Glenn (et al.),

We’re also small, but (from my former life as an EBSCO account services manager) I can suggest that the option with the least amount of work on part of your staff will be to get  a package of multi-disciplinary journals from one of the bigger aggregators (e.g. JSTOR, Project Muse, eDuke, etc.). Make sure whomever you choose will let you IP authenticate, allow remote access and just “turn on” all the titles you need. You will probably miss some things you need. You’ll need to decide whether what you’re missing is important enough to do the licensing and activation work. Sometimes libraries rely on databases, but publishers often have embargos on new content which can be 1-2 years. They can also pull that content and you don’t really own it. You also need to decide if you’re okay with essentially “renting” the content or if you need to retain access. What’s the back-up plan if you can’t renew the package? What’s core that you have to have?

If you’re using a subscription agent now, make sure you’re aware of all of the things they can do for you. Many will do some of the work for you, but they won’t be able to negotiate or execute a license for you in most cases. They can, however, get you pricing, make sure you’re not duplicating content and provide many other services that give you additional benefits.

I’d suggest seeing which package(s) most closely match(es) your current collection. You will probably need more than one to cover things.

MHO,

Leslie

Hi, Whom do you recommend for the purchase and management of eJournal packages across all subject areas?

We’re a small academic library looking to replace our current print journals with their electronic equivalents,
and have limited staff resources to register / configure access to individual titles.

Thanks in advanced for your suggestions

Glenn

Glenn Ferdman, MLS
Director of Library Services
Park University
8700 NW River Park Dr., Box 61
Parkville, MO 64152

P: (816) 584-6707

F: (816) 741-4911

gferdman@park.edu

http://www.park.edu/

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