The Seemingly Endless Challenge: Workflows

The Big Picture: A Holistic View of E-book Acquisitions

“…2 In Mackinder's opinion, with which the authors agree, the terms used within a workflow should not refer to specific vendor-provided products because they change over time for various reasons, and the documentation should serve as a connection between the plan established in a policy and the exact steps to follow as detailed in the procedure. 3 Rather than listing step-bystep instructions on how to perform a task, a workflow can provide the big picture and serve as a guide to illustrate for stakeholders the order in which actions are expected to be accomplished and why. Having a documented workflow can prevent a situation where a single staff member holds knowledge, particularly if that person leaves, retires, or is unexpectedly unavailable, such as in the case of an emergency or illness, and it provides assurance that the work will proceed without interruption if this person is not available.…”

“…When reflecting on the biggest challenges of documenting a workflow, Mackinder conveyed that "balancing the big picture needs with providing enough context to allow staff to determine the next step; finding the best way to represent the myriad possibilities that exist for any given stop on the lifecycle road; and finding the time to devote to this project while still managing the very day-to-day tasks that I will be working to document." 4 The literature reveals a variety of phases involved in the management of a library's e-resources, and an electronic resource management (ERM) system provides features to address these series of stages. When convening a task force of librarians and staff to examine how e-books were managed at their institution, Beisler and Kurt determined that four processes occurred in the workflow: assessment/ acquisition, access, maintenance/troubleshooting, and end of life.…”

“…Mackinder envisioned each of the different stages of an e-resource lifecycle as containing workflows within workflows and its lifetime consisting of six phases: new acquisition, activation, cataloging, maintaining access, troubleshooting, and evaluation. 9 The authors noted several tools cited in the literature used in libraries to assist in the management of an e-resource's lifecycle in libraries and the impact specific features and functions can have on workflows. Tull et al outlined the steps of an ERM workflow and described how Innovative Interfaces, Inc.'s ERM could be used at each stage of the process.…”

Using Perceptions and Preferences from Public Services Staff to Improve Error Reporting and Workflows

“…5 Mackinder refers to workflows as the "seemingly endless challenge" because "the staff time and effort involved in crafting, implementing, and revising process documentation can be overwhelming" because the workflows are not linear. 6 Four years after creating her "ER lifecycle," she is still "workflow brainstorming" because "change is the status quo" in this field. 7 As librarians describe their unique challenges with workflows, software is often evaluated in the literature as a possible solution.…”

“…As Mackinder pointed out, e-resources workflows "are in a near-constant state of flux by forces that are mostly outside of our control" including "shifting staff dynamics." 37 This holds true at McGill Library, where Collection Development, the division responsible for acquisitions, has faced high turnover since 2012 and new employees face a steep learning curve as they try to cope with the volume of work.…”