Prior to the implementation of Alma as the University of California Libraries’ first systemwide ILS, the California Digital Library (CDL) relied upon a system of complex spreadsheets to project, collect, and track the funds invested by UC campuses to support their shared collection of electronic resources. Hoping to alleviate this manual work and develop more sophisticated reports, CDL staff built a brand-new structure in Alma with consideration for how each acquisitions related field should be used so that the data could be captured and manipulated in Analytics. On the Analytics side, the reports were designed to replicate the layout and functionality of legacy spreadsheets but also expanded upon to permit more granular analysis. Ultimately this project was successful in meeting campus needs and reducing staff labor but there were significant challenges countering the inflexibility of Alma infrastructure and disappointed expectations with Institution Zone/Network Zone interoperability.
Analytics for Consortial Reporting
Alma
At the end of the session, participants will be able to utilize reporting codes, POL labels, and calculated values to improve Analytics reports on acquisitions.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to describe some of the benefits and drawbacks of relying on Alma to generate invoices and accounting documents issued between consortial partners
Apr 30, 2026 11:15 AM - 12:00 Noon(America/Los_Angeles)
Venue : Silver Lake
20260430T111520260430T1200America/Los_AngelesImperfect Systems: Adapting Alma Analytics for Consortial Invoicing and ReportingPrior to the implementation of Alma as the University of California Libraries’ first systemwide ILS, the California Digital Library (CDL) relied upon a system of complex spreadsheets to project, collect, and track the funds invested by UC campuses to support their shared collection of electronic resources. Hoping to alleviate this manual work and develop more sophisticated reports, CDL staff built a brand-new structure in Alma with consideration for how each acquisitions related field should be used so that the data could be captured and manipulated in Analytics. On the Analytics side, the reports were designed to replicate the layout and functionality of legacy spreadsheets but also expanded upon to permit more granular analysis. Ultimately this project was successful in meeting campus needs and reducing staff labor but there were significant challenges countering the inflexibility of Alma infrastructure and disappointed expectations with Institution Zone/Network Zone interoperability.Silver LakeEx Libris Knowledge Days and ELUNA Conference 2026eluna-conf-planning@exlibrisusers.org
