Collection Strategies Librarian

About the role

The Library is seeking a collaborative, forward-thinking, and analytical Collection Strategies Librarian to provide leadership for evidence-based collection development, assessment, and strategic resource management in alignment with Cal Poly’s “Learn by Doing” philosophy.

Reporting to the Associate Dean for Collections, Systems, and Digital Strategy, this position supports the university’s teaching, learning, and research missions by guiding the ongoing evolution of library collections in response to changes in scholarly publishing, licensing and access models, technology-mediated discovery, and user needs.

Responsibilities

• Investigate and analyze new and emerging models for collection development such as transformative agreements, Affordable Learning Solutions, demand- or evidence-based acquisition, open educational resources and shared collection initiatives.
• Collaborate with library colleagues to provide data-driven insights for collection management (e.g. COUNTER reports, dashboards, visualizations, or other communication tools) to support transparency and shared understanding of collection decisions.
• Lead and coordinate collection development strategies across subject areas in collaboration with selectors, ensuring that the library’s 'evidence-based' approach includes quantitative and qualitative assessments of how well collections serve diverse curricular and research needs.
• Work with subject experts to ensure that historically marginalized voices, international perspectives, and non-traditional scholarly outputs are represented alongside mainstream commercial publishing.
• Investigate and analyze how emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning, are influencing scholarly publishing and collection management practices, with attention to social and environmental responsibility, transparency, accessibility, privacy, and data quality.
• Participate in library-wide planning and strategic initiatives that shape the long-term direction of collections and resource stewardship.

Qualifications

• ALA-accredited Master’s Degree in Library and Information Science, or comparable experience with a relevant advanced degree, at the time of appointment.
• Three years of relevant experience.
• Demonstrated experience in collection development, collection analysis, acquisitions, or related collections strategy work in an academic or research library.
• Familiarity with current and evolving scholarly resource acquisition models, such as evidence-based acquisition, consortial purchasing, shared collections, or transformative agreements.
• Strong analytical and assessment skills, including the ability to interpret usage, cost, and qualitative data to inform collection decisions.
• Experience with data visualization and collection analytics tools (e.g., Alma Analytics, Tableau, Power BI).
• Understanding of evolving scholarly communication ecosystems, licensing, and open access.
• Understanding of the legal, ethical, and technical considerations related to text and data mining, artificial intelligence, and emerging discovery technologies as they relate to collection strategy.
• Excellent oral and written communication, collaboration, and project management skills.
• Commitment to addressing barriers to equitable participation (e.g. textbook affordability, accessibility features of scholarly materials, and representation in scholarly discourse).
• Demonstrated ability to apply a critical framework to collection strategies, such as addressing the historical exclusion of marginalized voices in academic collections or identifying biases in vendor-driven acquisition models and metadata.
• Familiarity with shared print and digital preservation initiatives, such as WEST, Portico, or the Journal Archiving Campaign Service (JACS).
• Ability to work effectively as part of a team working with and supporting culturally diverse faculty, students, and staff.