The evolving approval plan: how academic librarians evaluate services for vendor selection and performance

A survey of 291 academic librarians addressed the question of how libraries choose approval plan vendors, specifically how much emphasis is placed on various approval plan services and product features in choosing between competing approval plan vendors and how vendor performance is rated in those areas. Traditional services, including expertise in managing approval plans, e.g., profiling, and acquisitions services, customer service, and discount rate, along with corporate reputation and business practices, retained their core status. Electronic financial transactions was found to be very important to the libraries already using these services. Outsourcing services, e.g., cataloging or physical processing, with approval plan vendors, although newer, appear established and of considerable interest to some segments. Vendor performance was rated highest in corporate reputation, approval plan management, and in electronic financial transactions. Libraries with approval budgets under $100,000 expressed a degree of satisfaction with approval plan vendors on a level similar to larger libraries.     

Which worked better for Mississippi State: standing orders or an approval plan?

When Mississippi State University Libraries established a university press approval plan, the Collection Development Department was asked to decide whether to cancel existing standing orders with seven university presses or block these presses from the approval plan. Books were received through both avenues for eight months so that cost, timeliness of delivery, and receipt of titles most appropriate for the Libraries’ needs could be compared. Findings showed a 4.72% cost savings with the approval plan, but 82% of the titles were received earlier through the standing orders. Of books received through the standing orders, 29% were not received through the approval plan, with more than half not matching departmental profiles. Return privileges with the approval plan meant unsuitable titles could be returned, a significant advantage not possible with the standing orders. As a result of the study, the libraries chose to cancel the standing orders and receive books selectively through a university press approval plan.     

Which worked better for Mississippi State: standing orders or an approval plan?

When Mississippi State University Libraries established a university press approval plan, the Collection Development Department was asked to decide whether to cancel existing standing orders with seven university presses or block these presses from the approval plan. Books were received through both avenues for eight months so that cost, timeliness of delivery, and receipt of titles most appropriate for the Libraries’ needs could be compared. Findings showed a 4.72% cost savings with the approval plan, but 82% of the titles were received earlier through the standing orders. Of books received through the standing orders, 29% were not received through the approval plan, with more than half not matching departmental profiles. Return privileges with the approval plan meant unsuitable titles could be returned, a significant advantage not possible with the standing orders. As a result of the study, the libraries chose to cancel the standing orders and receive books selectively through a university press approval plan.     

The approval plan profiling session

The approval plan profiling session, when vendor and library meet to establish specifications for a new approval plan, has received little attention in the literature. Preparation for the session requires decisions on a range of issues bearing upon the ultimate success of an approval plan such as publisher scope, subject specifications, duplication control, and budget. Organization of the session itself is also important. In addition to creation of a new profile, the profiling session is an excellent opportunity for library staff and the vendor, working together closely for a day or more, to lay the foundation for a strong and lasting relationship. This article is primarily intended for librarians new to the administration of approval plans. It outlines the steps necessary to organize a successful profiling session, whether for an entirely new approval plan, or for a new plan replacing a plan with another vendor.     

The Art of Crafting Music Score Approval Plans: An Ongoing Process

Although approval plans have long been an accepted tool for monographic collection development, they have seen comparatively slow adoption for music scores. This slow adoption is mirrored by a relative dearth of literature about music score approval plans. At a time when changes in the financial and publishing landscape are having a profound impact on collection development practices and current trends in organizational restructuring are placing greater demands on librarians' time, the need for contemporary discussion of approval plans is that much greater. This article discusses the ups and downs of one library's foray into music score approval plans.     

Studies in personal and social integration

Data from this experiment indicate that verbal approval of a prior speaker led to disruptive effects on certain speech patterns of a second speaker, both in a condition where the second speaker received no verbal approval and in a condition where the second speaker received verbal approval.

Subjects in these two conditions presented a significantly greater number of nonfluencies than did subjects in a condition where the prior speaker had not received verbal approval. Also, the estimates of speaking time indicate that greater anxiety may have existed in these two conditions.

Unlike some previous research, this experiment yielded no significant differences in speaking rate among the three conditions.     

