Managing electronic resources certainly seems like it should be a full-time job onto itself.
If I were to guess, before reading the articles for this week, what a day in the life of an electronic resources librarian would be like, it would go something like this:
8a-9am Staff meeting. (there are always staff meetings).
9am-10am Teach citation management software class
11am-12pm Test links
12pm-1pm Take lunch. Wait, don't take lunch. Figure out why link resolver to database is not working. Call system admin. Find out that problem is with publisher. Stay on hold while it is sorted out.
1pm-2pm. Web conference with vendor to discuss latest additions to their subscription package.
2pm-3pm Go to gym, get a massage. Ha ha, just kidding. Budget meeting
3pm-4pm Start trying to decide which subscriptions to cancel now that budget is even smaller
4pm-4:15pm Lunch at last!
4:15 to 5pm Webinar on latest COUNTER standard
5 pm to 6 pm. Work with usage statistics to create report for meeting next week
According to the Albitz & Shelburne article, the primary responsibilities of an ER librarian as described in 2000/2001 surveys are: ER Coordination, purchase management, acquisition, renewals and cancellations, license and pricing negotiations, and troubleshooting technical problems. Newer responsibilities that ER librarians noted in the 2005 survey include link-resolver maintenance, coordination or trials of projects and usage statistics management.
An interesting point brought up in this article is that non of the ER librarians surveyed reported having a background in ER management. ER management is still a new and developing field. Very likely more and more MLS graduates will have received some training in ER management.
Other main points of the Albitz & Shelburne article are that being an ER librarian is kind of like being through the looking glass, because job duties are so quickly evolving and changing, and ER staff may feel removed the reality of other library staff. In addition, job descriptions for ER librarians are often overambitious and unrealistic, and do not describe what ER librarians actually do.
I found a sample posting for an "Electronic Management Resource Librarian" posted in Against the Grain for a position at Colorado State University. It did indeed contain a very long and intimidating list of job responsibilities. All responsibilities are very much related to the management of electronic resources, suggesting that it has grown into its own as a position since the surveys mentioned. The posting only asked for two years of experience with electronic resource management, which is not all that much. Other qualifications include knowledge of database structure (yay, SLIS751) and computer logic (hmm...need to take some DoIT classes) and electronic document delivery.
Curiously, the next article, "How to Survive as a new Serialist," recommends that new ER librarians carefully peruse their job description for hints of what to actually do. Other useful hints from this article include:
- Learn the ILS
- Don't panic
- Get training
- Learn about associations and go to conferences
- Discover resources on managing serials
- Be part of discussion groups
- Learn from colleagues
Process Mapping for Electronic Resources: A business model
In this chapter, Afifi describes the use of process mapping to document and improve electronic resources acquisition workflow. I took the Health Information Systems class that is cross listed with Industrial Engineering, and we spent a lot of time talking about the use of engineering and business tools to evaluate work processes in information systems. My impression was, and is, that although these tools seem silly and oversimplistic (i.e. documenting a process in little steps, with swim lanes) that actually they provide really valuable feedback on how a workflow functions, and what can be done to improve it. Breaking big, complicated, multi-doer tasks into smaller pieces for analysis by a predetermined model works very well. I think that using process mapping to analyze electronic resource management is a great idea. Also, engineering students are a good resource for a library to utilize. Projects where students apply engineering principles to workflows can be helpful, and don't cost anything.
The chapter contains some nice diagrams on Electronic Resource workflow, worth keeping around. I think that they would fit well into the survival guide for serialists.
References:
1. Rebecca S. Albitz, Wendy Allen Shelbern (2007) “Marian Through the Looking Glass: The Unique Evolution of the Electronic Resources (ER) Librarian Position” in Mark Jacobs (Ed) Electronic Resources Librarianship and Management of Digital Information: Emerging and Professional Roles, Binghamton NY: Hayword, pp 15-30.
2. Glenda Griffin (2009) “How to survive as a new serialist” Chapter in The E-Resources Management Handbook. (2006-present) Editor Graham Stone, Rick Anderson, Jessica Feinstein.
http://uksg.metapress.com/openurl.asp?genre=article&id=doi:10.1629/9552448-0-3.18.1
3. Afifi, M. “Process Mapping for Electronic Resources: A Lesson From Business Models” Chapter 6 in H. Yu and S. Breivold Electronic Resource Management in Libraries: Research and Practice. Information Science Reference: Hershey PA, 2008.
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