April 14, 2025
A series as part of “1985 – 2025 – 40 Years of NAG” and our NAGstalgia theme.
Interviewed by Sally Allen – Executive Committee Member
Name: Heather Sherman
Job Title: Director of Academic Library Operations at BDS
NAG Exec: 2006-2013, 2020-present
NAG Chair: 2011 – 2013
Welcome Heather to our very first interview for our series of blog posts as part of our celebration of 40 years of NAG. Your career in the library world began as a graduate trainee at the British Library, followed by roles in academic libraries resulting in great expertise in library systems, technology, metadata, supply chains, acquisitions, and cataloguing. You are well known throughout the library world and often presenting at industry events. Prior to joining BDS in 2020 you were the Head of Library Programme Manager at Dawson Books for 8 years. It was during these years that you were also the Chair of NAG from 2011 to 2013 and you returned to the Exec Committee in 2020 In fact, congratulations are in order as you are one of the longest serving members of the Committee – along with Jennie (Business Development Manager) and Christine (Finance Administrator)!
To begin with, tell us more about your role at BDS?
I work with academic libraries, supporting them to consolidate and automate metadata for print, ebooks and open access books via a service called UniCat. It’s aimed primarily at UK and Ireland university libraries, but specialist libraries such as the House of Lords are also customers.
Libraries primarily adopt UniCat to improve metadata quality, streamline metadata workflows and free up staff to work on other projects that add value to the library and wider institution.
I also work with academic stock suppliers who use BDS Data to enrich and enhance their product information, and outsource MARC record creation to the metadata specialists at BDS.
It is great that throughout your career, with both libraries and vendors, all have been relevant to NAG. How did you first become involved in NAG and what were your earliest memories?
Not long after I joined Dawson Books in 2005 I went to my very first NAG Conference at Keele University. I presented on a joint project I’d worked on with Dawson Books whilst I was still at the University of Hertfordshire. This was to develop a revolutionary new service called ‘Shelf Ready’!
The following year I took part in the NAG Acquisitions School in Lytham St Anne’s. The course was really helpful as I was new to Acquisitions even though I’d been working in FE College and University libraries for 20 years. Back then, it was a three day residential course, now all the information is on the NAG website for people to dip into when they need to.
Are there any key initiatives from your time at NAG that made an impact in your work that followed?
NAG was originally established to share best practice in acquisitions and to promote standards. That’s a thread that’s run through my career.
There are efficiency savings to be made when we co-operate and work in standardised ways.
Libraries acquire books via broadly the same channels, and using common systems and standards. There are also sector specific requirements such as servicing and metadata that libraries require so users can find, and borrow books. Ensuring that all these elements work together as efficiently and elegantly as possible has always fascinated me.
More recently the survey that NAG Commissioned on the Quality of Shelf Ready metadata helped inform the metadata standards that underpin UniCat.
40 years is a long time, it is interesting to see that the aspirations and challenges faced by libraries back then are still relevant today. Technology, budgets, efficiencies, streamlining workflows ….
Things have changed so much since I first worked in libraries. At that time, most libraries didn’t have an automated system. Users had to search card catalogues organised by author or title to find a book. The first public library I worked in took photographs of a user’s ticket placed on the title page of the book so they knew who had which book and when it was due back!
Over time, technologies, systems, and standards changed, but the end goal of purchasing and getting books to users efficiently remains the same. NAG’s aim is to help libraries navigate the changes and apply them to their own setting in the most appropriate way.
Shelf ready grew out of the rapid expansion of the ex-Polytechnics in the early 1990’s. As student numbers increased, so did the acquisitions budget and the number of books being added to stock. At one point the University I was working at had a one year backlog of books waiting to be catalogued and serviced so they could go onto the shelves for users . This was clearly unacceptable. We fundamentally reviewed our acquisitions processes and collaborated with our main supplier to identify tasks that could be outsourced. The answer was that the supplier could service the books and provide the metadata, and they could do this faster and accurately.
Although the drivers are different, there are parallels to what academic libraries are currently facing. Radical solutions will have to be found to continue to provide a service despite the reductions in budgets and staff numbers.
What would your advice be to encourage new library professionals to join the NAG Executive Committee?
NAG is one of the few committees where public librarians, academic librarians, and suppliers meet and work together on projects. Whilst some things are different, there’s a lot that we all do that’s the same. Learning from each other through sharing experience is one of the key benefits of being involved in NAG.
I’d encourage new professionals to say “yes” to all opportunities! Push yourself out of your comfort zone. Through NAG I’ve had the opportunity to organise conferences, give presentations, and work with some great people that I wouldn’t have met otherwise.
There’s lots of transferrable skills that you can develop on the NAG Committee: leading project groups, managing budgets, organising conferences, running webinars, giving training sessions…all skills that will benefit your career.
What are your 3 most interesting / fun things you remember from NAG?
- Great socials, quizzes and trying my hand at being a croupier from the days when the NAG Conference was a two day event.
- Being part of a fun, supportive group of people who generously share their skills and experience.
- Finally setting up the NAG Award when I was Chair. I love that NAG provides an opportunity to celebrate the great work that Acquisitions Teams do.
When you are not working, what would you doing for relaxing and enjoyment? A glass of red wine or perhaps an energetic session at a dance class?
You know me too well!
I keep fit by going to Zumba with my sister, and salsa dancing with my partner.
I’m a big rugby union fan. I support Saracens from my time living in Hertfordshire. I also watch a lot of Irish rugby as my partner’s from Northern Ireland and supports Ulster. It’s not unknown for holidays to involve a live rugby game and a few pints of Guinness.
During lockdown I took up knitting again, and started to make ganseys. These are traditional fisherman’s jumpers from the East Coast of Yorkshire, which is close to where I live. I’ve also recently started learning bookbinding and handmake notebooks for friends and family.
Thank you so much Heather, this has been a really insightful and interesting chat. We look
forward to seeing you at the NAG Forum and Seminar in Leeds on 15 th May – making lots
more NAG memories!