Jane Nichols

The "Get It" Department: Oregon State University's Strategic Realignment of Collection Services

In 2010, Oregon State University Libraries underwent library-wide strategic realignment. We sought to transform the Libraries’ structure and create units with renewed and innovative purposes. We wanted to position ourselves to anticipate and address users’ needs and expectations both now and in the future. One unit that OSU Libraries created was the Collections and Resource Sharing Department (CRSD). Colloquially referred to as the “Get It” Department, CRSD combines collection development, acquisitions, access services, and interlibrary loan into a single unit. The department’s purpose is to focus on user-centered collection services employing a number of strategies. This article discusses the factors that influenced the creation of this department, including a campus-wide strategic realignment and a growing prevalence and demand for unmediated collection services such as patron-driven acquisitions. We will also address the challenges this new department faces as well factors that need to be in place to make this initiative successful. NOTE: The presentation given at the Charleston Conference is available at: http://hdl.handle.net/1957/19175.

Nuanced and Timely: Capturing Collections Feedback at Point of Use

While libraries are using increasingly sophisticated metrics to determine electronic resource’s usefulness, impact, and cost effectiveness, much of these data reflect past usage. More nuanced information is still needed to guide collection managers’ decisions about which content to purchase, borrow, or deselect. To fill this gap, librarians at Oregon State University Libraries and Press and The Ohio State University Libraries are testing the utility of a pop-up survey to gather patron feedback at their point of use. By building an opensource application that inserts a survey between a citation and the full text, librarians are better positioned to capture users’ real-time reasons for selecting a given resource. Usage data can then be linked to qualitative information through questions such as whether a resource is being used for research or teaching; whether a user considers the journal core to their project; or even, if the resource is being used in class or with a student. Inspired by MINES for Libraries® this application was created to understand e-resource use beyond clicks. The authors discuss how the application works, whether users responded to the pop-up survey as expected, and other preliminary findings.

Shared advocacy through data – looking beyond the high cost of journals

Academic libraries have a long history of advocating for additional funding for their collections. One strategy is to partner with a Faculty Senate Library Committee (FSLC) to take on the cause. In spring 2011 OSU Libraries began this process by presenting our FSLC with a range of data they could use to tell our story to the Faculty Senate, campus administration, and other stakeholders. We will continue to work with them to advocate for our collec‐ tions budget. As we explore these issues for our campus, larger questions come up. Which data best promotes libraries? What are additional strategies to pique campus stakeholders’ interest in a librarys success? How can assessment data be used to strengthen our case for a better budget? Should libraries focus on our diminished pur‐ chasing power or our increased partnerships with faculty?