Hey folks, it seems like a long time since I actually wrote anything for this blog (probably because it has been a long time since I wrote anything for this blog). So i thought i should fill you in about what i have been getting up to library-wise over the past month (or two)…
Well, I have recently taken over responsibility for the journals administration within my organisation, which i am really enjoying. I’ve made up a couple of spreadsheets to keep track of things, and have had the annual renewal form in from the subscription agent that we use to supply many of our journals, so i have had lots to keep me amused. The person who previously did the journals has now left the organisation, and the journals supervisor is on maternity leave, so its really just down to me and the two lovely women who deal with the check-ins, invoices etc.
We have been thinking a lot about cancelling journals in order to save both money and time. In our organisation, people will probably be shocked to hear that there is no real budget for books/journals which is set for the year, but even so it has become important for us to consider journals which are not representing value for money and are wasting the time of the Information Officers, and not really benefiting our members.
This has really been my first experience of weeding out stock, and making judgements about which items to continue stocking and which to cancel. We are currently seeking everyone’s opinions on this, based upon data which the deputy manager has compiled from the database. We are looking at journals which cost a lot of money, those which we have not abstracted much from, those which no one has really requested, those which have not contributed to the weekly bulletin that we produce, as well as those which are increasing in price this year.
A few recommendations have been made already, but it remains to be seen what will stay and what will go. It is remarkably difficult sometimes to decide what is most important, when all the journals have such different articles, quality, number of issues, costs, subject matters etc.
It would probably be really useful to draw up some kind of ’score sheet’ to assess journals by, which could then be used as a basis for cancellations. I guess people looking at the data produced by our manager are doing something similar mentally though, as I know I was.
I wonder how other libraries etc. decide upon what stays and what goes within their organisation? It would be quite interesting to find out, as this is something which I have very little experience of, as like I said, we don’t really have a budget, and are currently not too affected by space contraints which might merit such weeding of stock.
