Resumen de Minding the store; Insights and perceptions on the role of the subscription agent in today’s scholarly resources marketplace
Susan Davis, Deberah England, Tina Feick, Kimberly Steinle
This article summarizes the responses to a survey about working with subscription agents conducted in Spring 2015. Questions were designed to elicit feedback from all segments of the information industry: publishers, libraries, subscription agents, and consortia. The survey included several questions about changes in library procurement practice after the September 2014 Swets bankruptcy, and how libraries evaluate an agent’s financial health and quality of service. Questions were also designed to learn how well the various segments understood how subscription agents worked. One overall impression came through very clearly. There is a need for regular education about the roles of publishers, agents, libraries, and consortia in the information chain to maintain good relationships, effective services, and satisfied customers.