Music score approval plans in research libraries: A survey of librarian satisfaction with and without approval plans

In this study, the researchers submitted a music score approval plan survey to all ARL libraries. Two surveys were created, one for libraries with music score approval plans, one for those without. Forty-four surveys were returned. The authors' purpose was to analyze and discuss the survey results, incorporating elements of the scholarly work preceding this study. Discussions, roundtables, and listservs participated in by music librarians over the years formed the basis of the topic at hand. The goal was to ascertain whether these discussions and underlying assumptions of approval plans held true to the real world.     

The pregnant pause: The time between profiling an approval plan and receiving books

In the selection of a new approval plan vendor, most of the library's attention is on pricing, selection procedures, publisher coverage, and profiling. In most cases, less thought is given to what events will actually take place between the time profiles are completed and books are shipped to the library. Decisions surrounding this time period can make the difference between a successful and problematic approval plan implementation. This article, developed by a bookseller, explores these issues and the options libraries have in the implementation phase of approval plans.     

也谈纲目购书-对张军同志文章的几点补充

从纲目购书的条件、环境、适用范围和购书方式的利弊等方面对张军的文章进行补充论述,探讨了在图书采购中纲目购书方式实施的具体措施及现实意义。     

Approval plans for religious and theological libraries

The task of acquiring materials in the area of religion on a level to support research and teaching for graduate or professional programs is a challenging one. Even within the relatively narrow scope of religious or theological studies, the quantity of published material makes it a substantial task to review all newly published titles. The concept of an approval plan, whereby books published within a defined subject area (or areas) are automatically shipped to the library, at first seems a logical and elegant method of reducing the burden on typically overworked bibliographers. Unfortunately, experiences from a variety of seminary and theological libraries corroborate our essentially negative experiences with approval plans. It appears that for specialized collections such as theological libraries, approval plans may be a good idea whose time has not (or perhaps never will) come. Some of the problems with approval plans are discussed, and the alternatives used by the Divinity Library at Vanderbilt are presented.     

E-Preferred Approval Plan at a Large Academic Library: Assessment and Collection Development Implications

Academic libraries acquiring e-books through approval plans and other acquisition methods might question whether their collections are properly balanced between e-books and print books since patron needs vary across subject areas. This study examines seven years of monograph purchases at Texas A&M University Libraries (TAMU) through the approval plan vendor. Acquisition and use data are analyzed across subject areas. Study results inform how to balance print and e-collections to effectively support academic programs. TAMU purchased 78% of the monographs in print despite adopting an e-preferred approval plan, though most subject areas had higher e-book use compared to print.     

Is the partnership working?: evaluating the approval plan vendor

An evaluation of a Blackwell U.S.–U.K. approval plan is ongoing during 1997–98. The goals of this evaluation are: to determine if appropriate books are being received in each subject; to obtain feedback from faculty members involved in selection; and to evaluate Blackwell as an approval plan vendor. The plan’s purpose and context are also being reviewed, especially budgetary and staffing issues. An evaluation procedure was written, statistical reports and lists of titles received on each profile were produced and distributed to departments, and discussions were held among liaison librarians and faculty members analyzing this data. Blackwell’s performance as an approval vendor will be measured against specific performance criteria, including publisher coverage and prevention of duplication. Results from the project to date include revision and improved coordination of subject profiles, experience using Blackwell’s Collection Manager Web site, and preparation for possible participation in an OhioLINK statewide approval plan.     

Making the Common Uncommon?

Abstract

Many libraries have entered into cooperative or consor-tial agreements to reap the cost benefits of electronic purchases, to share a library system vendor, or to divide collection-building responsibilities. However, among such cooperating libraries the formal coordination of approval plan profiles has seldom been attempted. Many questions need to be answered before a group of libraries could enter into a cooperative approval plan. Would the political and administrative costs of designing and maintaining a cooperative profile be sufficiently offset by a broadened overall collection among cooperating libraries? To what degree do libraries acting independently achieve the same approval plan results that a formal coordination of profiles would generate?

The Triangle Research Libraries Network (Duke University, North Carolina Central University, North Carolina State University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) is comprised of four geographically-close institutions that have been building cooperative collections for more than 50 years. Some of their agreements have been quite formal and others have been quite informal.

