How can knowledge be reconfigured so as to enhance experience, enable participation, and augment environments? "Shaping Knowledge" argues that knowledge is a product of human activity in a social space, and as a result is a formative resource. The book takes a step beyond information visualisation and imagines a learning environment in which knowledge can be manipulated as an object. Practical examples from the domains of health, education, travel, museums and libraries are offered, and chapters cover knowledge and space, unpredictability and authorship, as well as agility, ubiquity and mobility.
Applies high-level theory work to an engineering domainProposes a novel approach to spatial, urban and interaction designBrings a rare inter-disciplinary perspective to a convergent technology"

Academic libraries have continually looked for technological solutions to low circulation statistics, under-usage by students and faculty, and what is perceived as a crisis in relevance, seeing themselves in competition with Google and Wikipedia. Academic libraries, however, are as relevant as they have been historically, as their primary functions within their university missions have not changed, but merely evolved. Going beyond the Gate Count argues that the problem is not relevance, but marketing and articulation. This book offers theoretical reasoning and practical advice to directors on how to better market the function of the library within and beyond the home institution. The aim of this text is to help directors, and ultimately, their librarians and staff get students and faculty back into the library, as a result of better articulation of the library s importance. The first chapter explores the promotion of academic libraries and their function as educational systems. The next two chapters focus on the importance of the role social media and virtual presence in the academic library, and engaging and encouraging students to use the library through a variety of methods, such as visually oriented special collections. Remaining chapters discuss collaboration and collegiality, formalized reporting and marketing.
Offers clear, concise writing, with thoughtful discussions of the problems facing academic libraries Demonstrates comprehensive and thoughtful research that informs theoretical approaches to realistic outcomes that address these problemsProvides helpful tables, illustrations, and photographs that evidence the collaborative nature of contemporary academic librariesProvides practical examples from actual experiences that can be adapted by readers"

Libraries and librarians have been defined by the book throughout modern history. What happens when society increasingly lets print go in favour of storing, retrieving and manipulating electronic information? What happens after the book? After the Book explores how the academic library of the 21st Century is first and foremost a provider of electronic information services. Contemporary users expect today s library to provide information as quickly and efficiently as other online information resources. The book argues that librarians need to change what they know, how they work, and how they are perceived in order to succeed according to the terms of this new paradigm. This title is structured into eight chapters. An introduction defines the challenge of electronic resources and makes the case for finding solutions, and following chapters cover diversions and half measures and the problem for libraries in the 21st century. Later chapters discuss solving problems through professional identity and preparation, before final chapters cover reorganizing libraries to serve users, adapting to scarcity, and the digital divide .
Describes how electronic resources constitute both a challenge and an opportunity for librariesArgues that librarians can re-define themselvesPuts the case that libraries can be reorganized to optimize electronic resource management and information services based on contemporary technology and user needs"

What is the future of libraries? This question is frequently posed, with widespread research into the social and economic impact of libraries. Newspapers play an important role in forming public perceptions, but how do newspapers present libraries, their past, present and future? Nobody has yet taken the press to task on the quantity and quality of articles on libraries, however Libraries and Public Perception does just this, through comparative textual analysis of newspapers in Europe. After a comprehensive and useful introductory chapter, the book consists of the following five chapters: Wondering about the future of libraries; Measuring the value of libraries; Libraries in the newspapers; Contemporary challenges and public perception; Which library model from the newspapers: a synthesis.

Excellent business communication skills are especially important for information management professionals, particularly records managers, who have to communicate a complex idea: how an effective program can help the organization be better prepared for litigation, and do it in a way that is persuasive in order to win records program support and budget. "Six Key Communication Skills for Records and Information Managers" explores those skills that enable records and information to have a better chance of advancing their programs and their careers. Following an introduction from the author, this book will focus on six key communication skills: be brief, be clear, be receptive, be strategic, be credible and be persuasive. Honing these skills will enable readers to more effectively obtain support for strategic programs, communicate more effectively with senior management, IT personnel and staff, and master key forms of business communication including written, verbal and formal presentations. The final chapter will highlight one of the most practical applications of applying the skills for records and information managers: the business case. Based on real events, the business cases spotlighted involve executives who persuaded organizations to adopt new programs. These case histories bring to life many of the six keys to effective communication.
addresses communication skills specifically for records and information managers while clarifying how these skills can also benefit professionals in any discipline includes case history examples of how communications skills made a difference in business and/or personal success focuses on written, verbal and presentation skills, where many books emphasize only one of these areas

