Best Practices for Increasing Ejournal Usage

As library budgets shrink and the cost of ejournals continues to rise, usage plays an increasingly important role in collections decisions. In 2013, the University of North Carolina (UNC) University Library Advisory Council's E-Journal Efficiencies Working Group created a document outlining best practices for increasing ejournal usage to assist UNC System libraries in improving their efficiency regarding ejournal spending. This article will address and elaborate on those practices, which include raising the visibility of ejournals on the library's website, using third-party services such as discovery tools and apps to create additional access points, facilitating outreach to faculty, and analyzing usage data.     

Developing a Freely Accessible/Open Access Resource Management Policy at Duke University Libraries: A Case Study

Abstract

Freely accessible and open access resources present unique challenges for librarians working with electronic resources. Due to the fact that many of these resources lack high-quality metadata or the technical support provided by traditional publishers, making them discoverable and maintaining access over time can be tricky. Creating a policy allows for a systematic approach to the management of freely accessible/open access (OA) resources, alleviating problems surrounding lack of staff time or expertise. Many of these resources are already important parts of collections and will only continue to grow in importance. Freely accessible/OA resources allow for a more diverse representation of content, both by subject and format type, and allow a wider array of authors to have their work appear in library collections. This case study will provide a review of freely accessible/OA policies in other libraries, describe why these resources are important to add to our collections, discuss challenges libraries face with managing these resources, and explain how Duke University Libraries is addressing some of these challenges through the development of a policy.     

The Impact of Web-Scale Discovery on the Use of Electronic Resources

Abstract

In 2015, the University of California, Berkeley, launched EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS), a web-scale discovery tool, with a goal of improving visibility and usage of collections. This study applies linear regression analysis to usage data for ebooks, ejournals, and abstracts and indexing (A&I) databases before and after implementation of EDS in order to identify correlations between the discovery layer and usage of library electronic resources across platforms. Our findings diverge from conclusions drawn in the previous literature that indicates that resource use generally increases after a discovery tool is implemented. We examine data from a longer period of time than the previous literature had, looking for statistically significant changes in resource use. The discovery layer at UC Berkeley did not lead to equal increases across platforms, but rather to a complex array of increases and decreases in use according to a variety of factors.     

Marriage and Family Periodical Indexes

Abstract

Auburn University Libraries wanted to reduce the amount of work devoted to current print issues in a manner acceptable to public service librarians and patrons. The Current Periodicals collection in the Ralph Brown Draughon (RBD) Library, the main library, has been reduced to only those periodical issues for which reliable online access is not available. Current issues that have online access are kept in the Acquisitions Department in a “closed stacks” arrangement. “Closed stacks” issues are available to patrons upon request. The experience at Auburn University demonstrates that reconfiguring processes for Current Periodicals involves collaboration between technical and public services with minimal difficulties and introduces new efficiencies. The librarians hope to save time and resources and reduce missing issues and claims. They are monitoring patron reaction to the change.     

Communicating E-resource Management Needs to Library Stakeholders: Theory and Praxis

Abstract

Conflict management studies and the communication needs addressed by the NASIG Core Competencies standards will be the framework for how to communicate electronic resource management to library stakeholders. This article provides both theory and praxis as it is applied at Kansas State (K-State) Libraries for electronic resource access ticket resolution. The librarians responding to these tickets at K-State Libraries assessed their communications and workflows in the past year to provide a more effective customer service model. This provides evidence of technical services having public-facing elements in its core activity.     

A New Direction for Library Technical Services: Using Metadata Skills to Improve User Accessibility

Abstract

An increased awareness about the importance of resource accessibility for all library users has set the stage for transforming traditional cataloger roles into a new realm of possibility. The Acquisitions & Discovery (A&D) and the User Experience (UX) departments of North Carolina State University Libraries have formed a partnership to explore the benefits of working together amidst this climate of innovation and change. A pilot project was created to develop a workflow through which technical services staff can use their metadata skills to help resolve accessibility issues found on the Libraries’ main website. By performing this work, staff can grow in technical expertise, enhance the quality of metadata in web content, and build mutually beneficial partnerships within the library community.     

Electronic Journals: Cataloging and Management Practices in Academic Libraries

The growth and availability of electronic journals offer libraries the opportunity to provide end users with quick and easy access to more journals than ever before, thereby creating a complex new workload in academic libraries. Libraries have addressed the evolving challenges unique to electronic resources by creating new policies and workflows and dedicating staff to work on the processes, despite the lack of best practices. In the fall of 2009, a survey was distributed to ninety-five libraries at peer institutions to gather information about their policies and practices for cataloging and managing electronic journals in order to gauge the current status of electronic journal management among these peer institutions. This paper reports on the survey findings related to cataloging approach, sources for bibliographic records, methods for identifying problems, and the staff and staff hours dedicated to electronic journals.     

