For many libraries, particularly small to midsize academic libraries, journals have placed significant strains on the acquisitions budget. For fiscal year 2012/2013 the Volpe library at Tennessee Tech University faced a significant materials budget shortfall. Rather than simply cutting titles to cover the shortfall or asking the administration for more money we concluded that the existing system of acquiring and delivering information packaged in journals was not sustainable for us. We therefore embarked on a yearlong process to develop a different way of providing article information that would more efficiently use the budget that we have. The process we have developed focuses more heavily on purchasing individual articles, using the CCC product Get it Now, in an attempt to maximize the impact of our budget resources.
This presentation will describe the process that was used to prepare a plan to meet the budget challenge. It will also include a description of the final plan, the implementation of the plan and early results that are available on the operation of the new process.
There are two main objects for this session. First is to present a process we are implementing to meet a challenge many libraries face in the hope that it will be of value to our colleagues and that they can learn from our experience. Second is to solicit input and ideas that will improve the process. Those that attend the session can participate by sharing their reactions and ideas.
