As a result of receiving an unexpected $410,000 for replacement materials, Phoenix Public Library needed to quickly identify how to develop targeted, community-based material purchases in a fraction of the usual time allotted to such a large project. Phoenix used collectionHQ™ and long standing vendor partnerships to select, order and receive approximately 20,000 book in under 260 days. This project increased annual purchasing by 7% without adding any new staff or releasing current staff from other duties.
Kathleen Sullivan, the Collection Development Coordinator for the Phoenix Public Library, will outline the steps used to accomplish this task with specific emphasis on using collectionHQ to define needs and the importance of developing successful vendor partnerships. Charleston Conference attendees will be asked to consider and discuss the implications of this project in light of continuing staff reductions in many Collection Development and Technical Services departments. They will also consider how the strategies incorporated into this project can be used in succession planning as current staff cycles out of the workforce.
The City of Phoenix has been awarded (July 15, 2012) an ICMA Center for Performance Measurement Certificate of Excellence for the library's use of collectionHQ and vendor partnerships.