1.2. Staff Permission Groups

The NC Cardinal staff permissions project started several years ago as an outgrowth of cataloger training and assessments. Over the past several years, library staff who perform cataloging functions have been taking one or both cataloging assessment(s) and following Cataloging Best Practices in order to perpetuate a more cohesive and efficient consortium catalog and improve patron usage and experience.

We worked with System Login Access Managers (and/or directors) from every system in NC Cardinal using Basecamp to hold several meetings and discuss the changes to permission groups and the permissions assigned to them. The main purpose of the project was to limit cataloging permissions to those staff members who had passed the NC Cardinal cataloging assessments according to the NC Cardinal Cataloging Policy. Additional goals were to create a more efficient inheritance structure for permission groups, rename permission groups to better represent their function, and ensure that all staff login access accounts with cataloging and administrative permissions are assigned to a named individual in compliance with the Staff Login Accounts and Permission Policies. Another element of the project was that permissions are consistently assigned to permission groups across the consortium and we do not deviate from that structure by assigning individual permissions to individual accounts.

After receiving input and feedback from System Login Access Managers (and/or directors), we finalized the project in August 2019 to reallocate staff permissions according to this list of permission groups and assignments. Benjamin Murphy and April Durrence did a combined presentation on the patron permissions project and staff permissions project respectively for the 2020 Evergreen International (Virtual) Conference: https://youtu.be/JbFgw68QpUo

Libraries may use generic login access accounts assigned to Circulator, Circ Lead, Reports, or Volunteer permission groups for much of the work performed on a daily basis. These accounts may already have been created by NC Cardinal State Library staff and provided at migration. According to the Staff Login Accounts and Permission Policies, cataloging and administration permission groups require an individual login access account with the staff user's name listed as delineated in Creating a New Login Access Account. Staff should only have one individual login access account which can be assigned a secondary permission group, if needed.

If a library uses the Volunteer permission group, it should be assigned ONLY to volunteers who must log into the staff client to perform their designated tasks (not to indicate that a patron is also a volunteer who helps out in the library but doesn’t access the staff client). As with all other staff login access accounts, the Volunteer permission group is only intended for authorized access to the staff client and should never be assigned to a patron’s barcoded personal account, only to a library controlled account that is used strictly for library business. Either a generic or individual Volunteer account can be set up by the System Login Access Manager, based on the preference of the library director.

System Admins (SLAMs) are now able to create/edit accounts and apply Volunteer, Circulator, Circ Lead, and Branch Admin permission groups. A help ticket is required when Item Cat, Bib Cat, or System Admin permission groups need to be applied to a staff login access account or for any edits to existing accounts with Item Cat, Bib Cat, or System Admin permission groups, as those changes will need to be made by the NC Cardinal team. If a System Admin is creating an account for a new staff member who needs the Item Cat, Bib Cat, or System Admin permission group assigned, the System Admin can assign the account to the Circulator permission group (or Circ Lead/Branch Admin, if higher permissions are needed) and then put in a help ticket request. Temporary cataloging permission group assignments are made according to the NC Cardinal Cataloging Policy. For more information about cataloging permissions please see the Cataloging Permissions Requirements page.

Individually assigned login access accounts should never be shared between staff members or reassigned from one staff member to a different staff member, as each staff member is individually responsible for the appropriate usage of their individually assigned login access account. Sharing these accounts between staff members or using them for more than one staff member muddies the record of accountability. A brand new account must be created for each new (or reassigned) staff member when they are assigned to a job position that requires an individually assigned login access account (cataloging or administration permission groups).

Staff who have questions about their own login access accounts should contact their System Login Access Manager.

Current structure:

The main groups and their functions are:

Reports: (Note: All staff permission groups already have all reports permissions, so this permission group is mainly useful for libraries that require all staff to have an individual login access account and do not use generic circulation accounts.)

Create report templates
Clone report templates
Run reports
View reports output

A System Admin can set up a generic account assigned to the Reports permission group, if library staff would find it easier to retain all library reporting in one account. It is only intended for running reports and getting report output spreadsheets to make it easier if multiple staff need to access report data from one shared account. Staff would need to log in with their main account to look at patron or item information.

Please note that that the Reports permission group does not include any Circulator permissions, such as to view patron accounts or items. If the Reports permission group is assigned to an account, that account is only intended to run shared reports and cannot perform circulation functions.

Volunteer (Note: This is a limited Evergreen Staff permission group with higher level permissions than a Patron level permission group and is to be applied only for non-staff volunteer users who must have access to the Evergreen staff client to perform volunteer duties):

Check in and check out materials to patrons
Place holds
No overrides
No ability to bill patrons or pay bills

Circulator: (These permissions are inherited by all the permissions groups listed below)

Check in and check out materials to patrons
Place holds
Limited power to override
Bill patron and pay bills

Circ Lead (inherits Circulator permissions):

Merge patron accounts
Delete patron accounts
Abort transits
Override in appropriate circumstances

Branch Admin (inherits all Circ Lead permissions):

Keep closed dates editor up to date with holidays and other closings (snow days, etc.)
Access/edit other Local Administration functions in Evergreen
(Optional) Make any necessary changes to receipt templates and troubleshoot issues with peripherals (receipt printers, self-checks, rfid pad, etc.)
(Optional) Notify library IT of any connection issues with broadband or peripherals
Create/edit acquisition funds (no cataloging permissions)

System Admin (inherits all Branch Admin permissions):

For System Login Access Managers and directors only
Issue accounts with the appropriate employee permissions to new staff members
Promptly notify NC Cardinal of any changes in staff using a cataloging permission for timely compliance with cataloger training requirements
Delete staff login accounts for staff who are no longer employed by the library in timely fashion
Monitor permission group usage to ensure that staff are utilizing the correct patron permission groups to trigger circ and hold policies as well as circ limit sets

Item Cat (inherits only Circulator permissions):

Pass Item Cataloging Assessment
Comply with NC Cardinal Cataloging Best Practices
Evaluate and select existing bibliographic records for quality and appropriateness to the item
Create a volume/call number
Create an item record and add the appropriate item attributes (especially shelving location and circulation modifier)
Add items to a copy bucket
Delete items and volumes (only Available/Reshelving, Discard/Weed, Missing, or On order statuses are eligible for deletion)
Report duplicate and problematic bibliographic records to a Bibliographic Cataloger for merge and/or update (add records to a record bucket)
Report deviations from NC Cardinal Best Practices within the catalog to lead Bib Cat at your library
Basic acquisition functions, excluding bibliographic record create/import/edit/delete permissions

Bib Cat (inherits all Item Cat permissions):

Pass both Item and Bibliographic Cataloging Assessments
Comply with NC Cardinal Cataloging Best Practices
Import bibliographic records
Overlay bibliographic records (in limited cases where appropriate)
Create bibliographic record following Best Practices and MARC/RDA standards
Edit bibliographic records (adding/removing fields appropriately)
Remove ISBNs for other formats requiring a separate bibliographic record (i.e., e-book, large print, or audiobook ISBNs included by a vendor on a regular print book record)
Strip out system-specific information (local call numbers, notes, donation info, etc.) in bibliographic records
Add/edit subject headings correctly based on Cataloging Best Practices
Merge duplicate bibliographic records
Delete bibliographic records
Import authority records
Monitor library system staff with Item Cat permissions to ensure compliance with NC Cardinal Cataloging Best Practices
Notify NC Cardinal staff of any issues that might hinder compliance with NC Cardinal Cataloging Best Practices within your library system
Report deviations from NC Cardinal Best Practices within the catalog to NC Cardinal staff & Cataloging Committee
All acquisition functions

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