ILS Search Task Forces

The purpose of these task forces is to evaluate the ILS finalists during the second phase of SWAN’s ILS selection process. The task forces will develop questions and scenarios, submitted through the ILS Search Committee, for the finalist vendors to address during scheduled software demonstrations. 

Each task force consists of staff of SWAN member libraries on a volunteer basis who have been selected and vetted by SWAN staff and the ILS Search committee. Each task force also include a SWAN staff facilitator and a liaison selected from the ILS Search Committee. Both the facilitator and liaison will participate in a non-voting capacity. 

Each task force will have full access to the RFP document and finalist vendors’ responses. Task force members are expected to review the relevant sections of these documents in full prior to formulating questions and scenarios. 

Task force members must attend all demonstrations relevant to their functional area, as scheduled and designated by the ILS Search Committee. 

Every task force must include scenarios and questions relevant to the proposed reporting and analytics platform(s). All task forces will attend demonstrations related to reporting and analytics. 

Using evaluation criteria provided by the ILS Search Committee, the task force will submit a written evaluation that ranks the finalist solutions and summarizes the strengths, weaknesses, and risks of each. This evaluation will serve as the task force’s recommendation to the SWAN ILS Search Committee. 

Each task force’s questions and scenarios may address the following topics: 

Circulation Task Force 

• Checkout, check-in, renewal, and offline circulation workflows 
• Patron record creation, maintenance, and merging (including duplicate detection across libraries) 
• Juvenile patron records, including age-based profiles, parent/guardian information, and automatic profile changes at age thresholds 
• Holds management, including pickup locations, fulfillment, hold type, and expiration 
• Circulation policies and rules (loan periods, limits, and local vs. consortial options) 
• Fines, fees, and payments 
• Patron privacy, checkout history, and logs 
• Patron, bill, and hold record search and retrieval 
• Reports and analytics related to any of the above topics 
• Any other topics deemed relevant by the task force 

Public & Youth Services Task Force 

• Staff-side searching for patrons, including item availability, shelf locations, and status 
• Placing and managing holds on behalf of patrons (including non-standard hold placement such as for book clubs or teachers) 
• Patron account assistance, including explaining blocks, fines, and renewals 
• Juvenile patron records, including age-based profiles, parent/guardian information, and automatic profile changes at age thresholds 
• Patron, bill, and hold record search and retrieval 
• Mobile and offsite use for outreaching and events 
• Ease of use for occasional and cross-trained staff 
• Reports and analytics related to any of the above topics 
• Any other topics deemed relevant by the task force 

Cataloging Task Force 

• Searching and navigating bibliographic, authority, and item records 
• Cataloging workflows, including copy cataloging sources (e.g., OCLC/WorldCat, Z39.50) and vendor record loads 
• Bibliographic, call number, and item record creation and maintenance, including templates and batch/global changes 
• Record quality in a shared database, including duplicate detection, merging/overlay, and management of local vs. consortial data 
• Authority control 
• Support for current and emerging standards (MARC, RDA, Unicode, linked data) 
• Staff permissions and access to edit shared records 
• Display of cataloging data in the public catalog 
• Serials management, control, and claims 
• Reports and analytics related to any of the above topics 
• Any other topics deemed relevant by the task force 

Acquisitions Task Force 

• Ordering workflows, including vendor integrations (EDIFACT, X12, and vendor platforms) 
• Fund and budget setup, encumbrances, and fiscal year turnover 
• Receiving and invoicing 
• Vendor record management 
• Serials management, control, and claims 
• Integration with cataloging, including on-order records and record loading 
• Search and retrieval of orders, vendor, and fund records 
• Staff permissions and approval workflows 
• Reports and analytics related to any of the above topics 
• Any other topics deemed relevant by the task force 

The purpose of Directors Task Force is to evaluate the ILS finalists’ cost proposals during the second phase of SWAN’s ILS selection process. The Directors Task Force will review submitted written proposals, focusing on the sections pertaining to the five year cost of the proposed system.

The task force will be directors from SWAN member libraries on a volunteer basis who have been selected and vetted by SWAN staff and the ILS Search committee. As with the other task force, this task force will also include a SWAN staff facilitator and a liaison selected from the ILS Search Committee. Both the facilitator and liaison will participate in a non-voting capacity.  

Directors Task force members may attend the software demonstrations relevant to their functional area, as scheduled and designated by the ILS Search Committee. Attendance is not a requirement.

The task force will submit a written evaluation that ranks the finalist solutions and summarizes the strengths, weaknesses, and risks of each. This evaluation will serve as the task force’s recommendation to the SWAN ILS Search Committee. 

Charge is coming soon. This task force will be comprised of SWAN staff only and cover the areas of documentation, training, development cycles, reporting tools, and consortia management.