SOMETIMES… A SCREAM

IS BETTER THAN A THESIS

KUMBAYA

RADICAL COLLABORATION

SYSTEMIC PARTNERSHIPS

James G. NealMassachusetts Board of Library Commissioners

Massachusetts Library System15 May 2012

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REVOLUTIONARY CHANGE

David Close (The Meaning of Revolution):

…the essential feel of revolution derives from its cataclysmic quality…

it destroys people’s security and unsettles their convictions.

Thomas Kuhn (The Structure of Scientific Revolutions):

… the transition from a paradigm in crisis to a new one from which a new

tradition can emerge is far from a cumulative process.

Karl Marx (Theory of Epistemology/Theory of Ideas):

…Ideas do not exist on their own…they are real only when they are translated into action. Quantitative change and qualitative change.

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PROGRESSIVE CHANGE

• All progress is based on a universal innate desire on the part of an organism to live beyond its income. (Samuel Butler)

• Those who speak most of progress measure it by quantity and not by quality. (George Santayana)

• Progress lies not in enhancing what is, but in advancing toward what will be. (Kahlil Gibran)

Progress - movement toward a

goal

steady improvement

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SOME DEFINITIONS

• Primal Innovationcreativity as first importance, as a fundamental component

of organizational and individual DNA

• Radical Collaborationdrastic or sweeping energy, and not Kumbaya

• Deconstructiontaking apart the axioms or rules, or the incoherence of a

concept, position or word

• Survivalnot relevance or impact, but persistence and adaptation

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

• What is the NEW NORMAL?

• What TECHNOLOGIES are having greatest impact?

• How are we thinking and behaving differently about COLLECTIONS and SERVICES?

• What has been the effect on LIBRARY ROLES?

• What has been the impact on ORGANIZATION and STAFF SKILLS?

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WHAT ARE THE CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

OF THE LIBRARY?

• Information Selection

• Information Acquisition

• Information Synthesis

• Information Navigation

• Information Dissemination

• Information Interpretation

• Information Understanding

• Information Use

• Information Application

• Information Archiving

• In Support of Teaching and Learning

• In Support of Research and Scholarship

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CHANGING LIBRARY ROLES

• Libraries as Consumers

• Libraries as Intermediaries and Aggregators

• Libraries as Publishers

• Libraries as Educators

• Libraries as R&D Organizations

• Libraries as Entrepreneurs

• Libraries as Policy Advocates

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THE SHIFTING VISION OF THE LIBRARY

• Legacy

• Infrastructure

• Repository

• Portal

• Enterprise

• Public Interest

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TREND #1

CUSTOMIZATION/PERSONAL WEB

RAPIDLY SHIFTING USER BEHAVIORS AND EXPECTATIONS

SOCIAL NETWORKING

COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE

NEW LITERACIES

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TREND #2

• AUTOMATE OLD WORKFLOWS• SHALLOW EXPERTISE• NEW COMBINATIONS• RESISTANCE TO OUTSOURCING

REDUNDANT INEFFICIENT LIBRARY OPERATIONS

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TREND #3

AGING AND INEFFECTIVE

SERVICE PARADIGMS

DISCOVERY FAILURES

USER ALTERNATIVES

SAGE AT THE DESK

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TREND #4

POLYCENTRISM

DISCONNECTED AND UNEVEN

LIBRARY DEVELOPMENT

WEAK PROFESSIONAL COMMUNICATION

SYSTEMS AND FORUMS

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TREND #5

MUTABILITY

CONSTANT CHANGE

HYBRID STRUCTURES

MAVERICK STRATEGIES

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TREND #6

NEW ECONOMIC CONTEXT

HOW DO WE RESPOND TO

SMALLER BUDGETS

REDUCED PURCHASING POWER

LESS POLITICAL SUPPORT

COMPETITION FOR RESOURCES

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TREND #7

ACCOUNTABILITY/ASSESSMENT

HOW DO WE KNOW?

