Content Buying – Content Aggregation or Disaggregation: A Report by Valerie Ryder

The popular topic of “Content Buying: Content Aggregation or Disaggregation” was debated at the Monday June 13^th session sponsored by the Leadership and Management Division, Content Buying Section at the SLA 2011 Conference.  A panel of publishers and content buyers looked at the future of content aggregation, trends in disaggregation and how these issues affect purchasing decisions and usability of information.

For purposes of discussion, the terms were defined as Aggregated Content being available on multiple vendors and Disaggregated Content being available only on one vendor platform.

Some industry trends were presented as an initial starting point for the discussion:

• Pendulum has swung towards exclusivity in recent years.
• 400 titles have moved into some degree of exclusivity in the past 5 years; 50% of those have moved to a single vendor situation.
• In 90% of the past 25 deals, it was the publisher that sought out the exclusive deal.

Publishers expressed the following reasons for seeking exclusivity for their content:

• # 1 Reason: only way to continue publishing that content was to go exclusive
• # 2 Reason: publisher wanted additional features for content and to accomplish that functionality they needed to be exclusive or semi-exclusive.
• Costs of digitizing content have not been recouped as quickly as anticipated, so they needed to increase revenue
• Wanting to “own the last mile” in the delivery chain to the end-user

Content buyers expressed the following issues with the move to exclusivity:

• Price increases that result from exclusive source for content
• Content that is only offered as part of a bundle
• More licenses to read and to determine what are the terms and restrictions on use of content
• Lack of notification when content is removed or moved to a new provider
• Some content is used in conjunction with other content from another provider so users want multiple content sources to be available on the same platform.

The discussion was congenial and respectful despite the strong feelings on both sides of the question.  This open dialogue resulted in a better understanding of the motivations for and impact resulting from the decision to move to disaggregated content.

Valerie Ryder, Director of Information Strategy
Wolper Subscription Services

Did you know that the first 4 interviewees from My SLA’s podcast episodes are Leadership and Management Division members?  Visit the site and listen to our LMD members share their thoughts on how SLA has helped them become inspired and innovative leaders.  A new story is posted each week.

To share your story,  send an e-mail to: share_your_story@my.sla.org to set up an interview or blog post.

Joint LMD-Consulting Section & Pharma & Health Technology Division Breakfast Session: SLA 2011. A Report by Jan Sykes. 

Speaker: Mary Ellen Bates

Sponsorship from Sage. There were approximately 30 persons in attendance.

Mary Ellen Bates, in a presentation entitled: “Pack Your Parachute:  Transitioning from the Library to an Independent Information Professional” discussed the skill set needed by persons interested in becoming information entrepreneurs including:

·         Tolerance for risk and ambiguity

·         Business owner perspective instead of employee mindset 

·         Client-focus

·         Strategic thinking

·         Self-discipline

Mary Ellen noted that she learned to be an independent information professional while working in a Fortune 500 company and she still draws on things learned earlier in her career: research skills, importance of a network of colleagues and the ability to identify opportunities to add value. She has developed business skills, such as the ability to close a sale, to talk comfortably about money and to look at herself as a brand and a business. She did not minimize the challenges of finding clients, managing cash flow, overcoming the imposter syndrome, keeping motivated and managing her time effectively. The serious, practical questions asked during the Q&A time suggest a number of persons are considering the pros/cons of ‘packing their parachute’

Dee Magnoni, LMD Chair and Ned Potter, ECCA Winner (Photo by: Jim Tchobanoff)

This year the Leadership & Management Division (LMD) helped sponsor Ned Potter, a winner of the SLA Europe’s Early Career Conference Award (ECCA.)  Ned is an Academic Liaison Librarian at the University of York in the UK and was recently named a 2011 Movers and Shakers by Library Journal.  LJs profile of  Ned gives a fascinating look at a person who is very “inspiring, confident, clear-thinking, and worth listening to.”  Ned created a great video of his personal impressions of the SLA Conference and LMD.

The Leadership & Management Division has co-sponsored a deserving recipient of the SLA Europe’s ECCA beginning in 2009.  Previous award winners include:

2010 Chris Rhodes

2009 Laura Woods

Creating Your Future the Peter Drucker Way: A Report by Ethel Salonen

Wednesday, 15 June 2011; 10:00 AM – 1:30 AM, EST

Speaker: Bruce Rosenstein, www.brucerosenstein.com

Worked for USA Today for 21 years as a librarian/researcher until December 2008

Beginning in 1996 he wrote about business and management books for the newspaper’s Money section

Presentation revolved around Bruce’s new book: Living in More Than One World: How Peter Drucker’s Wisdom Can Inspire and Transform Your Life, Published by Berett-Koehler, August 1, 2009. The book applies the principles of Drucker, whom many consider to be the “father of modern management,” to individual self-development, by encouraging the pursuit of a more multidimensional life. It is based on more than 20 years of research into Drucker’s life and thought, including several interviews with him. Click here to learn more about the book.