This study looks at the degree of approval plan overlap among TRLN libraries; at circulation data for these overlapping titles; and at lists of titles not acquired within the consortium. The results may inform the question of whether separate, uncoordinated approval plans already meet the need of the TRLN consortium, or if consortial approval plan cooperation might benefit the group.

An examination of monographs in four selected Library of Congress classes supplied to the TRLN libraries by Yankee Book Peddler over a six month period in 1997 provided data to examine issues surrounding a consortial approval plan. The degree of overlap among the four institutions was defined, and circulation statistics showed whether books acquired by multiple libraries had a high level of use. A list of YBP titles not acquired by any of the libraries during the same timeperiod wasalso analyzed, to examine whether formal cooperation might have usefully broadenedtheoverallcollection.     

Vendor studies redux: Evaluating the approval plan option from within

Exploring the question, “Once approval plans are established, how does one know whether they are preferable to firm ordering?”, this paper questions traditional assumptions about discounts and staff savings in a library with numerous approval plan agreements. Analyzing the acquisitions patterns of four different groups of selectors at a large research library, it concludes that approval plans profiled to obtain core essentials are preferred by many selectors over firm ordering these materials. Profiles implementing this approach appear to be more difficult to establish for European than for domestic materials. Levels and types of services expected from vendors in a budgetarily constrained environment are enumerated.     

Approval plans,discipline change,and the importance of human mediated book selection

This study examines holdings of 21 members of the Association of Research Libraries for books reviewed in American Historical Review. The study asserts that approval plans are inadequate for collecting from small publishers or from scholarship that crosses disciplinary boundaries. Although approval plans increase efficiency in collection development, the need for expert selection cannot be overstated. Results indicated that small publisher's books were less likely to be in libraries than university press publisher's books, and that history monographs are frequently classified outside disciplinary boundaries, and are therefore invisible to approval plans that define disciplines based on classification systems.     

Slavic Approval Plans: What Works and What Doesn't

ABSTRACT

The paper looks at library approval plans for material published in Slavic, East European, and Eurasian countries from the selector's point of view. Reasons why a selector would or would not want one are examined. Success with approval plans requires monitoring receipts, as well as good and ongoing communication among the selector, the acquistions department, and the vendor. A preliminary list of vendors offering approval plans for the countries of the region appears in the appendix.     

PUBLIC APPROVAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND OTHER NEW SOCIAL MOVEMENT GOALS IN WESTERN EUROPE AND THE UNITED STATES

The environmental movement is one of the most successful socialmovements of the twentieth century, and a key reason for itssuccess has been strong public approval of the movement's goalof environmental protection. This paper reports cross-nationaldata on public approval of environmental protection relativeto approval of the goals of other major ‘new social movements’—theanti-nuclear power movement, the nuclear disarmament movement,the women's movement, the human rights movement and the animalrights movement—in Western Europe and the United States.The data come from a 1990 ‘lifestyles and attitudes’survey conducted by Gallup for Reader's Digest, based on nationallyrepresentative samples in the United States and seventeen Europeannations, and show higher public approval for environmental protectionthan for the goals of other new social movements.     

专题库立项与学科服务之关系研究

本文通过CALIS专题库立项情况分析,提出了以优势学科或专业为依托立项,不仅有利于立项而且可以充分满足学校重点学科与特色学科建设的需要,可以实现图书馆服务向通用化和专业化双向升级,深化学科服务。     

档案中介服务机构备案功能演变、差异及规范研究

随着行政审批制度改革的深入,档案中介服务机构备案从事前控制替代品发展为事后监管的信息工具。功能定位的不同,导致档案中介服务机构备案在认知层面存在诸多差异,其中突出表现为在档案权责清单上出现了将此职权归类其他档案行政权力事项、内部审批事项、公共服务事项及行政备案事项等选择。在备案实践中,差异也进一步出现在备案处理方式、时限、条件及法律责任等方面。为了消减有关档案中介服务机构备案认知和实践中的差异,在国家层面须明确其内涵和功能,制定相应的备案程序规定;在地方层面须进一步修订,清理档案中介服务机构备案的相关规范。