Managing information organizations

Information Outlook, May, 2004 by John Latham

Managing information organizations is the first of the Professional Competencies listed in the Competencies document, but how does it work in practice? As information professionals, we are in the unique position of knowing, or finding out about, all the products and services of our organization or institution and how they interrelate. The information organizations we serve range in size from one employee to several hundred and may be in any environment, from corporate, education, public, or government to nonprofit. Senior executives may know a lot about the positioning of the organization within their industry or profession and are the initiators of the strategic direction, but the information professional is often the only person in middle management who has and understands the tools available to see the whole picture in practical terms.

Over the next few issues of Information Management, I shall be looking at a number of the specific competencies and their impact in practical terms.

Aligns the information organization with, and is supportive of, the strategic directions of the parent organization or of key client groups through partnerships with key stakeholders and suppliers.

It is all very well knowing, or having access to, so much information about your organization, but it won't get you anywhere unless you make it valuable to the key players within the organization. I remember Barbara Maxwell, the director of the USA Today library where I worked many years ago, explaining to me how she had pushed for a seat at the early-morning meeting of the editorial management, where it was determined what issues were going to be given high priority in that night's edition. By knowing the important topics firsthand, she could not only position her library staff to prepare for questions from reporters, but also proactively make relevant information available throughout the organization. I am sure that the way this is done now is totally different, with intranets and knowledge management systems, but this was a prime example of aligning the information organization with the strategic direction of the parent organization. Becoming personally acquainted with senior management or key members of your organization is still invaluable for promoting your information center's services, regardless of how electronic most of your services may have become.

Builds and leads an effective information services team and champions the professional and personal development of people working within the information organization.

We are fortunate that information centers have access to SLA's Annual Conference and other learning opportunities to advance our staff's professional and personal development. In these cost-conscious days training is often the first budget line to be cut, but don't forget that having your staff give training sessions for other staff within the organization is a cost-free way for them to learn and develop. There is nothing like standing up in front of your co-workers to force you to learn all there is to know about a new topic or technological innovation. Not only does your information organization benefit from having highly motivated and educated staff, but putting on Internet searching or intranet training sessions or presentations about your products and services is a great promotional tool.

The Competencies in Other Languages

Because the Competencies for Information Professionals of the 21st Century are so important, we have arranged a number of foreign-language translations. Although SLA's website can be translated using the WorldLingo electronic translation service, a professional translation is clearly necessary for the Competencies. A Japanese translation, kindly provided by the Japan Special Libraries Association, has already been added, and translations into Arabic and various European languages are being prepared courtesy of the Arabian Gulf and European chapters.

Experience of the Month

I came across an interesting example of copyright in practice last month. There was an article in an online version of a newspaper which a well-intentioned staff member e-mailed to himself from the newspaper website, and then forwarded the e-mail to various co-workers. At the same time, the director of the information center, becoming aware of the same article from one of his alerts, sent an e-mail to the same co-workers referring them to the article via the URL of the newspaper website. I am not a legal expert on copyright, and the first example may or may not be violating copyright, but I would recommend that sending the URL of a Web page to view is a surer way to avoid falling foul of copyright legislation.

John R. Latham

Director, Information Center

john@sla.org

The Information Center is sponsored by Factiva, a Dow Jones and Reuters company.