His website show’s Bruce’s video interview with Peter Drucker on April 11, 2005, 7 months to the day before he died at the age of 95. Some observations from the video:

• Achievement focused and multidimensional life is what you should achieve
• There is still low productivity in knowledge workers but he sees more productivity than ever before.
• We still have an overload of data…still figuring out how to transform this into information.
• Advice to young knowledge workers – go to work..don’t emphasize attending a  school such as a MBA program. A 22 year old MBA is a waste. Work for 10-15 years, be successful, and then maybe go for a MBA.
• Teaching will be radically different in 30-50 years

His presentation focused on these major themes that are presented in his workshops:

• How to apply Drucker’s principles for self-development in your personal and professional life
• How to construct a complete, balanced life plan based on Drucker’s principles
• How to create your future through developing your core competencies, and pursuing parallel/second careers
• How to live a more multidimensional life by interacting with diverse people and varied organizations
• How to incorporate lifelong learning and teaching into even the busiest lives
• How to increase your sense of personal meaning and satisfaction through social entrepreneurship, volunteerism, mentorship and servant leadership

        Drucker quote, from Management: Revised Edition:

• “The purpose of the work on making the future is not to decide what should be done tomorrow, but what should be done today to have a tomorrow.”
• He also advised to identify and take advantage of “the future that has already happened.” What are the current trends that affect your professional and personal life, and what are the implications for the future? What can you start doing right now to remain relevant in your workplace and in the profession?

Comments from Bruce Rosenstein

• Focus on the future, not the past – stop defending the past
• What can you do to remain relevant in the various worlds you live in?
• Consider second careers in teaching, writing, art and music.
• Build continuous lifelong learning, exploring and teaching.
• Reinvent yourself, people change, different person, needs, abilities and perspectives.  Reinvent your life and your career
• Social entrepreneurship – consider choices and changes for the second half of your life – over or under 40
• Create and maintain your total life list. What initiative from this list is first?
• Don’t expect everything to happen at once.

Karen J. Switt Leadership Award – 2011 Recipient – Patricia Cia

Presented at the LMD Annual Business Meeting & Tea, June 13, 2011 in Philadelphia

Dee Magnoni, LMD Chair with Patricia Cia. Photo by Jim Tchobanoff

As Co-Chairs of the Awards Committee for the Leadership & Management Division of Special Libraries Association, we are delighted to announce that Patricia Cia has been selected as the 2011 recipient of the Karen J. Switt Leadership Award.

Each year, the Leadership & Management Division honors a member who has shown outstanding leadership, served as a role model for others, and contributed significantly to SLA.  In 1999, the award was named in memory of Karen J. Switt, a much-admired and much-missed LMD member.

Those who have had the pleasure of working with Patricia appreciate her knowledge, dedication and reliability. She embodies the ideal described in the SLA “Competencies of an Information Professional.” Her leadership, technical skills, and pioneering of new technologies have benefited LMD and its members.

Patricia has exemplified the leadership qualities treasured in Karen J. Switt recipients. She has been very active in SLA as Chapter Cabinet Chair on the SLA Board of Directors, Leadership & Management Director, in various positions on the SLA Western Canada Board, and participated on at least one SLA committee, task force, advisory council, and the SLA Centennial Commission. Patricia was awarded SLA Fellow in 2007.

The Division wishes to thank C. Berger and Prenax Basch for their generous sponsorship of the award.

Stephen Kochoff and Carol Ginsburg , Awards Committee Co-Chairs
Leadership & Management Division, Special Libraries Association

Alternative Use of the Library Degree: A report by Ethel Salonen

Tuesday, 14 June 2011; 2:00PM – 3:30PM EST

Speakers: Kim Dority, GK Dority & Associates Inc.: Jean Fisher, Vantage Information Services; George Plosker, IEEE; Bethan Ruddock, University of Manchester

Sponsored by:   IEEE Xplore Digital Library

Moderator:  Ruth Wolfish, Client Services Manager, IEEE

Purpose of the program is to hear career agility stories using information professional skill sets

