world library and information congress 73rd ifla general conference and council cape town...
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World Library and Information Congress73rd IFLA General Conference and Council
Cape Town Pre-Conference, August 16-17, 2007
Electronic Resource Management Systems: Alternative Solutions
Dalene HawthorneEmporia State University [email protected]
Jennifer WatsonUniversity of Tennessee Health Science Center
Introduction• Electronic Resource Management Systems
(ERMS) now exist, but many libraries do not yet own them
• Our premise about why: – ERMS are prohibitively expensive for many
libraries to purchase and implement
• We wanted to know: – Does the size of the collection factor in the
decision-making process?– Are there other reasons libraries have not yet
purchased an ERMS?– What are libraries doing when they can’t justify the
purchase of a full-blown ERMS?– Are there alternative solutions we can share?
Brief Literature Review• Focused the review on the period after
commercial ERM Systems became available
• Most of the literature on ERMS since 2004 is about implementation of commercial ERM Systems
• Some limitations of commercial systems emerged from these articles:– the lack of a solution for organizations with
multiple integrated library systems, such as consortia
– the lack of integration with acquisitions data– commercial systems don’t address local needs
ERMS Survey• Emporia State University and University of
Tennessee Health Science Center representatives presented their alternative solutions at the North American Serials Interest Group meeting
• Realized from the discussion there was a lot of interest in alternatives to full-blown ERM Systems
ERMS Survey
• Decided to conduct a survey to try to learn more about ERM Systems in libraries
• Developed the survey and announced it on e-mail lists in the U.S. and Europe
• Left the survey open for a little over a week
Survey Results
• 196 respondents completed the survey
• Where are they located?– 73.2% United States– 17.1% Europe– 3.2% Canada– 2.8% Australasia– 1.9% Asia– 1.4% Africa– 0.5% South America
Survey Results
• What types of libraries do they represent?– 81.8% Academic– 15.0% Special/Other– 2.8% Public– 0.5% School
How many libraries own a commercial ERMS?
• 50% of responding libraries own commercial ERMS
• Not sure everyone understood the question in the same way
Is price a limiting factor?
• 104 respondents do not own ERMS– 47% indicated cost as a very relevant
factor– Cost was the most relevant factor for
libraries that do not own a commercial ERMS
Does the number of e-resources matter?
• Survey Question: Approximately how many electronic resource licenses does your library manage/renew annually?If you buy a bundle of 12 e-journals or a database, count that as 1 license. Count an individual subscription to an e-journal as 1 license. Please estimate the total even if licenses are handled outside of your library.
Number of resources as a factor in owning an ERMS
• Approximately 40% of libraries with fewer than 100 e-resources own a commercial ERMS
• Approximately 57% of libraries with more than 100 e-resources own a commercial ERMS
Number of resources as a factor in owning an ERMS
• However, 49% of libraries that manage more than 500 e-resources own a commercial ERMS
Other factors?• 28% cited concerns about
interoperability
• 27% cited concerns about functionality
• 25% indicated limited staff and funding to manage an ERMS
• 18% said already have home grown system
Other factors?
• 15% cited limited resources to research which system to buy
• 15% indicated reliance on consortia
• 12% said current workflow was OK
• 11% said they had too few e-resources to justify the expense
• 10% cited unsupportive management
•Homegrown databases
•Vendor tools
•New uses for existing tools
•Content management systems
Alternatives in Practice
•No annual subscription fee
•Ability to instantly update and alter database
•Customize database to needs of library
•Ensure database will integrate into website
•Staff must keep up with e-journal changes
•Technical expertise to maintain database
Homegrown databases
FileMaker
MySQL
•Help handles aspects of e-resources management
•Inspire developers of home-grown tools
Vendor Tools
EBSCOhost EJS
WorldCat Lists
•Library catalog
•Blackboard
•Blog
•Microsoft Excel
•Microsoft Outlook
•Paper calendar
New Uses for Existing Tools
Innovative Catalog
Blackboard
Blog
Microsoft Excel
Microsoft Outlook
Shared Folder
Calendar
Content Management System
• Provides multiple points of access to databases on the library’s website
• Staff have an easy-to-use interface to add and edit databases
Conclusion• Electronic resource management
challenges our organizational skills and tools
• As with any system selection, it is critical to analyze the needs of the institution and select an appropriate solution
• System can be as simple as a paper calendar or as complex as a commercial ERMS
Discussion?
• Are there interesting ideas we haven’t covered?
• Did anyone identify an option that might be useful?
Thank You!Dalene Hawthorne, Emporia State University, [email protected]
Jennifer Watson, University of Tennessee Health Science Center,
We thank Kimberly Parker for graciously agreeing to present for
us!