Making a Collection Count: Why a Physical Inventory is Essential to a Dynamic Library

1. Making a Collection Count: Why a Physical Inventory is Essential to a Dynamic Library

2. Program Outline • Steps to performing a physical inventory • What you’ll discover • Why you should care • Creating collection objectives from inventory data • Creating benchmarks from inventory data This presentation is available online: www.slideshare.net/hhibner www.slideshare.net/maryk48

3. Physical Inventory – What is it? On-going process of comparing the “shelf list” (holdings) to actual items.

4. Inventory Strategy: Step 1 • Choose a manageable piece of collection • SSLDL Started with audio book collection • High per unit cost • Newer collection • Holdings at beginning of project (2006) ~1000 items according to first shelf list. • Estimated value at that time: about $65,000

5. Inventory Strategy: Step 2 • Do a quick, general weed • Be aggressive! • Makes shelf list more manageable in step 3

6. Inventory Strategy: Step 3 • Get a shelf list • Usually includes title, author, pub date, last circ date, total circs, price, item barcode #

7. Inventory Strategy: Step 4 • Identify obvious errors on shelf list. • Call numbers that don’t line up • Items without prices or other empty fields on list • Find the items and fix their records and inventory them

8. Inventory Strategy: Step 5 • Inventory remaining items • Cart up a shelf at a time • Scan into your ILS’s inventory feature • Mark off items on the shelf list as you go along • Volunteers are a great resource for this part!

9. Inventory Strategy: Step 6 • Track down items on the shelf list that were not confirmed in your first pass. • Place holds for items that were checked out when made your first sweep • Follow up: mark missing? Damaged?

10. Inventory Strategy: Step 7 • Make a policy for how long to keep records for items that are not confirmed • Missing, damaged, assumed lost, etc. • Set a maintenance schedule for your next inventory in that collection • Items with no activity in a certain amount of time

11. Collection Life Cycle Selection Purchase Weed or Replace Processing Repair/Maintenance Shelving Re-Shelving Checkout Each stop in the circle gives us a chance to check quality and perform inventory checks.

12. What You’ll Discover • Items still attached to patron records • Items shelved in the wrong place • Items that are broken, dirty, and disgusting! • Items attached to the wrong record • Holdings for items discarded ages ago • Adult items marked juvenile/vice versa

13. More Discoveries • Mislabeled items • Inaccurate call numbers • Items marked missing • Items that are just plain stupid!

14. Why should we spend time doing this? • So that catalog accurately reflects library holdings • Limit customer and staff frustration • To create a starting point for evaluation • Library & Librarian performance • So that staff gain deeper understanding of ILS and library work flow

15. Physical Inventory Helps Maintain a Quality Collection • Does it circulate or is it used enough? • Is it current? • Is it relevant? • Does it look nice? • Does the catalog correctly reflect the status of the item? (checked out, lost/missing, etc) • Are collections organized logically?

16. Physical InventoryDefines Your Collections • Geographical • Shelf Location, Department • Item type • DVDs, Book on CD, Large Print • Home Location (regardless of item type) • Non-Fiction, Fiction, Audio book, Music

17. Monetary Reasons to Perform a Physical Inventory • Provides information for budget decisions • Need to update/overhaul a collection? • Waning format = limit/eliminate funds to a collection • Regular inventory controls waste (Read: $$$) • Replacement costs • ILL costs

18. Intangible Reasons • Solid collection information and data shows vigilance with public assets • Staff familiarity with collections • You look smart, professional, and RELEVANT!

19. Using Inventory Data • SSLDL’s Audio Book Collection Results (1 Day’s Work) • 5 missing items found • 1 item still checked out • 14 items cataloged as wrong format • 2 items not found (Stolen? Lost? Discarded?) • ~50 confirmed status/location Error Rate: 4.4% Reclaimed items: 20 (~$65 each = about $1300 value) Lost/stolen/missing:2 (about $130 value) Items confirmed: ~50 (about $3,250)

20. Using Inventory Data:Creating Collection Objectives • A general statement of what materials will or will not be included in the collection. • They are different for every library and community • Can be different for each collection Collection Data is Dynamic! Is your collection doing the job it’s supposed to?

21. SSLDL’s Audio Book Collection Objective • Popular materials of current interest • Since cost is a factor with audio books, titles that have a limited shelf life will be given low priority • Examples: some series fiction, political material addressing current events, travel info, certain types of science or health material that could be outdated quickly

22. SSLDL’s Audio Book Collection Objective(Continued) • Consideration and comparison to statistics in downloadable audios will also be investigated. • Other considerations for the collection: • Classic fiction and nonfiction titles that coincide with local school and university curriculum objectives, foreign language instruction for both students and travelers

23. Using Inventory Data to Create Benchmarks • Benchmark: • A standard by which something can be measured or judged • Most expensive collections get most attention • Non-financial reasons are important and considered! • Circulation Goals • Estimation of how many times you estimate this item will be checked out within 2 years of purchase

24. SSLDL’s Circulation Benchmarksfor Audio Book Collection • Fiction Titles • 10-12 checkouts within 1 year of purchase • Popular Non-Fiction • Bestsellers, self help, biography, etc. • 8-10 checkouts within a year of purchase • Informational Non-Fiction • Language instruction, Shakespeare/Poetry, etc. • 3 checkouts within 1 year of purchase

25. Other Benchmarks to SetUsing Inventory Data • Average unit cost of each item in a collection • Total cost (worth) of a collection • Number of units in a collection • Weeding/maintenance schedule

26. Presented by :Mary Kelly mkelly@ssldl.infoHolly Hibner hhibner@ssldl.infoPresentation available online at www.slideshare.net/hhibnerwww.slideshare.net/maryk48