Skip to page content

UK and Ireland (English) Change

The features of Webscale

Features: What makes OCLC WorldShare Management Services unique?

OCLC WorldShare Management Services (WMS) allow you to manage your library's entire collection management life cycle in a cloud-based application. And the overall purpose of Webscale—sharing resources, data, and innovation—is supported by a variety of features that work together to save money, promote community development and drive better services for library users.

WorldCat—the world's largest catalogue

At the heart of WorldShare Management Services is WorldCat—the largest catalogue of bibliographic data and library materials in the world. With more than 240 million records and 1.7 billion holdings, WorldCat's foundation is built and maintained on the strength of participation by libraries just like yours. The result is having the information needed to identify and select materials in a unified system for acquiring and managing them.

Unified acquisitions for physical and electronic collections

All of your acquisitions functions are available in one service; no need to shuttle back-and-forth among multiple systems for different formats and related activities.

  • Data from previously disparate services is stored in one system for efficient reuse.
  • Built-in access to WorldCat records and publisher data streamlines selection and acquisition processes.
  • Vendor data is included in the same workflows as local, consortial, group and global library data.
  • Shared, real-time data supports cooperative collection building.
  • Holdings are automatically created for both physical and electronic resources you acquire.
  • Integration with the WorldCat knowledge base further simplifies how electronic resources are managed and delivered.
  • Automated upload of order data from external systems further streamlines workflows.
WorldShare Acquisitions screen

With WorldShare Acquisitions, you can search for a title, purchase it and process the order—all in one seamless workflow. And by hovering over the blue information icon for an item in the search results list, you also can see whether or not there are any outstanding requests, copies selected or copies ordered.

Circulation and patron management for the 21st century

There is no software to install, no maintenance and no downloads. All functions are handled centrally. Your operations can be performed using a simple, Web-based interface on any computer.

  • The speed and efficiency your library expects in circulation.
  • Intuitive staff interface simplifies routine tasks.
  • One screen manages tasks that previously required shuffling between multiple windows.
  • Foundation of cooperative collection development simplifies collection sharing.
  • All forms of resource sharing can become network circulation tasks.
OCLC WorldShare Circulation screen

WorldShare Circulation provides you with easy-to-use account management functions, including check-in, check-out and renewals, as well as integrated hold and fine management. It also tracks availability and holds in real time, enabling a library to generate a pull list on demand.

Discovery and delivery as users expect it

WorldCat Local's single search connects users to all of your library materials (physical, electronic and digital) and the delivery services that get them what they need.

  • Discovery and delivery workflow tools coordinate with other Webscale features such as patron self-service account management.
  • OCLC continues to make more content accessible through the WorldCat Local central index with content from H.W. Wilson, Gale, EBSCO, LexisNexis and JSTOR.
  • Smart delivery resolver helps the user get the best choice for accessing items.
  • Partnerships with an array of the leading search engines, Google Books, EasyBib and others mean that users will encounter your materials during their normal research activities.
  • The new browser-based, mobile-specific site provides collection and patron information right from any mobile device.
  • The integration of the WorldCat knowledge base allows your library to have an integrated OpenURL link resolver, A-Z journal list and citation finder.
WorldCat Local screen

With WorldCat Local, in addition to finding materials using its powerful single search functions, library users also can manage their accounts, place and edit holds, view check-outs, renew materials and see bills—all within the same, intuitive interface.

Cataloguing offers tools for data creation and enrichment

WorldCat metadata powers thousands of libraries' cataloguing activities. With WorldShare Management Services, this process is integrated with acquisitions and your local holdings live in a single place for easy updating and cross-functional use. The result is more records, less cost and better data.

  • The latest cataloguing tools and technology are integrated with management services.
  • Your local holdings can live and be updated in a single place resulting in more records, less cost and better data, including availability of Local Holdings Records (LHRs) with local notes.
  • Automated workflows support physical and electronic materials.
  • The WorldCat Digital Collection Gateway lets you easily crosswalk and harvest metadata into WorldCat from OAI-compliant digital collection management services, including CONTENTdm.

OCLC WorldShare License Manager for your licensed and electronic resources

The WorldShare License Manager is an add-on subscription service that centralizes your entire e-resource management lifecycle—from selection, negotiation and acquisition to access and ongoing maintenance—in one place on the OCLC WorldShare Management Services interface.

  • Within WMS, you can manage license agreements, rights, access and resolution to full text from the same interface, eliminating the need to synchronize data across multiple interfaces or devise work-arounds to connect disparate systems.
  • The integration of License Manager within WMS helps you seamlessly deliver all formats of resources to your users from one place.
  • License Manager lets you and your users benefit from holdings data in the WorldCat knowledge base of more than 7.6 million resources, which continues to grow through the efforts of OCLC and members of the OCLC cooperative who load their data into the centralized database of resource holdings.
  • Within WMS, the License Manager combines with your Acquisitions module to simplify workflows for acquiring and managing electronic resources.
  • Your staff will save time by storing metadata about all your library's holdings in a single location—the WorldCat database. When you add your local holdings data to the WorldCat knowledge base included in License Manager, it automatically synchronizes with WorldCat. This saves time for staff by eliminating manual updates.

Learn more

WorldShare License Manager screen

WorldShare License Manager is a unique electronic resource management solution that consolidates the management of link resolution with vendor, licensing and subscription management.

OCLC WorldShare Platform for collective innovation

The Platform provides data, tools and services that developers from any organization, no matter how big or small, can use to create and share custom applications that streamline local workflows, improve library processes and enhance end-user interactions with library systems. Once shared, staff at other libraries can easily install and use these applications—so the whole community benefits from a single individual's creativity and development effort. The platform opens up OCLC services for innovation and sharing at every level.

Ongoing innovations

In addition to the ongoing release of new functions and feature enhancements, OCLC is currently working on developing new, innovative aspects of OCLC WorldShare Management Services, which we will introduce throughout the coming year.

  • Cooperative Intelligence: Aggregated, sharable data and data analysis will allow libraries to use cooperative information for better decision-making. It will support cooperative collection development, collection profile sharing, better recommender services, as well as cooperative storage and preservation activities. The value of shared data will increase as the community grows and additional analysis tools are created—by OCLC and by the Webscale community.
  • Workflow Engine: Since many traditional library workflows are built on a workflow engine, your library will have the potential to adapt the service to meet local needs and avoid cumbersome workarounds. The engine defines processes as abstractions rather than hard-coded actions, and also offers the potential for libraries to customize different process, tasks and assignments of tasks to define a specific workflow process. This will start with an introductory "generic" set of workflow processes for print and licensed materials management. Ongoing, the underlying workflow engine will more accommodate new media.

Learn more about OCLC WorldShare Management Services

Listen as libraries share their experiences with WorldShare Management Services

Contact us with your questions about WorldShare Management Services, or
request a Web information session for your library.