Improving Library Advantage During Negotiations with ONEAL’s Gambit

Abstract

Do you have to negotiate business terms and/or contracts for library resources? Do you want to learn more about how librarians can increase their bargaining power? Please join Katharine Macy, Scarlet Galvan, and Courtney Fuson of the IMLS-funded ONEAL Project (Open Negotiation for Academic Libraries, https://oneal-project.org) and explore a new open educational resource available to library workers who wish to develop these skills. Negotiating is often a skill set that is largely learned while on the job or through continuing education opportunities that may be costly and not library-focused. In addition, many library workers feel anxiety about the negotiation process. In this session, explore how negotiation skills: • create more productive conversations that create more options. • foster a sustainable relationship with resource vendors. • empower library workers through an open online curriculum to teach these skills. The session will introduce the Foundations learning module launched in April and the brand-new Strategies module launched in Fall 2024, which dives deeper into strategies (setting priorities, vendor and internal stakeholder management, and contracts and licensing strategy).