LIBR 520 Collection Management

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LIBR 520Collection Management

Developing collections Winter 2006
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Selection

• Selection is both an art and a science. It
  results from a combination of knowledge,
  experience, and intuition.
• Johnson, p. 103

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The Selection Process

• Material selection has been called the most
  fascinating, most important, most interesting,
  but the most difficult of the professional
  librarians responsibilities
• Only general guidelines can be given,
• You have to rely on reviews of uneven quality,
• You must rely on intuition and professional
  judgment when you decide whether or not to select
  a book, a video, or a database.

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History of Selection

• Excellent background material -
  http//lib.lmu.edu/dlc4
• Key Writers/Theorists Decade of Influence
• Lionel McColvin 1920s
• Arthur Bostwick 1920s
• Frances Drury 1930s
• Helen Haines 1950s 60s
• (text - Living With Books)
• S.R. Ranganathan 1950s -
• William Katz 1980s

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History of Selection continued

• Key Writers/Theorists Decade of Influence
• William Katz 1980s
• Robert Broadus 1980s
• Richard Garden 1980s
• David Spiller 1980s 90s
• Charles Robinson 1980s
• (Baltimore County Library)
• Give em what they want
• William Wortman 1990s

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Selection Aids

• 1. In-print/online lists (BIP)
• 2. Catalogues, flyers
• 3. Current reviews
• 4. National bibliographies
• 5. Online databases (OCLC)
• 6. Recommended lists (Wilson Series)
• 7. Subject bibliographies

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ReviewsWhat will you find in a good review?

• 1. Description of contents - what is it about.
• 2. Indication of quality.
• 3. Comparison with other works on same topic.
• 4. Tag line at the end indicating overall
  judgment and who should purchase the material.

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ReviewsWhat will you find in a bad review?

• 1. Information has been taken from the book
  jacket, CD-ROM package, or publishers publicity.
• 2. Review just recounts the plot- often happens
  with fiction, biography and travel sources.
• 3. Information is off-topic - reviewer uses the
  item as a platform for his own accomplishments.

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Beware of Reviews Why?

• 1. Often composed quickly, sometimes from galley
  proofs.
• 2. Only a small number of items published get a
  review anywhere.
• 3. Some subjects are more likely than others to
  be reviewed
• Lots of reviews for history, biography, travel
• Few reviews for religious, how-to-do-it,
  fringe-politics materials

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Beware of Reviews Why?

• 4. New authors find it difficult to get published
  and even more difficult to get reviewed.
• 5. Small community of reviewing experts within
  one subject.
• 6. Be aware of the audience for whom the review
  is intended

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Interpreting the Language of Reviews

• At one extreme, when the
• publicist thinks the scholar
  says...
• boring.serious
• dull in-depth
• pedantic. accurate
• high-brow and safeintellectually sound
• of interest only to a minority.examines a
  specialist issue
• flatters an individual..recognizes a key
  contribution
• excessive attention to detail...new
  perspectives
• old fashioned.cultural
• constrainedselective
• precious.artistic
• hardly noticedwell-reviewed

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Interpreting the Language of Reviews

• But, when the publicist says the scholar
  thinks
• easy to understand.superficial
• entertaining . .trite
• stimulating.undignified
• topical...fashionable
• profitable...commercial
• broad-brush...crude
• interpretative.spoon-feeding
• well-presented..glossy
• supported by sponsorship adulterated by
  advertising
• well-advertised driven by media hype
• well-designedunnecessarily expensive

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Selection Questions

• 1. Should the reputation of the author and/or
  publisher matter?

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Selection Questions

• 2. Should you order only materials which are
  accurate or should you order the best
  representation of particular points of view or
  particular beliefs?

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Selection Questions

• 3. Should you strive to select only materials
  which are impartial or unbiased?

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Selection Questions

• 4. Should you purchase materials which you
  believe are at risk for theft?

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Selection Questions

• 5. Should you buy just one expensive high-
• quality item or two less expensive
• medium-quality items?
• 1 for or
• 2 for

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Selection Questions

• 6. Should you consider outsourcing your selection
  process?

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Selection Questions

• 7. Should your purchasing be influenced most by
  customer demand?

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Quality vs. Demand Continuum

• Selection should be governed by the quality of
  the material. Libraries are not in the mass
  market game.
• OR
• Selection should be governed by demand.
• We should buy the material that will circulate
• the most, giving people what they want.

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Two BIG Selection Questions for Many Libraries ...

• Centralized vs. In-house vs.
• De-centralized Outsourced

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Libraries and media consolidation

• Media, including publishers, consolidating
• Publishing driven by marketplace/profit-driven
• Content becoming more homogenous
• Vendors/distributors deal with similar publishers
• Small press/alternative publishers
  under-represented
• Library collections becoming more homogenous
• Librarians/small publishers must work together

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What about intellectual freedom?

• Cornerstone of how libraries build collections
• Asheim Principle (Not Censorship, But Selection)
• art of selection is knowing whats appropriate
  for collection
• CM policy key for defending IF challenges

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Sources of IF challenges in libraries

• Legal or government
• Individuals or groups
• Self-censorship by library staff

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Types of censorship in libraries

• removal of item from collection
• restricted access (incl. internet filters)
• labelling of item
• not purchasing wait and see attitude
• use of library space - public libraries

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Beware of self-censorship

• Everyone has a bias
• beware of excuses its too expensive
• or
• doesnt meet our mandate
• or
• someone else will buy it
• or
• must have missed that one!

