Personal and Corporate Name Authority Record Creation

The following workflow represents the current work process in place at the UC Davis library when creating an authority record for a personal or corporate name. It is one of the work functions that will be converted to a native Linked Data workflow as part of the project.

Actors

1. Librarians – Highest level of experience.
2. Cataloging Specialist – Medium level of experience .
3. Supporting systems and tools (e.g. harvesting daemon).

Description
User Story: ”As a library cataloger I need to create a set of metadata elements in OCLC for a person or organization (called authority record) that will describe it for helping Library patrons to discover different works when searching a person’s or organization’s name in OCLC and replicate that authority record in the local integrated library system.”

Success Metric(s)

1. A new set of metadata elements about a person or organization (authority record) will be present in the OCLC Authority File.
2. The new set of metadata elements about a person or organization (authority record) will be replicated locally in the ALEPH database.

Preconditions

1. New resource is delivered to cataloger.
2. The library is a member of the Name Authority Cooperative Program (NACO).
3. Cataloger has access to OCLC system.
4. Cataloger must have access to the following online resources: Cataloger’s Desktop, ClassWeb, RDA Toolkit, AACR2 (online accessed through RDA Toolkit), MARC21 for Bibliographic and authority data (OCLC website). NACO Participants’ Manual (LC website), Authorities: Create Name Authority Records (OCLC website).
5. Cataloger must knowledge of cataloging rules (AACR2 & RDA), MARC format (authority), foreign language(s).
6. Cataloger has access to biographic reference resources and various online directories of companies or company histories.
7. Cataloger has access to Virtual International Authority File (VIAF) and Library of Congress Authority File.
8. Library contracts a vendor to perform authority control.

Post Conditions
Bib record and authority record are present in OCLC Worldcat database. Holdings record and item record are present in local ILS.

Triggers
A new resource is delivered to cataloger.

Steps

1. Log in OCLC Connexion Client.
2. Search OCLC Authority File to ensure no authority record exists.
3. Search LC Authority File to ensure no authority record exists.
4. Search OCLC WorldCat Database for the predominant usage and any other relevant information.
5. Open appropriate workform (i.e., Personal Name, Corporate Name).
6. Fill out fixed fields.
7. Fill out variable fields.
8. Save the record to online.
9. The authority record is being picked up by the Library’s authority control vendor and distributed to the Library to load into Aleph.

Alternative Flows
Instead of using workform as a template, cataloger may use one of the following two methods:

• 4.a.1. Derive a new name authority records from an existing record (precondition: an authority record exists for a related or similar name).
• 4.a.2. Generate an authority record from a name heading from a bibliographic record using an OCLC-supplied macro (precondition: the heading for which you want to create an authority record is used in a bibliographic record that meets NACO criteria for a source record)

User Interface Requirements
User interface for current work-flows are determined by existing software packages.

Issues

1. Do we need more steps related to how authority records are distributed back to the Library?