I attended the ILLiad International Conference in Virginia Beach a few weeks ago.
The conference is an annual event that is becoming increasingly international. Interlibrary Loan practitioners came from all over the U.S. as well as the U.K., Israel, Thailand, and other countries. There was even a session on “Resource Sharing in the Japanese Libraries.” ILL at Davidson is obtaining and supplying material to international libraries at an increasing rate as these libraries find that we have material they need and we find that they have items that our patrons request as their collections “open up” through international discovery systems.
The folks at Atlas Systems (maker of ILLiad – the software used at Davidson to manage Interlibrary Loan) put on quite a show. Conference sessions focused on the nitty-gritty of customer service and are led by knowledgeable and personable presenters. For ILL folk, it is a great opportunity to rekindle old friendships and start new ones. As one attendee tweeted, “It’s a giant user group/family reunion!”
Conference presenters Caitlin and Kerry ready to lead a session on St. Paddy’s Day
It is this focus on the user experience that sets the conference apart from most. Interlibrary Loan practitioners are already inclined to respect their patron’s and other library patron’s needs as they see these in connection. They are deeply appreciative when their concerns are given attention.
As you know, the ability of Interlibrary Loan folk all over the world contribute to the sharing of information. The sharing currently going on is taking place at lightning speed (mainly for articles, but also for physical items due to expedited delivery services). The ILL systems (ILLiad and others) are facilitating this breakneck pace. Even document delivery (those items that are supplied to patrons from in-house sources) keeps this pace with the scanning and/or supplying of articles within minutes – due to ILL staffing late at night. To most patrons of ILL, “it’s all about speed” and ILL at Davidson is just a footstep behind the requests we receive.
Also contributing to this “bonding” of users and information is the “bond” between libraries. Believe it or not, lending libraries pay attention to which particular borrowing library is requesting an item via ILL. ILL requests for unusual items can become “special favors” filled by one library because of the special relationship it has with another library.
These relationships are built day by day as libraries help each other, with most of the interaction coming through computerized systems. During peak times, the volume of requests can be overwhelming (especially at large research libraries) and libraries would find it almost impossible to handle the volume if there weren’t these mechanisms.
Interlibrary Loan is built on the reciprocity between libraries. No ILL department can take credit for what it does because it is dependent on others (libraries and individuals) for the satisfaction of its patrons. At Davidson, we are only as good and fast as those who “bend over backwards” to very generously provide material to us. And, on your behalf, we thank them profusely!
