The Balanced Scorecard

and
Collection Management

Jim Self
University of Virginia Library
www.lib.virginia.edu/bsc
27 June 2004
 Managing the data
 The Balanced Scorecard is a layered
and categorized instrument that
 Identifies the important statistics
 Ensures a proper balance
 Organizes multiple statistics into an
intelligible framework
The scorecard measures
are “balanced” into four
areas
 The user perspective
 The finance perspective
 The internal process perspective
 The future (learning and growth)
perspective
Metrics
 Specific targets indicating full
success, partial success, and
failure
 At the end of the year we know if
we have met our target for each
metric
 The metric may be a complex
measure encompassing several
elements
The scorecard at Virginia
 Implemented in 2001
 Reports for FY2002 and FY2003
 Preparing metrics for FY2005
 A work in progress
Our Guiding Principles
 Collections and Services
 Providing access to great collections
that are easy to find, easy to use, and
that inspire learning and scholarship.
 Providing great service that meets
our users’ needs and surpasses their
expectations.
Metric VI: Circulation of
new monographs
 Target1: 60% of newly cataloged
monographs should circulate
within two years.

 Target2: 50% of new monographs

should circulate within two years.
Metric VII: Turnaround
time for user requests
 Target1: 90% of user requests for
new books should be filled within 7
days.

 Target2: 80% of user requests for

new books should be filled within 7
days.
Metric VIII: Processing
Time for Routine
Acquisitions
 Target1: 90% of in-print books
from North America should be
processed within one month.

 Target2: 80% of in-print books

from North America should be
processed within one month.
Metric XVI: Unit Cost of
Serial Use
 Target1: There should be no
increase in unit cost each year.

 Target2: Less than 5% annual

increase in unit cost.
Metric XVII: Unit Cost of
Online Databases
 Target1: There should be no
increase in unit cost each year.

 Target2: Less than 5% annual

increase in unit cost.
Metric XXIV: Expenditures
for Digital Materials
 Target1: U.Va. should be in the top
25% of ARL libraries in percentage
of collections dollars expended on
digital materials.

Target2: U.Va. should be in the top

third of ARL libraries.
Impact of the Scorecard
 Acquisition of materials that
are likely to be used
 Prompt response to user

requests
 Control of unit costs

 Acquisition of more digital

materials