OCLC Members Council discusses similarities, embraces differences in libraries that make up the global cooperative

DUBLIN, Ohio, USA,  11 November 2008  – OCLC Members Council met in Dublin, Ohio, October 19-21, to discuss similarities and differences in libraries around the world, continue planning a transition to a Global Council and Regional Councils to extend OCLC participation, and elect a council delegate to the OCLC Board of Trustees.

Under the direction of Members Council President Loretta Parham, Library Director and CEO, The Atlanta University Center, delegates also heard reports from OCLC senior management and staff and discussed the worldwide library cooperative’s plans and activities.

Kathleen Imhoff, Executive Director and CEO, Lexington (Kentucky) Public Library, was elected by Members Council to serve on the OCLC Board of Trustees. Ms. Imhoff, a public librarian, will serve a term of five years. She has advocated for the formation of global library networks, and has considerable budgeting, contracting, project management, collaboration and strategic planning experience.

"I welcome the opportunity to bring my experience to the OCLC table to help provide cost-effective information services to people throughout the world," said Ms. Imhoff, in her nominee statement.

Larry Alford, Chair, OCLC Board of Trustees, and Dean of University Libraries, Temple University, provided an overview of the board's responsibilities. He said the OCLC Board of Trustees ensures that OCLC stays true to its public purpose; ensures that OCLC is a financially secure, business-like collaborative; and ensures “that we pass a strong, stable, relevant collaborative to the next generation.”

Global Issues Discussion

In the opening council session, three speakers discussed similarities and differences in libraries around the world.

Graham Jefcoate, Directeur Universiteitsbiblioteek, Radboud Universiteit Nijmegen, in the Netherlands, focused on the culture of the new global OCLC cooperative. He noted that differences in location and language influence communication and participation within OCLC. He said political, ideological, social and cultural differences affect the context in which libraries operate and the external pressures they are under. Economic circumstances vary widely and can determine the resources available for libraries.

"There are differences, yes, but libraries participating in the OCLC cooperative also share a vision and values," said Mr. Jefcoate. "The world needs good information. Libraries have serious rivals as sources of good information so we must prove we add value. Examples of adding value can be found everywhere. We need all the inspiration we can get, personal or professional, and from whatever source. Therefore, thinking globally is not just nice, it's also smart. Indeed, it could save our lives—professionally."

Chew Leng Beh, Senior Director, Library and Professional Services and Director of SILAS, National Library Board (NLB), explained how libraries work in Singapore. He noted that the NLB manages both the national library and public libraries.

"In 1994, we set an ambitious goal of becoming a world-class library system within eight years," said Mr. Beh. "So today, what's so special about libraries in Singapore? Customers just love us!"

Mr. Beh said the secret to the success of the National Library Board's efforts to change libraries in Singapore was a very simple marketing principle—to be customer-centric. "We made sure all of our services were convenient, accessible, affordable and useful,” he said.

In 1995, Singapore began collecting data to determine customer satisfaction. Circulation and visits to the libraries have increased consistently since then.

Gwenda Thomas, Library Director, Rhoades University, in Grahamstown, South Africa, spoke about "South Africa and the Second Decade of Democracy: What Makes Our Libraries Special." Ms. Thomas set the context for changes in South Africa and how libraries operate in the country. "South Africa has been through a miracle in terms of transition from the apartheid era to that of unity," she said.

She noted that the national legislative framework ensures that "the right of access to information" for all citizens is enshrined in the Constitution adopted in 1996, the Bill of Rights of the Constitution, and promotion of an Access to Information Act.

Ms. Thomas said South African library and information services are striving to meet the developmental needs of a young democracy. These library and information services compete with national agendas including poverty alleviation, social change and economic development, social cohesion and nation building. "The needs are enormous," said Ms. Thomas.

"In the end what makes the libraries in South Africa so special are the librarians, individually and collectively, who provide the leadership and vision to the sector, who continue to revitalize, inspire and motivate libraries and their staff to strive towards filling all the goals of economic and social development identified by our people," Ms. Thomas concluded.

Barbara Dewey, Dean of Libraries and Professor, University of Tennessee, moderated discussion of the global issues facing libraries. "We really need to focus on what we want to accomplish. I think in organizations like OCLC and many others with which we are involved, we spend a tremendous amount of time with process. We should instead focus on programs and initiatives for the public good and how are we going to move forward and bring the world's knowledge to users with all these different needs that have been expressed today."

Rein van Charldorp, Managing Director, OCLC EMEA, discussed some of the challenges in serving libraries in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Differences in language, currency, cataloging rules and formats create challenges in serving libraries in these regions. "OCLC EMEA is fully integrated with all OCLC efforts," said Mr. Charldorp. "OCLC has one global strategy, one engineering division that includes the three development centers in Europe, and our contributions are fully consolidated."

