Baker & Taylor and collectionHQ Extend ESP - Evidence-based Selection Planning - to More Public Libraries

CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 25, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Baker & Taylor, the premier worldwide distributor of digital and print books and entertainment products, announced that its Evidence-based Selection Planning (ESP) service, which is supported by collectionHQ's data analytics platform, will be made available for all U.S. public libraries following a successful pilot program.

ESP brings the art of Baker & Taylor's collection development expertise together with the science of collectionHQ's data analytics, to create a decision support system integrated with Title Source 360, to equip libraries with the information to select the right titles and quantities, for the right locations.

Using powerful circulation-based data analytics, ESP identifies top titles based upon past circulation by author, subject and other metadata. The service offers libraries a rational, effective and efficient approach to predicting the success of titles, authors or subjects before they hit the shelf and monitors budgets through the use of collectionHQ spending plans.

The extension of the service to more public libraries comes with the addition of new functionality which supports the five key components of ESP: Title Performance Ranking, Predictive Distribution Engine, Fund Monitoring, Performance Monitoring and Enhanced Collection Development Support.

collectionHQ's Vice President - General Manager, Scott Crawford, commented: "The enhancements to ESP mean that we are now able to see the real value of utilizing big data for predictive analytics relative to the public library collection development and acquisitions workflow. Integrated with Baker & Taylor's state-of-the-art Title Source 360 ordering platform, ESP will be able to offer collectionHQ and Title Source 360 public libraries the ability, for the first time ever, to introduce a truly demand-driven process that ensures materials being purchased have a high likelihood of performing well, a data-driven recommendation for the number of copies to purchase and the ability to keep track of everything once the items are on the libraries' shelves."

Riding on the success of CollectionHQ, ESP aims to enable libraries to optimize their collections during the buying process itself. Three service levels of ESP will be available to accommodate libraries of various sizes and budgets.

To find out more, please visit www.collectionhq.com/esp/ or contact [email protected].

About Baker & Taylor 
Baker & Taylor, LLC is the premier worldwide distributor of books, digital content and entertainment products. The company offers cutting-edge digital media services and innovative technology platforms to thousands of publishers, libraries, schools and retailers worldwide. Baker & Taylor also offers industry-leading customized library services and retail merchandising solutions. Charlotte, N.C.-based Baker & Taylor is majority owned by Castle Harlan Partners IV, L.P., an institutional private equity fund managed by Castle Harlan, Inc., a leading private equity investment firm. For more information, please visit www.baker-taylor.com.

About collectionHQ
collectionHQ is the world's leading collection performance improvement solution for public libraries, based on the proven Evidence Based Stock Management (EBSM®) methodology. By analyzing detailed trends of how the library's collection has been used over time and comparing this with current provision, the methodology provides action plans to help librarians develop and manage their collection, saving time and money, improving turnover and aligning the collection with local demand. For more information please visit www.collectionhq.com

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SOURCE Baker & Taylor

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