IF WE ARE ADVANCING INSTITUTIONAL GOALS

ADVANCING COMMUNITY GOALS

SUPPORTING USER OBJECTIVES

SERVING NATIONAL INTERESTS

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TREND #8

ACCELERATION OF COLLECTIVE

INNOVATION

APPS REVOLUTION

ENTREPENEURIAL IMPERATIVE

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TREND #9

GEO-EVERYTHING

GEO-LOCATION

GEO-TAGGING

GIS/MOBILE APPLICATIONS

SMART OBJECTS/SPACES

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TREND #10

SCALE AND NETWORK EFFECTS

THROUGH AGGREGATION

MOVING OPERATIONS AND SERVICES

TO THE CLOUD

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TREND #11

COMMON SHARED RESOURCES

FOCUS ON UNIQUE RESOURCES

FUTURE OF COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT

LIE OF COORDINATION

LICENSING OF CONTENT

WEB ROT AND FUTURE OF SCHOLARSHIP

GOLDEN AGE OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS

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TREND #12

NEW MAJORITY LEARNER

EPISODIC

DISTANT

OTHER-DIRECTED

CAREER-FOCUSED

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TREND #13

OPENNESS

OPEN ARCHIVES OPEN DATA

OPEN DESIGN OPEN SOURCE

OPEN COURSE CONTENT OPEN LINKING

OPEN TEXTBOOKS OPEN ACCESS

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TREND #14

DEFORMALISM AND DESTRUCTURINGOF SCHOLARSHIP

OPEN ACCESS

FUTURE OF SCHOLARLY MONOGRAPH

WEB COMMUNICATION

RESPOSITORY MOVEMENT

SCHOLARLY REVIEW

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TREND #15 – NEW TECHNOLOGIESEDUCAUSE HORIZON REPORT

• Mobiles (single, portable multi-purpose device)

• Cloud Computing (distributed processing and applications)

• Geo-Everything (geolocation and geotagging)

• Personal Web (customized management of online content)

• Semantic-Aware Applications (meaning to provide answers)

• Smart Objects (links physical world with information)

• Open Content (wide distribution and repurposing)

• Electronic Book (platforms, applications, redefinition)

• Data/Big Science (research information management)

• Games As Learning Tools (participation and interaction)

• Visualization and Simulation (more meaningful and intuitive)

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U.S. LIBRARY DEVELOPMENT

-1950 Period of EXCLUSIVITY

1950-1970 Period of POPULARIZATION

1970-1990 Period of DISCORD

1990-2010 Period of DECADENCE

2010-2015 Period of POLYGAMY

2015-2020 Period of PARABIOSIS

2020- Period of PARTICULARISM

DEFINING CHARACTERISTICS/TRENDS

• Collection Development

• User Services

• Preservation/Archiving

• Library Management Systems

• Digital and Network Technologies

• Facilities/Space Planning

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DEFINING CHARACTERISTICS/TRENDS

• Teaching and Learning

• Research and Scholarship

• Library/Researcher Relationships

• Assessment/Accountability

• Organization and Communication

• Relationship To Community

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DEFINING CHARACTERISTICS/TRENDS

• Professional Roles/Staffing

• Governance and Leadership

• Budgets and Planning

• Cooperation and Networking

• Fundraising/Resource Attraction

• Information Policy/Political Process

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WHO ARE OUR USERS?

• Students (diversity abounds)

• Faculty (expectations galore)

• Researchers (tribal differences)

• Administration (the bottom line)

• Community (local politics)

• Working Professionals (practical applications)

• Alumni and Donors (largely ignored)

• World on the Web (the new majority)

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WHERE DO WE INTERSECT WITH USERS?

• Physical Spaces

• Web Spaces

• Collections

• Services

• Applications

• Technologies

• Classroom

• Laboratory

• Bedside

• Collaborations

• Anyone

• Anywhere

• Anytime

• Anyhow

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HOW DO WE KNOW ABOUT USERS?

• Ask

• Measure

• Listen

• Observe

• Compare

• Benchmark

• Experiment

• Involve

• Prototype

• Portfolio

• Evaluate

• Experience (Aha)

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ENHANCE THE USER EXPERIENCE

• Technology Ubiquity

• Point-of-Need Information

• Web-based Services

• Technology Sandbox

• Privacy Space

• Social Success

• Support Services

• Information Fluency

• Post-graduate Access

• Career Assistance

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RESPOND TO USER EXPECTATIONS

• Content

• Access

• Convenience

• New Capabilities

• Cost Reduction

• Participation

• Individual Productivity

• Individual Control

• Organizational Productivity

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EMBRACE THE “HUMAN” OBJECTIVES

• Success (turn out well, attain desired end)

• Happiness (well-being and contentment)

• Productivity (achieving results or benefits)

• Progress (forward movement or betterment)

• Relationships (personal connections or attachments)

• Experiences (observation or participation)

• Impact (significant effect)

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TRADITION OF LIBRARY COOPERATION

• Library Systems

• Local and Regional Cooperation

• State Projects

• Multi-State Projects

• National Consortia/Projects

• International Partnerships

• Researcher Collaboration

• Publisher Collaboration

• Collaboration with TechnologyOrganizations

• Corporate Partnerships

• Business Partnerships

REACHING OUT TO CULTURAL COMMUNITY

PROMOTING NEW COMBINATIONS THRU PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS

