1. Advantages and disadvantages

2. Libraries must evaluate the advantages and disadvantages of consortium membership. Sometimes these are difficult to define and to measure. This session will discuss some of these based on Canadian experiences with membership in different types of consortia. margaret.law@ualberta.ca2

3.  A group made up of two or more organizations that work together toward achieving a chosen objective.  Every member of the consortium remains independent in his or her normal business operations  Plural of consortium is consortia [http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/consortium.asp#axzz2 AHHifM9c[http://www.investopedia.com/terms/c/consortium.asp#axzz2 AHHifM9c] margaret.law@ualberta.ca3

4.  What is the purpose of the consortium?  What goals can be accomplished together more effectively than each member can accomplish on their own?  What are the advantages and disadvantages of being a member of a consortium? margaret.law@ualberta.ca4

5.  Joint purchase of library resources e.g. licences  Shared processing and cataloguing  Shared training and expertise  Shared collections through inter library loan  Shared research projects margaret.law@ualberta.ca5

6.  Bigger customer for negotiating with vendors  Efficiencies resulting from sharing activities such as cataloguing  Better service to users through shared collections  Improved staff training through increased numbers margaret.law@ualberta.ca6

7.  Lack of personalized service for each library’s users  Loss of individual expertise and skill  Loss of autonomy and individual decision making  You may end up buying resources that you don’t want or need for your library  Lack of awareness and understanding margaret.law@ualberta.ca7

8.  Staff development through shared training  Job exchanges and job shadowing  Development of different expertise at different libraries  More purchasing power margaret.law@ualberta.ca8

9.  Universities may want to compete instead of co-operate  Additional level of administration requires time and money  Need to develop policies and guidelines to direct the running of the consortium  Costs money to support  Decision making is slower margaret.law@ualberta.ca9

10.  Technical compatibility  Technical security margaret.law@ualberta.ca10

11.  A clear goal that is shared by all members  A shared management structure  Regular meetings to discuss issues of concern  An evaluation process to determine whether members’ needs are being met  Enough income to run their activities margaret.law@ualberta.ca11

12.  Sharing collections allows libraries to borrow from each other so they can buy  Technology allows for a shared catalogue.  This expands the amount of material available to users.  Many libraries use this process to provide for specialized material. margaret.law@ualberta.ca12

13.  Shared staff development allows consortium members to provide training for each other at a low cost.  Sharing the cost of training.  Sharing best practices. margaret.law@ualberta.ca13

14.  By sharing unique titles, members can avoid duplication  Shared purchase of equipment for large projects such as digitization  Shared storage for libraries where space is a problem  Shared archiving  Taking on larger projects than one library can afford margaret.law@ualberta.ca14

15.  A larger group has more power to negotiate with vendors for improved prices and features.  A larger group has more power to discuss other changes that they would like, e.g. library training and certification margaret.law@ualberta.ca15

16.  Do the consortium’s goals match the goals of your library?  Reduced costs for e-resources  Access to larger collection for users  Success at achieving the library’s goals  Improved staff development  Measure value in improved services for users margaret.law@ualberta.ca16

17.  Can you do it better together than individually?  Is there a process for making decisions that allows input from members?  Do the advantages of the consortium balance the costs of the consortium? margaret.law@ualberta.ca17