Approval Plans

An approval plan is an agreement with a vendor in which the vendor automatically sends the library new publications based on an acquisitions profile. The profile defines the type of materials and subject areas the library is interested in. Using the profile, the vendor selects the items and sends them to you, along with an invoice. When you receive the items, you can keep the items you want and return those you do not want. Benefits of approval plans include the quick delivery of new publications and the reduction of time spent to select and order items individually.

If you do not need to track the individual items you receive on an approval plan, you can simply create a nontitle invoice for the items you want to keep and enter the budgets you want to charge for the titles. In the Notes field on the nontitle invoice, enter a generic description of the titles (for example, “Music Titles Received on Thompson Books Approval Plan”). (For instructions on creating a nontitle invoice, see Recording a Nontitle Invoice.) This is the quickest method for handling items you receive on an approval plan. However, it may not provide the level of tracking that some libraries may need.

If you want to track the individual items you receive on an approval plan in Acquisitions, you must enter the titles on a purchase order. Of course, you do not need to print the purchase order or send it electronically. In addition, receiving and claiming tasks do not apply. However, you do need to record the invoice for the items so your budgets are updated appropriately.

When you create the PO header, you may want to enter a note in the Description or Note field to indicate that the purchase order is for items received on an approval plan (for example, “Approval Plan with Thompson Books”).

There are several variations for creating purchase orders for items you receive on an approval plan. The option you choose will depend on the amount of information you want to track:

When you receive a group of items, create a purchase order and add a PO line for every title you receive. Then cancel the line items you are returning to the vendor. This option provides the greatest level of detail. However, it also is the most time-consuming and may lessen the time-saving advantage of approval plans.
When you receive a group of items, create a purchase order and add a PO line for only those titles you intend to keep.
Create a single purchase order for the approval plan that you will use for all titles you receive on the plan during a certain time period (such as a year). When you receive a group of items, create a single line for all the titles you are receiving on that date. Enter a generic description of the titles in the Title field (for example, “Titles Received on 2-25-98”). In the Distribution group, enter the quantity and budgets you want to charge. Since the lines do not represent actual titles, be sure the Item Creation field on the PO header is set to “No Automatic Item Creation.”

 


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