Troubleshooting Electronic Resources from an Interlibrary Loan Perspective

ABSTRACT

As library functions and tasks increasingly take place in a digital environment, areas of overlap arise between traditionally separate units and departments, spurring opportunities to evaluate and reimagine how these functions and tasks are carried out. In 2018, Louisiana State University utilized ILLiad, an interlibrary loan (ILL) request management software, to report electronic resource access issues to the Electronic Resources Librarian. A year’s worth of data reveals the most common types of access issues impacting LSU’s electronic resources, training opportunities for ILL staff, and most significantly, that ILL staff and troubleshooters engage in identical procedures at the start of their work. Does the intersection of ILL request processing and troubleshooting present an opportunity for restructuring?

KEYWORDS:

• Electronic resources
• troubleshooting
• interlibrary loan
• access issue
• reorganization

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to Jacob Fontenot, Head, Interlibrary Loan Services, and Lois Kuyper-Rushing, Associate Dean for Public and Collection Services, for proof-reading the manuscript.