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AREAS OF SUCCESSFUL COLLABORATION

• Licensing of Electronic Resources

• Cooperative Cataloging

• Interlibrary Loan/Document Delivery

• Information Policy Advocacy

• Offsite Shelving Facilities

• Digital Archiving

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ARENAS FOR RADICAL COLLABORATION

• Centers for Excellence

• Mass Production

• New Infrastructure

• New Initiatives

Quality/Productivity/Innovation

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RADICAL COLLABORATIONSOME REQUIREMENTS

• Bi- and Tri-Lateral Combinations• Sustainability/Business Plan• Legal Framework• Governance Structure• Risk Capital• Competitive Spirit

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2CUL PROJECT

What is 2CUL?

A transformative and enduring partnership between two major academic research libraries based on a broad integration of resources, collections, services and expertise.

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2CUL PROJECTWhy the Columbia and Cornell University Libraries?

• Major research libraries

• New York state

• Private Ivy institutions

• Similar academic characteristics

• Record of collaboration

• Record of innovation

• Budget challenges

• Will and interest

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2CUL PROJECTWhat are the goals of 2CUL?

• Achieve major integration of operations, services, collections and resources

• Reduce cost of overall library activities to direct resources to new priority areas

• Increase revenues through joint proposals for funding, new products and services, and business opportunities marketed to academic and research customers

• Establish an independent service entity and governance structure that supports 2CUL

• Expand 2CUL beyond initial partners, and model collaboration for other groups of research libraries and for other divisions at the university

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2CUL PROJECTWhere are we initially focusing our work?

• Technical services (acquisitions, cataloging, e-resource management)

• Collection development/global resources

• Technology infrastructure/digital preservation

• Communications

• Resource development

• New services for students and faculty

• New business/entrepreneurial services for other libraries

• Business planning and governance

BUSINESS PLANNING

• Achieving major integration of operations, services, collections and resources

• Reducing cost of overall library activities to direct resources to new priorities

• Increasing revenues through joint proposals

• Offering services to other libraries

• Bringing in other parties; building strategic partnerships

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COLLECTIVE COLLECTION CHALLENGES

• Institutional identity, faculty acceptance

• Better sense of overlaps and gaps

• Financial restrictions, accounting systems

• Delivery mechanisms, legal issues

• Outreach/research support for faculty and students

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BACKROOM FUNCTIONS CHALLENGES

• System of “credits” for work done on behalf of others

• Standard definitions of good enough

• Budgets/funding streams

• Shared backend systems across institutions

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WHAT WILL SUCCESS LOOK LIKE?

• Enabling pre-requisites; user buy-in

• Expanded collections and services for our faculty and students

• Co-investment in critical under-supported areas

• From me and thee to we

• Resolved governance, co-ownership, budgetary, legal, and institutional issues

• Shared measures for success and impact

• Additional partners, provide collaborative model 45

SOME “AH HA” MOMENTS• Bringing two organizations together to perpetuate

traditional library models is not a goal but a dead end

• It’s got to be seen as being about more not less

• Enabling prerequisites for radical collaboration are key

• Appreciating cultural differences and need for face time

• Importance of trusted third party at the table

• Early wins are needed, not always in areas you expect

• Sometimes quick wins not possible, focus on longer-term benefits that will pay off

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OTHER COLUMBIA PARTNERSHIPS(Period of Polygamy)

• Research Collections and Preservation Consortium

ReCAP

• Manhattan Research Libraries Initiative

MaRLI

• Ivies Plus Libraries

Borrow Direct

• HathiTrust and DuraSpace and Portico…

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #1

LAST COPY PRINTREPOSITORY NETWORK

HOW MANY?

WHERE?

WHAT REQUIREMENTS?

SPACE IMPACTS

SERVICE IMPACTS

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #2

NATIONAL PUBLIC DIGITAL LIBRARY

MASS DIGITIZATION

PROJECT DIGITIZATION

BORN DIGITAL

KNOWLEDGE COMMONS

DOT-LIB DOMAIN

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #3

NATIONAL CONTENT LICENSING PROGRAM

OPEN ACCESS AGENDA

PRICE

TERMS

STANDARDS

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #4

WEB SITE AND WEB DOCUMENTCAPTURE/CURATION/ARCHIVING

WHAT ABOUT INTERNET ARCHIVE?

DOCUMENTING EVERYTHING?

