Optimising publisher workflow

What are we trying todo?

1) Stay in business

2) Have decent lives

Where's the controversy?

THE PROBLEM:

People are justawful

“It's as if they don't want us tosucceed!”

● They don't do their job properly

● They stop you doing yours

● They don't care about your problems

● When they go on holiday they're even more annoying

● You can definitely do your job quicker without them being involved

● They need to be convinced of everything

● They cost more money than they make

● You can do their job quicker than they can

● You wish you could just do it all yourself

What's the real problem?● They don't do their job properly

● They stop you doing yours

● They don't care about your problems

● When they go on holiday they're even moreannoying

● You can definitely do your job quicker withoutthem being involved

● They need to be convinced of everything

● They cost more money than they make

● You can do their job quicker than they can

● You wish you could just do it all yourself

Responsibility

Authority

Skills

Managing metadata as a metaphor for life

RESPONSIBILITYAUTHORITY

SKILLS

METADATA important, obviously

- One version of the truth -- Accurate data is a basic necessity if you hope

to appear at all professional or competent -- Efficiency -

- Productivity -- Sales tool -

- Images sell books - - All retailers use electronic metadata to maintain their catalogues -

- Blah -- Etc. -

What happens when metadatamanagement goes wrong

Getting it right

Responsibility, Authority, Skills

● Who is responsible for what data● Who has the authority to finalise it● Who knows the ramifications and the detail

Responsibility Authority Skills

Pub date

Price

Jacket spec

Title

Blurb

MS due date

Cover

Part of a wider picture● The difference here is that we're setting

responsibilities, authority and skills as part ofpublishing workflow planning – not at adepartment level. We're coming up withunifying objectives for the organisation

● We're also hoping to speed things up● This is a starting point for rehearsing different

skills within the organisation – better placed tobe rigorous, technically capable, and nimble.

Task

● Fill in the grid. Use more paper if necessary

● Write down either data or processes that need to bemanaged in your organisation, across departments(created, looked at, updated and deleted)

● Who owns it (responsibility)?

● Who has the authority to decide on it?

● What skills do those people need to be responsible andable to wield authority for this data / process?

● NB: Skills likely won't be the same as currently in theorganisation.

How did that go?

● Finding new skills: let it inform your job specs,recruiting, training plans, KPIs

● Elevating people to positions of responsibility:you have to support them and honour theagreement

● Giving people authority means they areobligated to consider all stakeholders' views

Final thoughts● No publishing skill is beyond the wit of man● Seniority != an abdication of technical skill● Gut feel is so 1997● Measure everything● When you buy in technical expertise, make it a

training exercise too.● Use Bibliocloud to manage your workflow and

data. It's really good.