Digital asset management is undergoing a fundamental transformation. Near universal availability of high-quality web-based assets makes it important to pay attention to the new world of digital ecosystems and what it means for managing, using and publishing digital assets. The Ecosystem of Digital Assets reflects on these developments and what the emerging web of things could mean for digital assets. The book is structured into three parts, each covering an important aspect of digital assets. Part one introduces the emerging ecosystems of digital assets. Part two examines digital asset management in a networked environment. The third part covers media ecosystems.
Looks to the future of digital asset management, focussing on the next generation webIncludes up-to date developments in the field, crowd sourcing, and cloud servicesDetails case studies to demonstrate how generic requirements are met in particular cases"

The increasing volume of information in the contemporary world entails demand for efficient knowledge management (KM) systems; a logical method of information organization that will allow proper semantic querying to identify things that match meaning in natural language. On this concept, the role of an information manager goes beyond implementing a search and clustering system, to the ability to map and logically present the subject domain and related cross domains. From Knowledge Abstraction to Management answers this need by analysing ontology tools and techniques, helping the reader develop a conceptual framework from the digital library perspective. Beginning with the concept of knowledge abstraction, before discussing the Solecistic versus the Semantic Web, the book goes on to consider knowledge organisation, the development of conceptual frameworks, untying conceptual tangles, and the concept of faceted knowledge representation.
Offers a semantic solution to knowledge and information managersDemonstrates the development of a system for semantic knowledge organization and retrievalRelevant to those without much coding experience

Libraries must negotiate a range of legal issues, policies and ethical guidelines when developing scholarly communication initiatives. Library Scholarly Communication Programs is a practical primer, covering these issues for institutional repository managers, library administrators, and other staff involved in library-based repository and publishing services. The title is composed of four parts. Part one describes the evolution of scholarly communication programs within academic libraries, part two explores institutional repositories and part three covers library publishing services. Part four concludes with strategies for creating an internal infrastructure, comprised of policy, best practices and education initiatives, which will support the legal and ethical practices discussed in the book.
Demonstrates the importance of creating a policy infrastructure for scholarly communication initiativesOffers a novel combination of legal and ethical issues in a plain, approachable formatProvides samples of policy and contract language, as well as several case studies, to illustrate the concepts presented

Information professionals are under constant stress. Libraries are ushering in sweeping changes that involve the closing of branches and reference desks, wholesale dumping of print, disappearing space, and employment of non-professional staff to fill what have traditionally been the roles of librarians. Increasing workloads, constant interruptions, ceaseless change, continual downsizing, budget cuts, repetitive work, and the pressures of public services have caused burnout in many information professionals.
Managing Burnout in the Workplace concentrates on the problem of burnout, what it is and how it differs from chronic stress, low morale, and depression. The book addresses burnout from psychological, legal, and human resources perspectives. Chapters also cover how burnout is defined, symptom recognition, managing and overcoming burnout, and how to avoid career derailment while coping with burnout.
Focuses on burnout in relation to information professionals and their workExplores how burnout is identified and diagnosed and how it is measured in the workplaceProvides an overview of interdisciplinary research on burnout, incorporating studies from various areas

Do librarians rock the boat ? Do they challenge those around them to win influence and advantage? Why is it that librarians are little found on the influence grid of personality assessment tests? The Machiavellian Librarian offers real life examples of librarians who use their knowledge and skill to project influence, and turn the tide in their, and their library s, favor. Authors offer first hand and clear examples to help librarians learn to use their influence effectively, for the betterment of their library and their career. Opening chapters cover visualizing data, as well as networking and strategic alignment. Following chapters discuss influence without authority-making fierce allies, communicating results in accessible language and user-centered planning. Closing chapters address using accreditation and regulation reporting to better position the library, as well as political positioning and outcome assessment.
Throws the spotlight on librarian s professional and personality traits, many of which are deleterious to the long-term viability of library fundingShows how best to boost the value proposition of libraries, through enhanced influenceIncludes how-to chapters on influencing others in the organization"

