SIGUCCS 2017

UW-Madison's College Library is always on the lookout for new and interesting technologies in the hope of providing access to our patrons. In recent years, we have attempted to better define our beta-testing/piloting as a process of finding, testing, and implementing new solutions to gather usage data and user feedback. Once the pilot process is complete, we decide on the future path for solutions based on collected data.

With budget uncertainty and an ever-changing technology landscape, projects that are of interest are often hard to roll out in scale in a timely fashion. The pilot process allows for relatively small upfront investment to assess a technology's success in a given setting before full investment and rollout; it also allows for data collection and feedback that may lead to better solutions in future iterations and assistance in funding procurement and partnership formation.

Focusing on successes and pitfalls of the pilot process, we will use examples from recent memory to explain the framework we have developed and provide guidance to assist in the development of such frameworks for others.