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Succession planning for losing an all-star: A Moneyball approach

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Library systems work often depends on long tenured staff with deep, tacit knowledge of discovery configuration, patron data, and system integrations. When a key staff member announced an upcoming retirement, San Diego State University Library adopted a "Moneyball" approach to succession planning: rather than replacing a star individual we shifted focus to distributing their production. Through a series of Discovery and ULMS Support (DULS) working meetings, we identified core support tasks across Alma, Primo, and Rapido, including employee account administration, patron loads, holdings exports, and discovery configuration. As a result we've re-envisioned DULS as a hands-on working group with shared ownership, cross training, and centralized documentation. This session shares practical strategies for succession planning with a focus on reducing risk, increasing transparency, and ensuring sustainable support for Ex-Libris Systems.

Succession planning: Moneyball
Alma, Alma Specto, Primo, RapidILL, Rapido, Other Ex Libris Products
Learn build organizational resilience due to staffing disruptions.
Apr 30, 2026 09:00 AM - 09:45 AM(America/Los_Angeles)
Venue : Echo Park
20260430T0900 20260430T0945 America/Los_Angeles Succession planning for losing an all-star: A Moneyball approach

Library systems work often depends on long tenured staff with deep, tacit knowledge of discovery configuration, patron data, and system integrations. When a key staff member announced an upcoming retirement, San Diego State University Library adopted a "Moneyball" approach to succession planning: rather than replacing a star individual we shifted focus to distributing their production. Through a series of Discovery and ULMS Support (DULS) working meetings, we identified core support tasks across Alma, Primo, and Rapido, including employee account administration, patron loads, holdings exports, and discovery configuration. As a result we've re-envisioned DULS as a hands-on working group with shared ownership, cross training, and centralized documentation. This session shares practical strategies for succession planning with a focus on reducing risk, increasing transparency, and ensuring sustainable support for Ex-Libris Systems.

Echo Park Ex Libris Knowledge Days and ELUNA Conference 2026 eluna-conf-planning@exlibrisusers.org
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Head of Discovery Services
,
San Diego State University
Library Applications Analyst
,
San Diego State University
Digital Technologies Librarian
,
San Diego State University
 Amy Brinkley
Technical Services Librarian
,
Folsom Lake College
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