobiTween
“Not Bought” Reports
Peer Reports
“GobiTween” Report
Can check prior to purchase Find out what others are purchasing Find out what books are expected on
approval plans or standing orders Make informed decision
“Not-Bought” Reports
Select a time frame Select a searching
method Run list on GOBI Evaluate choices Select items to order Any number can play
“Peer” Reports
Compare our collections to others Local, state, national comparison How do we rate?
OhioLINK Cooperative Collection Management is more than just reports……
Cooperative projects ….
Share approval plan profiles
Share “best practices” Coordinate standing
orders Maintain a CCD website “Last copy” lists Depository duplication
limits
What are some examples of cooperative projects?
Religion, Art, Math, Engineering, Computer Science, Music etc.
CONSORT—5 college consortium
RFP for Serials Subscriptions
Subject Group Listservs
Purpose: To facilitate CCD & resource sharing
28+ groups on listservs “Anthropology” to
“Psychology” Communicate with
each other
Taking the show on the road…
Consortial wide meetings Summit meeting: Director
level Road Shows: “Building
Blocks and Tool Chests” & “Best Practices in CCD”
Summit meeting: collection managers “Walking the Walk”
Vendor driven training sessions
What does our OhioLINK collection look like today?
Number of OhioLINK Central Catalog Master Records - by # of Holdings
-
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004
Mill
ions
As of October:
more than 7765432only 1
What are we gaining?
A more diverse collection
Ability to influence vendor products
Multiple cooperative collection building projects
New operational efficiencies
Cooperative Collection Development in Consortia
Word is getting out Interest is high Technology is there Money & staff are tight End Result: More cooperation!
Cooperative Collection Management is still a journey …not a destination.
Souvenir of Akron