The Acquisitions Department at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro (UNCG) Libraries underwent restructuring due to budget cuts and changing needs. Two staff positions were reallocated to other departments, reducing the Acquisitions staff from 9 to 7. The department distributed responsibilities differently and provided training to adapt to new workflows. Changes were ongoing across the libraries to do more with fewer resources through efficiencies like copy cataloging and patron-driven acquisitions. Regular communication, training, and staff involvement helped manage the transition.

1. TECHNICAL SERVICES: CHANGING
WORKFLOWS, CHANGING PROCESSES,
PERSONNEL RESTRUCTURING…OH MY
Christine Fischer, Head of Acquisitions, UNCG
NCLA Biennial Conference
10/6/2011
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2. OUR ENVIRONMENT
 University of North Carolina at Greensboro
• Established 1891
• Doctoral-granting, research-intensive institution
• Enrollment: 18,425
• Over 100 undergraduate, 61 masters and 26
doctoral programs
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3. THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES
 Include main library (Jackson Library) and a
separate Music Library
 Affiliates: Multicultural Resource Center, Interior
Architecture Library
 Current holdings 3.3 million items
 Access to 44,000 journals electronically
 60 support staff and 34 librarians
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4. UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES:
PLANNING FOR CHANGING NEEDS
 Respond to user needs and suggestions (various
focus groups; LibQUAL 2008, spring 2012)
 Respond to the external environment in higher
education, academic libraries, publishing, and the
economy
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5. The Review
Process
throughout the
libraries
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6. Trends and
Emerging
Concepts Departmental
[12/2010] job/task
analysis
[1/2011]
Skills
Development Performance
[starting 8/2011]
Management
Plans
[new work plans
9/2011]
ClimateQUAL
[10/2011]
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7. SUPERVISOR:
RELAY WHAT YOU KNOW
 Be up front about
what is coming or
what you think might
be coming
 Encourage staff to
ask you or the
administration about
rumors
 Listen to staff
concerns and ideas
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8. LIBRARY-WIDE REPURPOSING
 Two staff positions  Two staff positions
moved to ERIT moved to SCUA
1. Digital projects 3. Special Collections
2. Support team 4. University Archives
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9. EFFECT ON ACQUISITIONS DEPARTMENT
(WHICH INCLUDES SERIALS)
FY2011 FY2012
9 staff 7 staff
1 librarian 1 librarian
2 positions reallocated to other departments
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10. STAFFING CHANGES
 Repurposed positions
 Binding/Serials to University Archives
 Gifts/Acquisitions to ERIT (Electronic
Resources and Information Technology)
Support Team
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11. THE PROCESS
 Staff reallocation
- Stress on employee and colleagues
- Sense of loss of control
- Grief over loss of former role
- Tension during transition
+ Opportunity to learn new skills
+ Sense of contributing to library goals
+ Chance to work with a variety of
colleagues
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12. MANAGING THE CHANGES
 Provide support
• Open communication & listening
• Involving staff in the process
• Setting clear goals
• Training
• Recognizing staff by showing that their
work contribution is valued
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13. THE DEPARTMENT’S NEW STRUCTURE
 Reassigned key responsibilities and essential
tasks (Career Banding)
 Provided training
 Informed all library employees of changes
 Updated departmental web pages
 Reevaluated procedures
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14. CONTRIBUTING FACTOR
Budget in FY2012
Collections budget reduced by $1MM
Current collections budget $2.8MM
Less material to purchase
and receive
(More reports to generate)
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15. …ANOTHER FACTOR
 Building renovation project
• One staff member’s office won’t move until new
SCUA space is available for use
• All related moves on hold
• Binding space
• Receptionist’s office
• Gift room
• Book sale
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16. CHANGE IS ONGOING
 Help staff manage in
an environment of
constant change
 Volunteer or
volunteered
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17. HOW TO DO MORE WITH THE SAME (OR
FEWER) NUMBER OF PEOPLE
 Faith and confidence in your staff
 Willingness to troubleshoot and tweak
workflows and procedures
 Lots of chances to have feedback
 Know when to move on with not much
looking back
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18. CONTRIBUTING OUR SKILLS
 Ebooks / print serials to e-resources
 Patron driven acquisitions
 ILL purchase on demand
 DVDs (instructional and entertainment)
 Copy cataloging
 Lease plans – popular titles / audiobooks*
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19. NEW ROLES: GETTING IT JUST RIGHT
 Keep the level of detail manageable so
as not to overwhelm
 Provide enough information or direction
to offer context and allow for success
 Getting it just right will vary from person
to person – enough to have pride and
ownership but not so much as to feel it
can’t be accomplished
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20. WHAT SHOULD WE STOP DOING?
 Each department prepared list of activities to consider
discontinuing
 Some activities were stopped immediately
 Selected activities up for further discussion
• Gifts processing
• Institutional repository tasks
• Applying purchases to pooled fund codes rather
than departmental (PDA, instructional films)
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21. MAKING IT A SUCCESS
 Training
 Developing integrated
workflows
 Resolving issues &
troubleshooting
 Improving efficiency
 Ownership
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22. RESOURCES
Chimato, Mary Carmen. “How an Economic Crisis May
Improve Your Management Skills: Strategies for
Making It Through Uncertain Times.” College &
Research Libraries News 70.6 (2009): 342-344.
Morrissett, Linda A. “Library Staff Reallocation: A
Humanistic Management Approach.” The Southeastern
Librarian 44.1 (1994): 12-15.
Taber, Anne Marie, and Mary Jane Conger. “Relevance
Recognized: Value-added Cataloging for Departmental
and Digital Collections.” Cataloging & Classification
Quarterly 48.6/7 (2010): 585-601.
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23. THANK YOU
Christine Fischer
cmfische@uncg.edu
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