The cloud can be a powerful tool for conducting and managing research. The Librarian s Guide to Academic Research in the Cloud is a practical guide to using cloud services from a librarian s point of view. As well as discussing how to use various cloud-based services, the title considers the various privacy and data portability issues associated with web-based services. This book helps readers make the most of cloud computing, including how to fold mobile devices into the cloud-based research management equation. The book is divided into several chapters, each considering a key aspect of academic research in the cloud, including: defining the cloud; capturing information; capturing and managing scholarly information; storing files; staying organized, communicating; and sharing. The book ends by considering the future of the cloud, examining what readers can expect from cloud services in the next few years, and how research might be changed as a result.
Covers a wide range of services, discussing their strengths and weaknesses and showing readers how to use them more effectivelyOffers a research perspective for readers who don t know how to connect cloud services with academic researchContextualises cloud-based services, explaining not just what they do and how they work, but how they can best be used"

The library in China has been transformed by rapid socioeconomic development, and the proliferation of the Internet. The issues faced by Chinese libraries andlibrarians are those faced by library practitioners more globally, however, China also has its own unique set of issues in the digital era, including developmental imbalance between East and West, urban and rural areas, and availability of skilled practitioners. Chinese Librarianship in the Digital Era is the first book on Chinese libraries responding to these issues, and more.
The first part of the book places discussion in historical context, before moving on to the digital environment of the Chinese library. The book then considers the issue of digital copyright in China, and debates the core values of the Chinese library. The next three chapters cover public and academic libraries, and library consortia. Finally, the book gives a view of the future prospects for libraries in China.
Unique in focusing on digital libraries in ChinaProvides a comprehensive overview of libraries in contemporary ChinaPresents valuable information formerly available only in Chinese

Excellence in the Stacks details the philosophies, practices and innovations of award-winning libraries over the last ten years. It will inform the profession and highlight the themes and strategies these liberal-arts colleges share, and where they differ. Using the Association of Research and College Libraries Excellence in Academic Libraries Award standards as guidelines for exploring librarianship, this book gathers the perspectives of all types of librarians at all levels of employment. By highlighting winners holistic approaches it helps define and focus the energies of college libraries in their pursuit of outstanding service and increased valuation by their parent institution.
Content drawn from submissions from ten years of ACRL award-winning librariesAuthors from varied roles (library directors to interning students) give readers a comprehensive snapshot, encompassing good practices from multiple levels of the professionOverlying theme of institutional excellence applicable to all aspects of international librarianship, and is also relevant to other academic organizations which serve student populations"

Digital information is a constantly developing field. The first title in the Chandos Digital Information Review series, Trends, Discovery, and People in the Digital Age, summarises and presents key themes, advances and trends in all aspects of digital information today, exploring the impact of developing technologies on the information world. This book emphasises important contemporary topics and future developments from a global perspective. Dynamic contents by leaders in the field respond to what is happening in the field of digital information literacy, and anticipate future developments. Topics include: the future of digital information provision; Enquire; cloud computing; building an information landscape; e-books and journals in a changing digital landscape; discovering resources; citizens and digital information; data-management; community usage patterns of scientific information; software citations; the future of data curation; JISC; Skills Portal; the future information professional; university library and information services; academic libraries and their future; and impediments to new library futures.
Covers major aspects of contemporary digital information provisionProvides practical adviceStructured so that each chapter stands alone while contributing to a coherent overall text

Supporting Research Writing explores the range of services designed to facilitate academic writing and publication in English by non-native English-speaking (NNES) authors. It analyses the realities of offering services such as education, translation, editing and writing, and then considers the challenges and benefits that result when these boundaries are consciously blurred. It thus provides an opportunity for readers to reflect on their professional roles and the services that will best serve their clients needs. A recurring theme is, therefore, the interaction between language professional and client-author. The book offers insights into the opportunities and challenges presented by considering ourselves first and foremost as writing support professionals, differing in our primary approach (through teaching, translating, editing, writing, or a combination of those) but with a common goal. This view has major consequences for the training of professionals who support English-language publication by NNES academics and scientists. Supporting Research Writing will therefore be a stimulus to professional development for those who support English-language publication in real-life contexts and an important resource for those entering the profession.
Takes a holistic approach to writing support and reveals how it is best conceived as a spectrum of overlapping and interrelated professional activitiesStresses the importance of understanding the real-world needs of authors in their quest to publishProvides insights into the approaches used by experienced practitioners across Europe"