Special Collections in a Global Perspective

Alice Prochaska, University Librarian, Sterling Memorial Library, Yale University, discussed the value of special collections and the potential for sharing these collections through digitization. Dr. Prochaska was Director of Special Collections for the British Library prior to taking her current position at Yale.

"It's absolutely impossible to define what you mean by 'special collections,'" said Dr. Prochaska. "As chair of the ARL Special Collections Working Group, one of the things we do not do is define what special collections are. If it's difficult to understand across cultures, how much more difficult is it within our libraries to understand that every different library defines special collections in different ways?"

Digitization is an obvious tool for sharing special collections, said Dr. Prochaska. Libraries are increasingly turning attention to large-scale digitization of special collections. That will incur all kinds of problems, costs and issues about the fragility of the originals, she said.

Dr. Prochaska discussed iconic value and research value of special collections. Some manuscripts, for instance, have an iconic value—a value for people who think they represent their own personal and cultural inheritance. "But it's also something that needs to be researched and delved into and understood. If we don't share in the iconic inheritances of other cultures, how can we learn about them?" she said.

There should be no digitization of special collections without metadata, according to Dr. Prochaska. "This is where the work of OCLC is of such paramount importance to all of us—in supporting the whole principle of cataloging. Description, exposure and discovery have to happen as part of the collaborative partnership," she said.

OCLC President's Report

Jay Jordan, OCLC President and CEO, brought delegates up to date on OCLC’s plans and activities.

"As we build Web scale for libraries, we are focusing on four broad objectives—to create a compelling user environment, make WorldCat Web Services a valued part of library operations, increase OCLC's global relevance and position of trust, and create system-wide efficiencies in library management," said Mr. Jordan. "These objectives complement each other. Together, they will take us to the next-generation of OCLC services."

Lorcan Dempsey, OCLC Vice President, Programs and Research, and Chief Strategist, defined OCLC’s efforts to lead libraries to create a Web-scale presence.

"The Web allows organizations to create scale—through the concentration of computer resources, applications or data—and to deliver the benefits of that scale to large numbers of other users through the Web," said Mr. Dempsey. "OCLC exists to create systemwide efficiencies in the management of libraries and to increase their impact in compelling user environments. The key to each of these goals in a Web environment is scale and the delivery of the benefits of scale to as many libraries and library users as possible.”

In other matters, OCLC Members Council discussed updates in the Policy for Use and Transfer of WorldCat Records. The policy is now posted on the OCLC Web site.

Delegates also discussed the Members Council transition to a Global Council and Regional Councils. In May 2008, the OCLC Members Council approved changes to the Articles of Incorporation and Code of Regulations that had been recommended by the Board of Trustees. The changes will transform the current Members Council into a Global Council that connects with Regional Councils around the world. The new Global Council will replace the Members Council in a transition that is expected to take at least one year and will be coordinated between representatives of the 2008-2009 Members Council and the Board of Trustees.

Council discussed and passed two resolutions proposed by the Members Council Executive Committee. The first provided for the establishment of implementation committees that will organize three Regional Councils. These regional committees are chaired respectively by Chew Leng Beh, from the Asia Pacific region; Berndt Dugall, Direktor and Librarian, Universitat Frankfurt, from the Europe, the Middle East and Africa region; and Patrick Wilkinson, Director, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, from The Americas region. Members Council unanimously passed the second resolution that defined the process for transitioning to a Global Council Executive Committee including the three chairs who also will serve as members of the group. Jan Ison, Executive director, Lincoln Trail Libraries system (ILLINET), current Members Council vice president/president-elect, will serve as the first president of the new OCLC Global Council in 2009-2010.

Audio and video from the October Members Council meeting can be found on the OCLC Web site.

About Members Council
The 66-delegate Members Council supports OCLC’s mission by serving as the key discussion forum and communications link between member libraries, regional networks and other partners, and OCLC management. By providing a channel for recommendations and questions from Members Council delegates, approving changes in the Code of Regulations and electing six members of the Board of Trustees, Members Council helps shape the future direction of OCLC.

About OCLC
Founded in 1967 and headquartered in Dublin, Ohio, OCLC is a nonprofit library service and research organization that has provided computer-based cataloging, reference, resource sharing, eContent, preservation, library management and Web services to 69,000 libraries in 112 countries and territories. OCLC and its member libraries worldwide have created and maintain WorldCat, the world’s richest online resource for finding library materials. For more information, visit www.oclc.org.

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