Abstract
As Collins (2001) found in his evaluation of how companies evolve from “good” to “great,” one of the key components of such a transition is to focus less on continuing tasks, and more on NOT continuing tasks. Today’s librarians are juggling instruction, reference, collection development, outreach, and the need to develop new expertise in emerging areas, such as data curation, multimedia resources, institutional repositories, and more. Librarians cannot responsibly continue all traditional tasks while facing shifting budget priorities and new responsibilities. As noted in ARL’s Issue Brief (2012), “never before have we been required to grasp so many dimensions of research in order to make wise decisions” (p.1). In order to meet needs on campus that do not fit within traditional collection models or siloed subject collection practices, the James Madison University Libraries committed to evaluating and implementing more flexible approaches to collection development. These proceedings detail JMU’s Applied Health Sciences Librarians’ adoption of a collapsed monographic acquisition model. The model’s ability to address sustainable and flexible approaches to selection, reduction of duplication of efforts, alignment of collecting practices with budget priorities, and cross‐disciplinary campus needs are explored.
Moving Librarian Collecting from Good to Great: Results from the First Year of a Librarian Liaison Collaborative Monographic Purchasing Project
As Collins (2001) found in his evaluation of how companies evolve from “good” to “great,” one of the key components of such a transition is to focus less on continuing tasks, and more on NOT continuing tasks. Today’s librarians are juggling instruction, reference, collection development, outreach, and the need to develop new expertise in emerging areas, such as data curation, multimedia resources, institutional repositories, and more. Librarians cannot responsibly continue all traditional tasks while facing shifting budget priorities and new responsibilities. As noted in ARL’s Issue Brief (2012), “never before have we been required to grasp so many dimensions of research in order to make wise decisions” (p.1). In order to meet needs on campus that do not fit within traditional collection models or siloed subject collection practices, the James Madison University Libraries committed to evaluating and implementing more flexible approaches to collection development. These proceedings detail JMU’s Applied Health Sciences Librarians’ adoption of a collapsed monographic acquisition model. The model’s ability to address sustainable and flexible approaches to selection, reduction of duplication of efforts, alignment of collecting practices with budget priorities, and cross‐disciplinary campus needs are explored.