No Failure,Just Feedback: A Reflection on Experiential Space Assessment in an Academic Library

ABSTRACT

Graduate students at the University of Tennessee Knoxville, funded by an Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) grant (Experience Assessment: UX-A), were tasked with conducting two space assessment studies in the University of Tennessee Libraries. This article reflects on their experiences in conducting the study by understanding the history of academic library and library space assessment. The researchers provide an overview of their learning experience and best practices in space assessment. They also reflect on their experiences as UX-A students who had the opportunity to benefit from experiential learning and mentoring from experienced practitioners.     

Finding the Delicate Balance: Serials Assessment at the University of Nevada,Las Vegas

Abstract

In the spring of 2003 the University Libraries at University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), conducted a Serials Assessment Project which combined technology with effective communication between library users and subject librarians to successfully identify journals that could be cancelled, should cancellations be necessary due to budgetary constraints. Although the library had conducted similar assessments in 1998 and 2000, a fresh look at past assessments resulted in an innovative approach. The project and experience proved to be tremendously positive for both the library and its users. This article describes the planning and process by which the UNLV libraries designed and conducted the 2003 review of UNLV's serials collection, comparing it to methods used in the two previous assessments.     

Electronic Resources Workflow: Design,Analysis and Technologies for an Overdue Solution

During the summer of 2013, a joint team involving Duke University Libraries and IBM spent three months configuring IBM Business Process Manager to improve electronic resources workflows in the Libraries’ Technical Services department. The resulting workflow showcases the application's ability to transform the management of online databases. This article will provide an overview of the “before” and “after” database workflow, with a demo of the new system and its integration points with other tools.     

Me and My Shadow: Observation,Documentation, and Analysis of Serials and Electronic Resources Workflow

Librarians in the Metadata & Cataloging Department at the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Libraries embarked on a comprehensive project to document and review the Libraries' serials and electronic resources workflow with the goals of introducing greater efficiency, clarity, and simplicity into processes across the serials unit and of increasing training opportunities for department-wide understanding of the serials lifecycle. This paper examines the method used to observe and collect information about serials and electronic resources work, the process of synthesizing that information into a graphical representation of the serials lifecycle, and the workflow analysis undertaken to introduce improved serials processes. The value of the project is demonstrated through a discussion of efforts for workflow education, analysis, and improvement at the NCSU Libraries directly instigated by review of the process documentation by technical services staff members.     

Serials and the OCLC Acquisitions Subsystem

Abstract

Academic library consortia, faced with requirements of assessment and accountability, are increasingly pressured to measure the impact of their networked electronic services. Studies on usage of electronic library resources and electronic journals, in particular, proliferate; relatively few focus on the academic library consortium. This paper gives an overview of one assessment tool, MINES for Libraries®, as implemented in the Scholars Portal service of the Ontario Council of University Libraries (OCUL). The novel contributions of this study are twofold: firstly, the creation of peer groups within an academic consortium for comparison purposes, and secondly, the use of regression analysis to explore the correlation between usage and three separate variables outside the MINES survey — library print holdings, library acquisitions budget, and sponsored research revenue.     

Me and My Shadow: Observation,Documentation, and Analysis of Serials and Electronic Resources Workflow

Abstract

Librarians in the Metadata & Cataloging Department at the North Carolina State University (NCSU) Libraries embarked on a comprehensive project to document and review the Libraries' serials and electronic resources workflow with the goals of introducing greater efficiency, clarity, and simplicity into processes across the serials unit and of increasing training opportunities for department-wide understanding of the serials lifecycle. This paper examines the method used to observe and collect information about serials and electronic resources work, the process of synthesizing that information into a graphical representation of the serials lifecycle, and the workflow analysis undertaken to introduce improved serials processes. The value of the project is demonstrated through a discussion of efforts for workflow education, analysis, and improvement at the NCSU Libraries directly instigated by review of the process documentation by technical services staff members.     

Changing from Single to Separate Records: A Case Study from the University of Nevada,Reno

The University of Nevada, Reno Libraries made the decision in early 2012 to convert its bibliographic records from a single record approach, with multiple formats of a title on one bibliographic record, to a separate record approach, where each format receives its own record. This decision was several years in the making, as it was a change that would potentially require breaking apart more than 20,000 records. It would involve numerous staff from different departments and would require adjustments for all staff who worked with library users. This article will discuss the factors that pushed the UNR Libraries to make this decision to split its records and the challenges technical services staff faced in managing the project. The authors will present the different procedures developed for splitting monographic and serial records and the different tools that were used to make the process work: Millennium (especially the ERM and Global Update modules), MarcEdit, and Serials Solutions' MARC Updates service.     

Determining Usage When Vendors Do Not Provide Data

ABSTRACT

When library resource vendors do not provide usage data in consistent, manipulable formats, librarians must find other means to enable themselves to make data-driven collection development decisions. At Eastern Kentucky University (EKU) Libraries, two different approaches have been implemented: OpenURL link resolver analysis and EZproxy log analysis using grep, a GNU open source command-line utility. This column provides an overview of each solution.