Licensing Analyst

POSITION SUMMARY The California Digital Library (CDL) is a collaborative effort of the ten campuses of the University of California, and is designed to enable UC libraries to continue to meet the informational needs of UC faculty and students. The CDL assumes a leadership role in providing electronic content to the UC community. We develop systems that encourage resource sharing, and we collaborate with UC libraries to provide the broadest possible access to electronic resources that support research, teaching, and learning. This is a particularly exciting time for CDL. Our role is becoming even more crucial as demand for electronic resources, driven by distance learning and ease of access resulting from technological innovation, is increasing every day. Outside of the UC community, CDL is an influential organization in the world of scholarly publishing. CDL and the University of California have taken a leadership position in the movement to transform journal publishing to open access. UC endeavors to transform research production and dissemination in order to make research outputs openly accessible - leveraging the power of digital networks, accelerating beneficial research outcomes, and making the fruits of academic research more trustworthy and more widely available to all who may benefit for the good of society. Through our license negotiations with publishers, we have worked toward this goal and these collaborations have resulted in numerous transformative license agreements that have been groundbreaking for the scholarly publishing industry. The position as Licensing Analyst is an opportunity to have key role with an organization with a history of driving change and innovation in the acquisition of content. We are looking for individuals who are eager to face our current challenges, and are passionate about libraries and expanding access to information. POSITION SUMMARY The Licensing Analyst plays a vital role in CDL's mission to provide students, faculty, and researchers at the University of California with broad access to an enriching and valuable collection of ebooks, journals, streaming video, and other content. As a member of the licensed content team within the California Digital Library's Collection Development and Management Program, the Licensing Analyst reports to the Assistant Director for Systemwide Licensing and provides services in the area of license management. This includes drafting, editing, negotiating, and redacting licensing agreements with publishers and other content providers to secure advantageous terms that meet UC Libraries service goals and ensure compliance with University policies. The Licensing Analyst serves as an expert resource to CDL and to librarians across the UC system in the area of licensing drafting and negotiation. This position collaborates with colleagues and legal staff on license development and interpretation, negotiates license provisions with vendors, interprets license provisions in the electronic resource management system (ERMS) used by UC Libraries staff, communicates about license information with vendors and campuses, serves as the official license contact for reporting and resolving license breaches and other issues related to license agreements, and maintains the department's central license archive including obtaining signatures and digitally storing and posting licenses. This position also assists with related functions of the licensing team, such as collecting and analyzing usage data, producing reports or announcements for the UC library community, and participating in the life-cycle management of electronic resources. The Licensing Analyst will also be encouraged to work on special projects that align with personal and professional goals. CDL provides a broad range of services, and by working on innovative projects that cut across departments at CDL, there are many opportunities to have an impact on the expansion of access to information, while gaining valuable professional experience. The CDL is a unit within the UC Office of the President, has a staff of 75, and is located in downtown Oakland. Though our preference is for the Licensing Analyst to work in the Oakland office, applicants from outside the Bay Area who wish to work remotely will be considered. The University of California community values diversity, embraces inclusion, and honors excellence. Teaching, scholarship, research, creativity, innovation, and service flourish when all members of the community are welcomed, supported, and respected. Our work continues to fulfill these values. We are committed to removing barriers preventing full expression of our potential and to reflecting the population of California in our faculty, students, and other academic personnel, especially those who have been systematically and historically underrepresented. We are an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age or protected veteran status. Responsibilities

35%	License Drafting, Review and Negotiation. Conduct initial review of new licenses and amendments prepared by publishers. Draft licensing contracts based on CDL Standard License Agreement, using terms most favorable to CDL and UC.  Negotiate licensing terms with vendors under the guidance of the Assistant Director for Systemwide Licensing. Consult legal staff as needed.  Keep abreast of licensing trends and other developments with academic libraries and scholarly publishing, and recommend changes to CDL's preferred licensing terms and standards as needed, including the development of new and/or updated model agreements for particular use cases.
30%	License Communication and Advice. Counsel campuses in the execution of license agreements and provide appropriate policy guidance. Liaise between vendors, campuses, the Office of General Counsel, and internal CDL staff to promote effective licensing practices and identify and resolve licensing issues. Serve as the primary licensing contact for external constituencies, including the UC-managed national laboratories. Track licensing activities, update licensing status and related websites, and communicate the status to relevant staff.
20%	License Administration. Review, format, and obtain appropriate signatures for completed licensing agreements. Save, file, and maintain fully executed licenses. Update the electronic resource management system (ERMS). Redact sensitive / confidential information for display on public website. Maintain archives of licensing contracts and request replacements if necessary.  Liaise with the Office of General Counsel to respond to and manage public records requests as needed.
15%	Additional Projects.  Assist with related functions and work on special projects as assigned, such as collecting and analyzing usage data, producing reports or announcements for the UC library community, and participating in life-cycle management of electronic resources.

Required Qualifications

• Thorough knowledge of license agreements, common licensing terms, and licensing trends required. Solid understanding of contract structure and function.
• Experience drafting and/or revising license agreements, adhering to timelines and working under pressure.
• Strong written, verbal and interpersonal communications skills; ability to deal effectively with broad and diverse constituencies ensuring strong customer service orientation and skills.
• Strong organizational, analytical and negotiation skills. Attention to detail. Self-motivated and able to work independently and as part of a team.
• Advanced level of proficiency with MS Word, Outlook, and Excel.
• Judgment and tact in dealing with sensitive communications, including the ability to maintain confidentiality and handle confidential contract and business information appropriately.

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated understanding of scholarly publishing practices, open access and transformative agreements, and user privacy issues.
• Knowledge and experience working in academic libraries, and locating and interpreting library bibliographic data.
• Familiarity with the CDL Standard License Agreement.
• Experience with library electronic resource management system (ERMS) and familiarity with the life cycle of electronic resource management in academic libraries.
• Experience with web-based content management system, e.g., WordPress, Dreamweaver, etc.
• Familiarity with scholarly publication assessment data, including Impact Factor, citation data, usage data, etc., as well as related library data standards and practices, e.g., MARC, COUNTER, KBART, OpenURL, and SUSHI.
• Familiarity with U.S. Copyright law.
• Experience with library/publishing license agreements.
• Advanced degree in library and information science, law, or a related discipline.
• Skills-based training in drafting and negotiating library license agreements.

Education

• Bachelor's degree in related area, and/or a minimum of three years equivalent experience/training.

SALARY AND BENEFITS Salary: $84,000 - $95,000 commensurate with experience.

Learn More »