Booking workflows for staff

Staff workflows for handling booking requests in Alma: viewing upcoming requests, processing the request for the hold shelf, removing item from hold shelf if not checked out by patron.

Handling scheduled bookings

Viewing requests in advance

All scheduled bookings

Go to Fulfillment > Monitor Requests & Item Processes

Export the list using the icon if sorting/printing is desired

NOTE: Please make sure to delete/destroy the files and any paper copies after use for patron privacy! Future reporting needs can be handled via Alma and Analytics.

Bookings for a particular type of item

Physical Titles search > name of item (e.g. Canon DSLR Camera)

Physical Items search > barcode or name of item

When there are requests in the system, the result will have an entry "Requests: {#}" and the number of requests is clickable. (Results are sorted by Request Date, unfortunately, rather than anything useful. Removing the Request Date field display does not alter the sort.)

Note: Equipment bookings scheduled through HoyaSearch are not assigned to a specific barcode in advance. If a booking is manually scheduled by a staff member in Alma, it might be (erroneously) attached to a specific item.

Bookings for a specific patron

Manage Patron Services > lookup patron > Requests tab > filter to Request Type: Booking request (if the list is long) --this will include both A/V equipment and studio reservations

Handling on the day of a booking

Booked items will (usually) appear in the Pick From Shelf list, and slips can be printed from there

Pull the item needed for the booking

Scan In the item to associate the barcode with the booking →this triggers an email to the requester that their item is on hold for them

When the requester arrives at the circ desk, check out the item as usual for a hold shelf item

Note: When there is one booking on a piece of equipment with multiple items, it's possible to loan all but one of the items to other patrons–the last available item is reserved by Alma for the booking even if the booking request is still on the Pick From Shelf list (i.e. no specific item has been put on the hold shelf for that request).

It is not possible to override the "Item cannot be loaned due to a booking request" block.

Handling items not picked up

The Booking Release Time allows a booked item to be automatically available for circulation after a period of time (25 hours is the current setting)–but it doesn't remove the item from the hold shelf.

A booked item not picked up from the hold shelf within the initial 25 hours of the booking can be handled as a non-expired but unwanted hold item.

One possible workflow:

Do a Physical Items search for the barcode of the item being removed from the hold shelf.
Click on the number following the label Requests.
On the Resource Request Monitoring page, click the three dots button for the request that's on the hold shelf, choose "Update Expiry", then change the Expiration Date to yesterday.
Fulfillment > Scan In Items > enter item barcode.
If there was a waiting request, you'll see "Destination: On Hold Shelf" with the requester's name; click the three dots button and choose Print Slip to get a slip for the new request.

When there are back-to-back requests and no items are available on the (regular) shelf, the request will not appear on the Pick From Shelf list. Using Scan In Items on items being removed from the hold shelf is the ONLY WAY found that provides the ability to print a slip for the next requester in this scenario.

If items remain on the hold shelf beyond the originally booked date(s), they will appear on the Expired Hold Shelf list. Equipment with pending requests will show up under the Activate Next tab; clicking the Activate Next button will print the slip for the next requester and produce a little popup message about what needs to happen with that item.

Possible messages:

The next step for item: [item] is: On Hold Shelf
To continue processing the item "[item]" it must be moved. The destination is: Reshelve Without Transit.