Business process redesign (BPR) in an academic library presented at the conference QQML 2020 - Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries, May 2020

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Ensuring more services with less
resources: business process redesign
as an efficiency multiplier
QQML 2020
Carlotta Alpigiano
in collaboration with Martine Daalder, Elena
Brizioli, Abra Grilli, Eulalia Mestre, Jiri Vankat

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Ensuring more services with less resources
eui.eu

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Focus on Back Office activities
• Trends
• Challenges
• Steps and Goals
• Business process / RACI examples
• Process revision
• Resource management crucial areas
• Acquisitions
• Cataloguing
• E-Resources
• Print Serials
• First outcomes
• COVID-19 Special services

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Trends
Back Office
evolution 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019
%
change Trends
Library ordinary
staff 21 21 21 21 20 19 20 20 20 20 -7.0%
Back Office staff 10 10 10 10 10 10 9 9 9 8 -15.8%
Structural
Library budget 1,588,270 1,639,420 1,681,000 1,691,000 1,724,000 1,836,870 1,983,790 1,711,000 1,762,941 1,734,450 9.2%
Current print
serials 2,535 2,240 2,061 1,968 1,707 1,577 1,538 1,450 1,024 567 -77.6%
e-journals (full-
text): 44,188 50,380 50,636 55,681 57,241 58,603 60,565 92,152 93,040 107,863 144.1%
Print books
purchased 6,052 6,609 4,777 5,105 4,709 4,384 -27.6%
EBooks
purchased
perpetual
access 1,382 2,734 1,743 4,783 11,056 3,556 157.3%
*Structural Library Budget: Including all library acquisitions and activities, Integrated Library System, trainees and auxiliary staff; excluding ordinary staff.
*

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Challenges
Change in user community
•New Institutional Strategic Plan
•School of Transnational
Governance
Need to increase online
content
•New VLE platform
•Discovery and Outreach
•Troubleshooting
Redistribution of space
•Print Journal Collection
•Print Reference Works
Shift in Responsibilities
•Less Staff Back Office (print
serials librarian retired, not
replaced)
COVID-19
•Online services for entire
Community
•Personalised Services for
individual end users

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Steps and Goals
ANALYSIS
Business
Process
Mapping
RACI matrix
OBJECTIVE
S
•Redefine
Work
Processes
•Optimise job
roles
•Free staff
time
•Guarantee
backup
GOALS
New
Services for
changed user
environment
Increase
efficiency in
process
management

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Ensuring more services with less resources - Business process A

8. 8Ensuring more services with less resources - Business process B

9. Same exercise for eBook cataloguing,
eResource
and serial
management
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Ensuring more services with less resources
Business process C

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Ensuring more services with less resources
RACI
RACI
LEGE
NDA
Service /
dept.
Function / role
LBI Library Information Specialist
LBA Library Acquisitions librarian
LBT Library Acquisitions trainee
LBF Library Financial Officer
LBH Library Head of service
LBC Library Library cataloguer
LBD Library Library desk staff
LBS Library System librarian
BFA Budget,
Finance and
Accounting
(not specified)
VND <external> Book supplier
EIU EUI EUI member (Library user)
AUT EUI EUI Authority
RACI approach
RACI: Responsible, Accountable, Consulted, Informed

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Process revision
how-why?
when-why?
where-why?
who-why?
•what-why?

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Resource management crucial areas
•Acquisitions
• Selection procedures
• tender procedures
(financial rules)
• role of information
specialists
(selectors)
• role of Acquisitions
working group
• Verification procedure
• Payment workflow
(differentiation of
roles)
•Cataloguing
• Donations, WPs and
EUI theses processing
• Classification and
subject heading
assignment
• Online content access
points
•Electronic
Resources
• Increase online
content due to new
Strategy
• Troubleshooting
(managed through an
institutional email
account)
• eResources statistics
•Print Serials
• Staffing
• Space/Time: Print
serials presence in
Library

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Ensuring more services with less resources
First outcomes - Management - Acquisitions
• Sharing knowledge: involvement of various staff members in tenders
•Tender procedures (financial rules) WHO?
• Stress role of Acquisitions working group
•Role of Acquisitions working group WHAT?
• Automation improvement in verification and ordering procedures
•Verification procedures WHAT? HOW?
• Payment workflow (differentiation of roles) one more staff member
involved (initiating and verifying role)
•Payment workflow (differentiation of roles) WHO?

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Ensuring more services with less resources
First outcomes - Management - Cataloguing
• EUI working papers processing reshaped
•Donations, WPs and EUI thesis processing HOW?
• Classification and subject heading assignment tbr (avoid bottlenecks, deadlines, book
moves, outsourcing?)
•Classification and subject heading assignment WHO? WHERE? HOW?
• Study for increasing access points: subject headings for eBooks project
•Integration repository-catalogue
•Online content access points WHAT? HOW?

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Ensuring more services with less resources
First outcomes - Management - Electronic resources
• Increase of eBook (various purchase models), database and dataset collection
• Study on licences for VLE
• Streamline resources management: cataloguing vs activation only
• ERM system structure reorganisation
•Increase online content due to new Strategy WHAT? HOW?
• Process revision: ticket system feasibility study
•Troubleshooting WHO? HOW?
• eJournals usage statistics outsourcing
• Staff dealing with eBooks and Databases statistics
• SUSHI implementation
•eResources statistics WHO? HOW?

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Ensuring more services with less resources
First outcomes - Management - Serials
•One half time librarian from library financial management
Staffing WHO? HOW MANY?
•Project for removal to remote storage of print collection covered by online and to current
storage of old years
•Skip binding for volumes destinated to storage = 90% (time and money saving)
•Promotion of a Virtual Journal Display by discipline, replacing the Current Print Journal
Display
Space/Time: Print serials presence in Library WHAT? HOW? WHY?

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Ensuring more services with less resources
First outcomes - Management - General
• Horizontal organisation - informal coordination
• Each staff member responsible for one area
• Team work and backing-up
• Flexibility
• Training and knowledge sharing in crucial areas
(tenders, licencing, negotiating, cataloguing)
Staff
• Increase of areas and workplaces for users +9%
Space

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Ensuring more services with less resources
First outcomes - Management - Space
-75% print journal volumes
+9% user workplaces

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Ensuring more services with less resources
COVID-19 special services
COVID-19 service workflows
Resource management
Expanded access
to eResources list
eBooks
acquisitions-
cataloguing
(permanent and
temporary
collection)
Print book «virtual
cataloguing»
Personalised
services
User eBook self-
purchase
Temporary
scanning service

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Ensuring more services with less resources
COVID-19 special services

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Ensuring more services with less resources
COVID-19 special services

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Ensuring more services with less resources - Business process updateEnsuring more services with less resources – COVID-19 Special services
Business process update

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Ensuring more services with less resources
Staff
Services
Resources
Space
Manage
ment
Thank you for the response.
It is great to know that you are
fine and that the library is
gradually reopening again.
I think you managed to adjust
your work to new
circumstances very well.
I was impressed when I was
receiving so many lists of books
available online. I really
appreciate the efforts of all
people employed in the library
to keep us informed and
facilitate our work in such
difficult conditions. Thank you
very much!

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Ensuring more services with less resources
carlotta.alpigiano@eui.eu