UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Strategic Plan
The State of the Department
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
What are “Technical Services” ?
• Acquisitions (ordering and receiving materials)
• Serials (control over subscriptions and binding)
• Cataloging (bibliographic control)
• Preservation (preserving new and old materials)
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Current State of the Department
• 4 major units : Monographs Acquisitions, Monographs
Cataloging, Serials, & Preservation
• 60 FTE (45 Library Assistants, 9 Librarians, 6 Students)
• Ex Libris ILS “Aleph” since 2002
• Other technology: EDI, Shared Cataloging Program
(SCP) / California Digital Library
• Outsourced services: PromptCat, LTI (authority control),
Approval Plans
• Member: CONSER, NACO, ARL, OCLC
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
2006 Processing Statistics
• 40,000+ Monographs Acquired & Cataloged
• 26,000+ Serial Titles Checked-In
• 24,000 Volumes to NRLF
• 34,000 Volumes Bound
• [33,000 Electronic Journals]
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Leadership / Decision Making
• University Librarian  Associate University Librarian 
Monographs Librarian & Serials Librarian
• Committees affecting TS:
UC: LAUC, ULG, SOPAG, HOTS
UCD Library: LAUC-D, AdCom, LMC, TSC
Staff Participation
• Staff Wiki, staff listserv “LIBCOW”
• Ad Hoc Task forces
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Challenges Ahead
• High cost of scholarly publications
• Demand for electronic materials
• New technology = large workload for clean-up and
conversion of records
• New technology = large investment in infrastructure
• Staff morale & expectations
• Baby Boomers retiring
• Severe budget cuts
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Mission
• Acquiring, managing, preserving, and providing comprehensive access to scholarly
materials of enduring value in all formats, subjects, and languages.
• Making scholarly information resources available and usable to the University’s students
and faculty.
• Continuing to partner with other Library departments and to participate in UC system- wide
library initiatives regarding collection development and user services.
• Fostering a collaborative working environment, which encourages open communication and
involvement of all staff members.
• Providing the tools and the training that allows all Technical Services staff to maximize their
skills and knowledge toward the fulfillment of the missions of the department, the library,
and the university.
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Values
• Commitment to a level of excellence in quality and quantity of service
• Belief in, and a commitment to, creating an egalitarian and respectful
workplace
• An awareness of the resources we use with a commitment to efficiency
and waste reduction at all times
• Cooperation and teamwork among all Technical Services department
staff, and between Technical Services and other library departments
• A staff that reflects the diversity of the world around us, and who is
committed to continued learning and development
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Vision
• Seizing opportunities and meeting challenges during a
period of rapid technological change
• Fostering collaborative relationships with other
departments, with which Technical Services is
increasingly interdependent
• Effectively utilizing staff and resources to maximize
efficiency
• Continuing to provide the tools and training that allows
staff to fulfill the missions of the department, library and
university
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Environmental Scan - 2008
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
BUDGET
PRESSURE
TECHNOLOGICAL
CHANGES
USER
EXPECTATIONS
GENERATION
CLASH
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Budget Pressure
Governor’s 2008-09 Budget
• 10%
across-the-board cut
• $300 million loss to the UC system
• $417 million shortfall for UC
• UCD Library must reduce budget
7%, a $1.2 million cut
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Change in UC Libraries’ Adjusted Budgets,
1993-2006 (%)
Source: UC-AFT, Local 2023
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Rising Costs of Journals
(vs. books & CPI)
1986-2002 (%)
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Average Processing Cost of a Single Journal
Print: $140.51
Electronic: $57.16
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Challenges in Electronic Turn
• Demand for increased funding
• Increased reliance on Systems
• Tough choices
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Clash of Generations?
•Up to 60% of librarians to retire by
2019
•“Heritage” librarians versus
upstarts?
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Users’ (Great) Expectations
• 73% of college students choose
internet over library for research
• College students and faculty
expect the level of technology they
find on retail and social networking
sites
• College students have an
increasingly consumer-like, “ATM”
view of their education.
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
SWOT (SO < WT)
Strengths
1) Wiki & listserv
2) Experience
3) Highly-qualified staff
Opportunities
1) New technologies
2) Outsourcing
3) Collaborative programs
Weaknesses
1) Low staff morale
2) Poor downward
communication
3) Inability to process e-materials
optimally
Threats
1) State budget
2) Other budget threats
3) User expectations
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Adaptation
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Strategic Plan
2008-2011
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
2008-2011 Strategic Plan Goals
• Major Themes
– Staff Development
– Work Flow
– New Collaborations
• Budget
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Staff Development
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Staff Development
Improve the Technical Services department’s
ability to acquire, catalog, manage and
maintain electronic materials through staff
training
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Staff Development
Development of a TS department mentoring
program that increases collaboration between
TS department employees and allows for
cross-training and knowledge sharing
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Staff Development
Development of a TS department Knowledge
Base via existing Main Library Staff Wiki
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Staff Development
• 2008-2009
– Needs and Expertise Assessments
– Planning and Scheduling of Trainings
• 2009-2010
– Trainings
– Mentoring Program
– Development of KB wiki
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Staff Development
• 2010-2011
– Assessments
• Staff Training Assessments, 2 parts
• Knowledge Base Assessments
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Workflow
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Workflow
Assess and redesign Technical Services
workflow to best utilize the expertise of staff
and increase efficiency of material moving
through the department
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Workflow
Improve management of and access to electronic
resources by acquiring an Electronic Resource
Management System
(ERMS)
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Workflow
• 2008-2009
– Form Task Force for ERMS Purchase
– Assess Print Workflow
– Assess Electronic Workflow
• 2009-2010
– Separate Changes to Print and Electronic Workflows
– Task Force Analyzes Available ERMS
• 2010-2011
– ERMS Purchase
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Workflow
• 2010-2011
– Assessment of Print and Electronic Workflow
Changes
• Other Improvements? Was ERMS appropriately taken
into consideration?
– ERMS Assessment
• Issues? Problems?
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
New Collaborations
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
New Collaborations
Expand Participation in the Program for
Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) and the PCC
subsets; CONSER, NACO, SACO and BIBCO
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
New Collaborations
Development of two Systems Services-toTechnical Services Liaison Positions. One
Liaison will be assigned to the Cataloging
Unit, one to the Acquisitions Unit.
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
New Collaborations
• 2008-2009
– Head of Cataloging to pursue increased PCC
Participation
• 2008-2009
– Two Systems Department Employees to become
designated liaisons to Technical Services
UC Davis General Library
Technical Services
Technical Services Budget
2008-2009 2009-2010 2010-2011
FTE
$2,179,800
$2,245,199
$2,300,668
Baseline
Costs
Training
$7,620,200
$8,001,210
$8,401,270
$10,000
ERMS
Total
$4,000
$9,800,000
$10,256,409 $10,705,938