Sunday, 28 June 2009
Shared Services Survey - Headlines
High level analysis conveys strong and widespread interest in shared services:
· Over 60% of the respondents are involved in or planning some form of shared services activity.
· Whilst 89% stated they were open to ‘any arrangement that delivers benefits’, a significant number supported a governance mechanism operated by ‘a sector agency’ in the style of JANET (UK).
· There was little appetite for an outside operator (17%) or even a single HEI (35%) leading and recruiting partners.
Clear patterns of motivation and tangible benefits have emerged which need to be validated and qualified through cross-tabulation. The highlights are:
· The strongest focus is on adopting digital solutions and electronic content to reduce physical holdings and therefore space (85%)
· A good number are ready to consider consolidating physical assets (51%)
· Whilst 90% see reducing overall cost as an immediate high/medium priority, there is more interest in repositioning human resources (82%) than in reducing the establishment (50%)
· High cost benefits are principally linked to content licensing (69%) and physical space savings (43%); possible staff cost savings are predominantly linked to management time (29%) and cataloguing (29%)
· There is greater interest in library management systems functions being delivered through external shared services (80%) than by other local institutional systems (52%), though developing the role of the library service within the institution is a high priority intangible gain (84%)
· Leveraging larger (web) scale services is seen by 73% as a high/medium 3-5 year priority but only an immediate priority for 46%; this fits with the high priority interest (84%) in enhancing flexibility and agility for developing electronic services
· There exists a high level of readiness to consider Open Source software (30% with a further 45% neutral)
Responses identified a distinct group of systems functions and human operations that are candidates for shared services:
· Principal interest is clearly focused around electronic resource licensing and management and general cataloguing (all scoring 84% or greater interest)
· Services that would facilitate more efficient and value added resource discovery fell in to the next group with over 50% interest (OPAC, search / locate, ILL, Open Data services and support functions such as forums and help desk)
· Functions involving individual user data attracted least interest, though this may be motivated by uncertainties regarding security and DPA obligations
At the highest level interest may be divided between three shared services ‘options’ which can be separately defined but which are in no sense mutually exclusive
· The licensing option – economies and efficiencies through shared procurement of e-journals and e-books (both 97%)
· The shared systems (software functions) option – seen as applicable to the management and disclosure / discovery of electronic resources and all types of metadata (catalogue records); potentially providing the platform for the large (web) scale services identified on the 3-5 year horizon
· The shared operations option – representing more optimised use of human resources, especially in cataloguing (90% interest), electronic resource management (76%), digital preservation (78%) and Help Desk (56%); this could also involve consolidation of physical assets
Whilst these options are potentially linked to current JISC initiatives (notably JISC Collections, Digital Preservation, Resource Discovery), the survey represents a new level of possibilities on account of the breadth of HEI interest, the consistency of key opinions and the associated institutional motivations.
David Kay – Sero Consulting – on behalf of the Steering Group
Wednesday, 27 May 2009
Survey of HE Libraries extended to Friday 5 June
The responses are proving to be very informative in terms of patterns and preferences and therefore the Steering Group has decided to extend the closing date to Friday 5 June.
You can access the online survey via the link at www.sero.co.uk/sconul-ss-survey.html
Wednesday, 13 May 2009
The Steering Group
The group, chaired by Anne Bell, is taking responsibility on behalf of SCONUL members and HEFCE (the fiunding body) for more than simply overseeing the work of Sero Consulting and signing off the requisite reports. For example, in Phase 1 (ending 31 July), the Group will be required to select the Options to be taken forward for specification, business analysis, costing and - most important - partnership development.
The members are as follows:
Professor Jane Core [Director of Library and Learning Services, Northumbria University]
Mrs Fiona Parsons [Director of Learning and Information Services, University of Wolverhampton]
Ms Anne Bell [Librarian, University of Warwick]
Ms Suzanne Enright [Director of Information Systems and Library Services, University of Westminster]
Mr Ian Dolphin [International Director, eFramework for Education and Research]
Mr Mark Toole [Director of Information Services, University of Stirling]
Mr Paddy Walker [Consultant, Shared Services Team, HEFCE]
If you'd like to contact the SG directly, feel free to email the Chair's PA - andy.harvey@warwick.ac.uk
Tuesday, 28 April 2009
Initial Survey of HE Library Members - from 6 May 09
The Steering Group has agreed that an initial scene setting survey will provide a valuable tool for SCONUL HE members to engage with the issues and opportunities at the start of the study project.
Monday, 27 April 2009
Welcome
The study will address the following key questions
- What, if any, opportunities exist to develop a shared service response within the current LMS landscape for UK higher education libraries
- What, if any, opportunities exist to develop a shared service response for a next generation open source LMS for UK higher education libraries
- Whether there is a viable business case to support any such opportunities
- How any such shared service opportunities might be structured, delivered and governed
- Phase 1 of the work (April to July 2009) is about Feasibility - scoping the possibilities, capturing requirements, exploring technical options, developing cost models and, not least, drawing from exemplar undertakings internationally.
- Phase 2 (August to November 2009) will then develop a preferred option, as agreed by the SCONUL Steering Group, to a full Business Plan, based on standard HEFCE requirements, plus a project plan for a Pilot Project which may attract HEFCE funding.