This book has two aims: firstly to present an investigation into information literacy by looking at how people engage with information to accomplish tasks or solve problems in personal, academic and professional contexts (also known as the relational approach). This view of information literacy illustrates a learner-centred perspective that will be of interest to educators who wish to go beyond the teaching of information skills. The second aim of this book is to illustrate how the relational approach can be used as an investigative framework. As a detailed account of a relational study, this book will appeal to researchers interested in using the relational framework to examine pedagogical experiences from the learner s perspective.
Offers an investigation of the relational approach to examine information literacy from the perspective of the learner and the educator within diverse pedagogical conditions, both academic and professionalPresents concrete examples of measuring the impact of the information literacy experience through the application of newly developed information literacy practices to unknown situations (described as Transfer), or through the changes in the learner s view of the world (described as Transformation)Written by an internationally known scholar and practitioner of information literacy"

This book is a significant step towards developing a body of management knowledge pertinent to the context of Library Information Science (LIS) and provides a succinct but deep account of management and information organizations. Management of Information Organizations presents a broad view of the information organizations and the nature of management in these organizations, and how information professionals are affected by such management systems. The book equips the reader with the knowledge that will enable them to develop a strong intellectual foundation relating to management and its manifestation in an information organization and provides a significant step towards developing a body of management knowledge pertinent to the context of LIS.
Provides a foundation of the core concepts (i.e., management, information, organizations, information organizations, and the role of information professionals in organizations)Brings a multi-disciplinary point-of-view to the reader: concepts will be drawn from management, organizational theory, information science, consumer behaviour, and economics. They will be used to present the whole thesis of the bookA blend of both theoretical and practical perspectives will be showcased

Many libraries and museums have adapted to the current information climate, working with Google, Facebook, Twitter and iTunes to deliver information for their users. Many have not. Google This describes the variety of free or nearly free options for social media, and shows how libraries are adapting, from the Library of Congress to small public libraries. The author presents conversations with social media innovators to show how their experience can create success for your institution s library. Chapters cover important aspects of social media for libraries including: how they relate to the internet; web services such as Google Custom Search, Facebook and Twitter, Flickr, iGoogle, and more; electronic books; discovery platforms; and mobile applications. The book ends by asking: Where is this all going?
Provides step-by-step instructions for creating iGoogle gadgets in XML, iGoogle themes, Google Maps with community locations, and Google Earth links to archived library dataDescribes the full process for creating a Google Custom Search engineWritten by an award winning author who has been an academic systems librarian for 20 years"

The systematic management of records is an important activity for information businesses such as museums and galleries, but is not always recognized as a core function. Record keeping activities are often concentrated on small groups of records, and staff charged with managing them may have limited experience in the field.
Records Management for Museums and Galleries offers a comprehensive overview of records management work within the heritage sector and draws on over a decade of experience in applying fundamental principles and practices to the specific circumstances of museums. It introduces readers to the institutional culture, functions, and records common to museums, and examines the legislative and regulatory environments affecting record-keeping practices. The book is comprised of eight chapters, including: a history of records keeping in the UK museum and gallery sector; the basics of records management; making a business case for records management; requirements of legislation for records management; how to conduct a records survey; strategy and action planning; how to develop a file plan, retention schedule and records management programme; and a guide to useful additional resources.
Gives practical and tested solutions to real world issuesFills a gap in the literature as a handbook in this important sectorProvides an overview of the sector as a whole"

In the knowledge economy, professionals have to make decisions about non-tangible, non-monetary, and largely invisible resources. Information professionals need to understand the potential uses, contributions, value, structure, and creation of broadly intangible intellectual capital in libraries. In order to fully realize intellectual capital in libraries, new practices and skills are required for library management practitioners and researchers.
Managing Intellectual Capital in Libraries provides research advances, guidelines, methods and techniques for managing intellectual capital in a library environment, and includes analyses and case studies. This book includes a foreword by Anne Woodsworth and is structured into seven chapters, covering: libraries in the knowledge economy; worlds of production and intellectual capital utilization in libraries; identifying and categorizing intellectual capital; measuring libraries intellectual capital; financial valuation and reporting of intellectual capital in libraries; and survival analysis for libraries intellectual capital resources. The book concludes with a summary, and turns the reader towards future research.
Practical methods and techniques are outlined that can be applied to real-life library situations, as they have been extensively applied in other economic sectorsProvides illustrative examples and case studies for exploring and explaining the meaning of specific intangible assets and resources in libraries, such as user oriented intangible assets, library system automation and technology, library location, human capital, external relations and moreConsiders libraries as intellectual capital within organizations and broader socioeconomic systems"

