This expanded and greatly enhanced edition of Understanding the Business of Library Acquisitions provides all new information about successfully managing acquisitions through optimum staffing, sound acquisitions practices, and effective organization. Many chapters have been updated to reflect the emphasis on the use of technology in acquisitions.
For over a decade, some academic libraries have been purchasing, rather than borrowing, recently published books requested by their patrons through interlibrary loan. These books had one circulation guaranteed and so appealed to librarians who were concerned about the large percentage of books selected and purchased by librarians but never checked out by their patrons. Early assessments of the projects indicated that patrons selected quality books that in many cases were cross disciplinary and covered emerging areas of scholarly interest. However, now we have a significant database of the ILL purchase records to compare these titles with books selected through normal methods. The projects described in this book present a powerful argument for involving patrons in the book selection process. This book looks at patron-driven acquisitions for printed books at Purdue University, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Illinois, as well as exploring new programs that allow patrons to select e-books or participate in other innovative ways in building the library collections. This book was published as a special issue of Collection Management.
About 40 percent of the books academic libraries purchase in traditional ways never circulate and another 40 percent circulate fewer than three times. By contrast, patron-driven acquisition allows a library to borrow or buy books only when a patron needs them. In a typical workflow, the library imports bibliographic records into its catalogue at no cost. When a patron finds a patron-driven record in the course of research, a short-term loan can allow him to borrow the book, and the transaction charge to the library will be a small percentage of the list price. Typically, a library will automatically buy a book on a third or fourth use. The contributions in this volume, written by experts, describe the genesis and brief history of patron-driven acquisitions, its current status, and its promise.
Written from the perspective of a librarian, this book offers a comprehensive overview of the impact of e-books on academic libraries. The author discusses advantages to both researchers and librarians and provides current examples of innovative uses of e-books in academic contexts. This book reviews the current situation in e-book publishing, and describes problems in managing e-books in libraries caused by the variety of purchase models and varying formats available, and the lack of standardisation. It discusses solutions for providing access and maintaining bibliographic control, looks at various initiatives to publicise and promote e-books, and compares e-book usage surveys to track changes in user preferences and behaviour over the last decade. E-books have already had a huge impact on academic libraries, and major advances in technology will bring further changes. There is a need for collaboration between libraries and publishers. The book concludes with reflections on the future of e-books in academic libraries. - Describes how e-books have changed library services and how they have enabled academic libraries to align with the e-learning initiatives of their universities - Discusses problems with e-book collection development and management and lists examples of solutions - Examines trends in user behaviour and acceptance of e-books
Addresses the basic ordering and receiving functions common to all types of libraries as well as the unique challenges of acquisitions work in health sciences. Includes concepts and strategies for monographs, serials, post-acquisition activity with serials such as binding and maintenance of holding records, and audiovisual and digital media. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
This volume will help you acquire and manage a strong collection for your library, even when budgets are being cut. Topics covered include purchasing materials, formulating selection criteria, sharing materials with other institutions, and evaluating and preserving materials. This edition by the late Elizabeth Futas begins with the results of the author's survey of academic and public libraries. The author then explains how a sharply focused and clearly articulated collections development policy can assist libraries in providing the best possible service in the most cost-effective manner. These and other ideas, practices, and policies in this new edition will allow libraries to continue meeting the needs of their particular constituents, even in uncertain economic times.
"Depending on the structure of a library, acquisitions may involve or work with collection management, subject librarians, electronic resources, preservation, cataloging, and library administration due to the management and use of collection materials budgets. Acquisitions staff will also be involved in working with material library vendors. Taking on acquisitions responsibilities requires learning how to order materials in a variety of formats; learning basic accounting and budgeting practices; a knowledge of institutional fiscal and procurement policies and practices; along with strong communication skills as acquisitions librarians truly interact with staff in all library departments, as well as outside vendors. Some aspects of the work, such as managing collection budgets, allocations, expenditures, and encumbrances can at times be daunting, especially when end-of-year deadlines are looming. However, the variety of responsibilities that come with acquisitions make this one of the most rewarding service points in a library. If you have just taken on acquisitions responsibilities, you will want to understand the basic concepts and philosophy behind acquisitions work and develop an understanding for the day-to-day workflow"--
"Buying and selling a business is a challenging process. It involves rituals and interactions that are sometimes eerily similar to the courtship dynamic between a human couple. While many business courtships end in an economic marriage, plenty of others fail and for a variety of reasons. Many unsuccessful business negotiations could have made sense, but ultimately floundered, because negotiations went badly awry at some crucial point. CCH's brand-new Practical Guide to Mergers, Acquisitions and Business Sales by seasoned business transaction attorney and author, Joseph B. Darby III, J.D., not only explains the tax aspects of buying and selling a business, but examines the special art of closing major business transactions successfully through an understanding of the tax consequences of the deal. ; There also are two other parties with a major economic stake in a business merger, acquisition or sale: the federal government and (usually at least one) state government. The role of a tax adviser on an business acquisition transaction is to make everyone aware that there are two "silent partners" in the room at all times and that the Buyer and Seller have a common interest in cutting the silent partners out of the deal or reducing their take. The purpose and mission of Practical Guide to Mergers, Acquisitions and Business Sales is to teach practitioners and business stakeholders how to pare the tax costs of transactions to the absolute minimum, within the boundaries of ethical and appropriate tax reporting."--Publisher's website.
This comprehensive book covers the philosophy behind RFPs to prime readers to understand how to most effectively write them and provides instruction on navigating the submission process as it applies to multiple types of libraries. For many years, only large academic and public libraries and a few library systems regularly used RFPs. Now, smaller schools, public libraries, and library systems use RFPs as tools to select vendors for computer equipment, online systems, databases, and materials. Library consortia frequently use RFPs to select databases and integrated library systems. In this useful book, readers will learn more about the types and advantages of RFPs; the timelines and logistics for submitting RFPs; how to write different types of RFPs; how to evaluate vendor performance; the transfer process when a new vendor is selected; vendor perspectives; and RFP ethics. An appendix includes sample RFPs and evaluation materials, and a glossary defines language necessary to writing and understanding RFPs. This book is essential reading for librarians who need to select vendors to provide library materials including books, serials, and media in all formats as well as for those who are choosing integrated library systems, security and inventory systems such as RFID, computer equipment and software, online and streaming materials such as books and music, or services such as digitization.