Bethan Ruddick – University of Manchester, UK

• She is the content development officer for the online UK catalog
• Bethan has used her expertise and skills (flexibility, self-starter, technical skills, an open mind, willingness to communicate) to have had different and successful career paths.
• It is important to be involved in the profession outside of the workplace. Some of her outside networks include SLA Europe, LIS New Professionals Network, and Voices for the Library, and CILIP. She is the editor of the 2012 LIS New Professionals Toolkit.
• Things she has learned:
  • Sharing  your experiences is vital for professional generosity
  • She has not experienced major failure – yet
  • Sharing includes blogging, tweeting, reading and learning, and advocating for the profession
  • Who will succeed? Professionals with an open mind; who go beyond the traditional way of doing business;  who know when to say yes or no; and those who continue to be engaged information professionals.

Jean Fisher – Vantage Information Services

• Has worked at Lexis Nexis, QVC, and other organizations
• She measures success as people who:
  •  Accept challenges; live with uncertainty; are quick to learn; and not afraid of change.
  • One needs to be flexible and to change hats often
  • Find the best solution within budgets issues arise
  • Possess a positive attitude
• Technical skills are also important. Working on the organization’s intranet/portal is a great way of learning current information software. Partner with your IT colleagues and help them develop the sources you need. If possible, knowledge of current computing solutions is vital. She has worked for a number of diverse organizations and is familiar with different service offerings.
• The future:
  • To succeed you must include public speaking and publishing as part of your repertoire
  • Work on your branding
  • Increase or begin networking
  • Diversify your service offerings
  • Will libraries exist in the future?
    • Public – yes
    • Corporate Info Centers – virtual and embedded staff
    • Academic – will become international and interdisciplinary

George Plosker – IEEE Customer Services Manager

• To be successful you must be:
  • Outgoing, approachable, responsive, and communicate well
  • Your personality needs to be flexible, open to change, possess a positive attitude, outgoing, inspire trust/confidence, be curious and a risk taker
  • Diplomatic and know how to work with diverse groups
  • Show the ability to facilitate collaboration
  • Confident about your core skills
  • Able to shorten your learning curves
• You need up-to-date technical skills
  • Understand all levels of search interfaces and data structure
  • Possess a broad knowledge of web apps and tools
  • Understand the linked nature of web and user expectations
  • Provide detailed specific requirements to the technical teams
  • Know how to competently use your organizations hardware
• Different approaches at work
  • Learn more about the business side more quickly
  • Say yes to a project that offers opportunities
  • Leave the reference desk behind
  • Work with non-library groups
  • Network, Network, Network
• Trends
  • More change is coming
  • More outreach and targeted communications
  • More segmentation analysis
  • More proactive at work and with customers
  • Services are more important than your collection
  • Keep speaking, networking, and constantly innovate
  • Demonstrate your relevance with metrics that make sense to your management
  • Take risks
  • Management will understand your value the more you work with them

Kim Doherty – Dority & Associates, Inc.

• Discussed trends and thoughts
  • LIS career opportunities – don’t leave out social media knowledge and use as part of your portfolio
  • Support each other and share information
  • We are all self-employed.  Manage your career as a business.
  • Change is always heading our way
  • The investments you make in yourself will define your career opportunities
  • Not perfection but resilient – What makes you different?
  • Be prepared to land on your feet while the ground is still shaking.
• Key points
  • Flexibility
  • Learning on demand
  • Have a broad view of your skill sets
  • Think just in time and not just in case
  • Think need-to-have and not nice-to-have
  • Learn what tasks will have the highest return on investment
  • Jobs come through person connections
  • Have an exit strategy

Last week, the Leadership & Management Division (LMD) blog site was integrated into Twitter using Feedburner to publicize post through LMD’s twitter account. However, so that everyone is aware and so that everyone can help expand the awareness of the division, remember this tip:

When you twit from your personal twitter account, reference LMD as @slalmd with post that you feel can benefit the division or association members.

So for example, when I re-tweet this post from @Cromity account, the post will look something like:

Growing LMD social media presents  http://goo.gl/fb/L10Ma @slalmd

In addition, have you joined the SLALMD Facebook group yet? While tab features such as “Discussions, Photos, and Events’ are not used, the wall is very current.   

The LMD blog post are now view.

A quick snapshot of LMD sponsored or co-sponsored sessions. Includes General Sessions and no-conflict time at INFO-EXPO. Includes a printable 1-page PDF: LMD SLA 2011 Snapshot. We also have full descriptions of LMD sessions

Thank you to IT Division for the idea!

- Patricia