Putting It Into Practice

Managing Reformatting

Managing Reformatting Projects

For institutions that contract with an outside vendor for reformatting services, the basic elements of project management are:

• selecting the collections to be reformatted;
• determining which reformatting method is most appropriate;
• creating a project plan (often as part of preparing an application for grant funding);
• preparing the collections for reformatting;
• keeping in touch with the vendor during the reformatting process to ensure that all is proceeding as planned; and
• examining the final result to ensure that all technical specifications provided by the institution were met.

Planning a Reformatting Project

Begin with the following questions: Will you be instituting a systematic ongoing reformatting program or undertaking one or two special projects? Do you have the expertise in-house to determine the condition of collections and decide which merit reformatting? Will you need a collection survey by a specialist prior to making reformatting decisions?

Who will plan and manage the reformatting project(s)? A professional staff member is usually recommended, but in some cases a paraprofessional may perform this function. Choose someone who can successfully interact with other institutional staff as well as with the outside vendor.

What will be the responsibilities of various staff members within the institution during the project? How will you fund the project(s)? You will need to estimate the size of each specific project and determine how much in-house staffing and time will be needed. If the project is to be grant funded, this will be done as part of your grant application.

Most importantly, what are your goals for the project? This is particularly important for projects that include digitization, where you must begin by deciding what products and results you want from the project, and then determine the technical requirements for producing those results. See Considerations for Project Management in Handbook for Digital Projects: A Management Tool for Preservation and Access for a detailed discussion of digital project management issues.

You may also find the following checklists helpful in managing reformatting programs:

  See a Preservation Microfilming Checklist (PDF, 236k) for managing filming activities.

  See a Paper Reproductions Checklist (PDF, 232k) for managing the production of paper copies.

  See a Digital Imaging Checklist (PDF, 232k) for managing digitization activities.

  See a Reformatting Media Collections Checklist (PDF, 232k) for managing audiovisual reformatting.