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• In book selection for library service the ideal
  to be maintained is the ideal that Clive Bell
  makes the definition of civilization A sense of
  values and reason enthroned.
• Helen Haines in Living with Books

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Relationship Between Acquisitions and Collection
Management

• Used to be just acquisitions, because
  collections werent managed.
• Locating and acquiring the items identified as
  appropriate for the collection

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Acquisitions

• Rapidly changing area of technical services
• Little or no direct patron input
• Key to getting patron requests on the shelf
• Key to positive image of the library

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Duties of an Acquisitions Department

• 1. Clearinghouse for information
• - publishers catalogues, review journals,
  electronic notices
• 2. Process requests
• - gather and amalgamate requests
• - verify bibliographic data
• 3. Send order to best supplier

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Duties of an Acquisitions Department

• 4. License electronic resources
• 5. Claim for orders not filled
• 6. Receive and check materials
• - both hardcopy and electronic
• 7. Monitor expenditure of funds
• 8. Prepare and disseminate budget reports
• 9. Monitor performance of suppliers

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Technology and Acquisitions Departments

• EDI computer to computer exchange of business
  information
• Ordering, invoicing, receiving
• Industry standards (ANSI)
• Data elements ISSN, ISBN, title, po , price
  etc
• EDI approval plan means increased efficiency

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• Who are they?
• Jobbers purchase quantities of materials from
  various publishers, then sell the copies to
  bookstores and libraries

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• Why use a jobber?
• A. One order for 10 books rather
• than 10 separate orders.
• B. One invoice to pay.
• C. One box to unpack.
• D. One place to claim.

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• Selected well-known jobbers
• 1. Baker and Taylor
• 2. Blackwells
• 3. Brodart
• 4. Coutts Library Services Limited
• 5. Ingram
• 6. National Book Service (NBS)
• 7. United Library Service (ULS)
• 8. Librarybound

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• When selecting a jobber, one should keep several
  factors in mind
• Service availability
• - local representative?
• - toll-free numbers?
• Quality of customer service
• - ask for and check references
• - track record of handling problems

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• Selecting a jobber
• Fulfillment statistics
• - overall rate
• - speed
• - accuracy
• - commitment
• Discounts and pricing
• Jobbers financial viability

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• Selecting a jobber
• Jobbers ability to work with the librarys
  automation system key
• Special services available - free and fee

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• Possible special services
• Acquisition assistance - searches and
  verification, for example
• Automated selection assistance programs (some
  including book reviews)
• Book rental plans
• Cataloguing and shelf-ready processing
• Electronic financial transactions beyond the
  basics
• Provision of electronic tables of contents or
  machine-readable data

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Jobbers, Vendors, Wholesalers

• In collection management, choosing the right
  vendor is second only in importance to choosing
  the right materials. Adapted from Building
  Library Collections by Dorothy Broderick and
  Arthur Curley

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Types of Orders Different Ways to Get Materials

• A. Firm order, also known as title by title
• publishers catalogues, review tools,
  bibliographies
• can order directly from the publisher or through
  a jobber (agent)
• public libraries and special libraries often
  acquire material this way

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Types of Orders (continued)

• B. Standing Order
• often for items in a series that you know youll
  want, such as yearbooks (Whitakers)
• can be placed with publisher or jobber
• used by both public and academic libraries

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Types of Orders (continued)

• C. Approval Plan
• materials sent to the library according to a
  pre-arranged set of criteria called a profile
• slips can be sent instead of materials slip
  plan
• began in the 1960s in large research libraries
• used across library sector
• small percentage may be returned (aim for 2-5)
• success of plan remains with the library

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Types of Orders (continued)

• D. Blanket order (uses profiles)
• narrow subject area or single publisher
• E. Deposit (government)
• F. Gifts
• G. Exchanges (other libraries)
• H. McNaughton type/book rental plans
• Brodart

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Library Approval Plan Profile Options

• 1. Subjects (Class numbers)
• 2. Publisher
• 3. Academic Level
• 4. Readership Level
• 5. Type of Library

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Library Approval PlanProfile Options

• 6. Type of Book
• 7. Type of Edition
• 8. Language of Book
• 9. Language of Original in Translation
• 10. Format of Publication
• 11. Ceiling price
• 12. Country of Origin

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And dont forget alternative and small presses

• What is an alternative press?
• non-mainstream, non-corporate
• profit, non-profit (many small presses)
• content - radical, social or political viewpoints
• voice of ignored viewpoint
• outside the large vendor approval plans
• harder to obtain reviews Small Press Review
• source of IF challenges!
• key to fighting increasingly bland collections

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Alt Press Resources

• Dilevko, Juris and Kalina Grewal. "A New Approach
  to Collection Bias in Academic Libraries The
  Extent of Corporate Control in Journal Holdings."
  Library Information Science Research 19.4
  (1997) 359 - 85
• Kranich, Nancy. "A Question of Balance The Role
  of Libraries in Providing Alternatives to the
  Mainstream Media." Collection Building 19.3
  (2000) 85 - 90. Also available on the Web
  lthttp//libr.org/Juice/issues/vol3/LJ_3.18.html12
  gt
• Excellent online bibliography, The Alternative
  Presse and Academic Libraries -
  http//www.mta.ca/library/altpress_libraries.html

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Statement on Principles Standards of
Acquisition Practicehttp//www.ala.orgselect
section on Association for Library Collections
Technical Services