This book is aimed at guiding managers towards systematic approaches to improve and facilitate necessary strategic business development and planning. Conditions in the workplace for the Library and Information Services (LIS) are rapidly changing: many organizations are experiencing budget restrictions as well as stakeholders questioning the value of the services. Strategic Business Development for Information Centres and Libraries offers methods and tools for LIS departments to ensure value and benefits are delivered to the parent organization. It argues that LIS must be prepared to change according to the parent organization's needs, to develop strategies for important activities and to seek alliances among key stakeholders. It also offers information on the best practice from five top-performing international LIS units.
Focuses on business development and planning on a strategic levelIncludes chapter tools that can be immediately applied by the readerInterviews with five practicing mangers

This book, divided into two parts, provides an introduction to the quality management issues and gives a general overview to the use of ISO 9001 in the library environment. The second part presents the main features of ISO 9001:2008 with practical comments and examples on how to implement its clauses in libraries. Whether in the public or in the private sector, libraries can be seen as service organisations: they act in very dynamic environments where users are increasingly demanding new types of services. Thus the adoption of a quality management system helps each library in meeting the needs of the customers. This book covers some key ideas about how to approach the ISO 9001 standard in library terms, or any other information service unit. Managing Your Library and its Quality offers not only a useful approach to quality but it is also an excellent guide on how to manage knowledge within organisations and, a priori, thus should be utilised by the information professional.
Helps guide the implementation of a quality management system using ISO 9001, a standard widely and successfully used already in all types of organisations around the worldTranslates the ISO 9001 standard to the terms and language used within the librariesPresents a systematic approach to the quality management in libraries

This book outlines issues surrounding diversity among students, faculty, and staff and how one urban university library is working to embrace and celebrate the diversity found in its building, on campus, and in the local community. This book illustrates how universities are uniquely situated to engage students in discussions about diversity and how academic libraries in particular can facilitate and ease these discussions. A Diversity Council and the projects and programs it has developed have been instrumental in this work and may serve as an inspiration and launch pad for other libraries. Diversity Programming and Outreach for Academic Libraries details anecdotal experiences, and provides practical suggestions for developing diversity programs and forming collaborations with other campus units, regardless of size, staff, or focus of the academic library.
Written by three academic librarians currently active in university level diversity initiativesProvides real-world examples of diversity programming and events for academic librariesIndicates how to find commonalities in the range of diversity issues at universities internationally

This book reviews both the historical and future roles that public, private, academic and special libraries have in supporting and shaping society at local, regional, national and international levels. Globalisation, economic turmoil, political and ethnic tensions, rapid technology development, global warming and other key environmental factors are all combining in myriad and complex ways to affect everyone, both individually and collectively. Fundamental questions are being asked about the future of society and the bedrock organisations that underpin it. Libraries and Society considers the key aspects of library provision and the major challenges that libraries - however defined, managed, developed and provided - now face, and will continue to face in the future. It also focuses on the emerging chapter in cultural, economic and social history and the library s role in serving diverse communities within this new era.
Looks at all types of library in a period of major and discontinuous change, tackling the fundamental questions of the future of libraries in the context of major societal, political and environmental issuesPoses important questions for the profession and policy developmentFills a major gap in literature (recent discourse and debate on the future of democracy, for example, the library is rarely included)"

In today s digital environment the workplace is characterised by individuals creating information perhaps independently of formal systems, or establishing new systems without knowledge of information management requirements. This book explains and explores the concept of organisational culture, specifically within the domain of information management. It draws on the author's wide-ranging practical experience in different workplaces and uses research findings from cross-cultural studies of information management.
Uses research findings from cross-cultural studies of information managementProvides tools to develop practical and realistic solutions to real-world problemsDraws on the author s wide-ranging practical experience in different workplaces."