Flipped Interlibrary Loan (F.I.L.L.): Putting Interlibrary Loan in the Driver's Seat of Acquisitions

Abstract

Interlibrary loan (ILL) is an important service point in the academic library, a channel through which patrons can ask for specific books and expect that those books will be made available to them. Examining the methods in which libraries handle those requests may reveal new workflows wherein ILL can influence the direction of the library's permanent acquisitions. ILL data is able to drive immediate purchases of user-requested titles but also more complex models of acquisition. By comparing circulation rates and expenditures against traditional book-approval plans, acquisitions departments may also measure the financial effectiveness of purchase-on-demand programs and use them to both supplement and supplant those approval plans. At the core of Lehigh University's efforts is an internal library philosophy called “Flipped Interlibrary Loan” (F.I.L.L.), by which ILL can and should inform permanent acquisitions for the library collection.