Experience with large consortial and state level contract negotiations to date points out the severe handicap that libraries unarmed with comprehensive usage and expenditure data have when sitting down to contract negotiations with the vendor community. Unfortunately, most library consortia do not have critical usage and expenditure data available to them to leverage their bargaining position. Procurements made by all qualified procurement organizations must be reflected at the contract level. This includes consortial purchases, purchases by public library systems on behalf of their member systems, etc. Current The on-line information systems market place is very dynamic.
Dated information has no value.
Confidential Library must be given assurances that information provided will be held in confidence and not used for commercial purposes, shared with the vendor community or otherwise misused. Convenient The information must be convenient to maintain and convenient to access. Credible Quality control and access control procedures must be established to insure that only properly authorized information is reported in the system. Obvia will provide regular project status reports to the consortium and will meet regularly with the consortium designee to identify and deal with specific policy and management issues that arise during the course of the project. Obvia will provide overall project management for coordination and implementation of all deliverables.