WRITING HISTORY

SCHOLARSHIP UNDERMINED

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PRESERVE AND ARCHIVE THE CONTENT(DIGITAL PRESERVATION NETWORK)

• Archive as Repository HOLD

• Archive as Persistence ACCESS

• Archive as Curation SECURE

• Archive as Steward CARE

• Analog

• Digital Conversion

• Born Digital

• Disaster Preparedness

SYSTEMIC CHANGE #5

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #6

E-RESEARCH CYBERINFRASTRUCTURE

RESEARCH INFORMATION MANAGEMENT

RESEARCHER SOLUTIONS

GOVERNMENT FUNDING

VENDOR INITIATIVES

LIBRARY ROLE

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #7

GLOBAL RESOURCES NETWORK

INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION

FOREIGN ACQUISITIONS

LANGUAGE CATALOGING

GLOBAL EDUCATION AND RESEARCH

GLOBAL WEB

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #8

REGIONAL NETWORK OF

LIBRARY SERVICE AGENCIES

CATALOGING

PRESERVATION

DIGITIZATION

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #9

INFORMATION MANAGEMENTAPPS ENTERPRISE

NATIONAL LIBRARY PROGRAM

WHO DEFINES INFORMATION DISCOVERY USE AND APPLICATION?

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #10

LIBRARY RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT

PROGRAM AND CONSORTIUM

INFORMATION POOR INFORMATION PROFESSION

DATA-DRIVEN DECISION MAKING

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #11

COORDINATED MARKETING

AND QUALITY ASSESSMENT

INSANITY OF ROI

DEFINING AND DOCUMENTING VALUE

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #12

NEW STANDARDS FORLIBRARY SPACE

THE TROMPE L’OEIL LIBRARY

LEARNING SPACE

SOCIAL SPACE

COLLABORATIVE SPACE

COMMUNITY SPACE

FLEXIBILITY AND ADAPTABILITY

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #13

INFORMATION LITERACYSTOP THE MADNESS

ACADEMIC CRUTCH

WHAT DIFFERENCE DO WE MAKE?

CAN INFORMATION LITERACY ACTUALLY BE TAUGHT?

BETTER TO INVEST IN MARKETING AND ACADEMIC INTEGRATION

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #14

MULTIPLE PATHS TO

LIBRARY WORK

FUTURE OF MLS

MANDATORY CE/CERTIFICATION

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FERAL PROFESSIONALSIN THE INFORMATION ORGANIZATION

• Professionals With Diverse Academic Credentials

• Wide Range of New Professional Assignments

• Professional Roles of Support Staff and Students

• Impact on Values, Outlooks, Styles, Expectations

• Impact on Community Understanding, Recognition, Respect

• Impact on Organizational Relevance and Impact

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EXPECTATIONS FOR THE INFORMATIONAL PROFESSIONAL

• Commitment to Rigor

• Commitment to Research and Development

• Commitment to Assessment and Evaluation

• Communication and Marketing Skills

• Political Engagement

• Project Development and Management Skills

• Entrepreneurial Spirit

• Commitment to Collaboration

• Resource Development Skills

• Leadership/Inspirational Capacity

• Deep Subject or Technical Expertise

• Deep Service Commitment

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SYSTEMIC CHANGE #15

CREATE LIBRARY PAC

POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE

POLITICAL CANDIDATE SUPPORT

SUPPORT/OPPOSE LEGISLATION

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ADVOCATE THE INFORMATION POLICY AGENDA

• INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM

• PRIVACY

• CIVIL LIBERTIES

• EDUCATION PROGRAMS

• RESEARCH PROGRAMS

• INTERNET DEVELOPMENT

• TELECOMMUNICATIONS

• GOVERNMENT INFORMATION

• APPROPRIATIONS

• WORKFORCE POLICY

• FIGHTING THE COPYRIGHT WARS

HOPE/POWER/ACTION THROUGH COLLABORATION

WHERE ARE WE GOING?

RELEVANCE

IMPACT

VALUE

SURVIVAL

EXTINCTION

TERMINAL – termination of species/no descendants

PHYLETIC – one species evolves into another

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HOW DO WE FEEL?• Anxious - an abnormal and overwhelming sense of apprehension and fear

• Disrupted - interruption of normal course or unity, thrown into disorder

• Chaotic - state of utter confusion, unpredictability in the behavior of complex systems

“Our age of anxiety is, in great part, the result of trying to do today’s jobs with yesterday’s tools.”

Marshall McLuhan

“One of the litmus tests is that a disruptive technology enables a larger population of less skilled people to do things that historically only an expert could.”

Clayton ChristensenThe Innovator’s Dilemma

“Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit.”Education of Henry Adams