Creating the Digital Future
Toronto, Ontario
May 23–25, 2001

Research Libraries21: A Discussion of Institutional Responses to a Digital Future

Select 1 of 4 Small Group Discussions

IT as a Strategic Asset

Discussion Leader: Ann Wolpert, Massachusetts Institute of Technology

• To the extent that you view IT as a strategic organizational asset, how do you integrate it into the overall planning and management for your organization?
• Also, how are you managing issues of stewardship over that asset, for example disaster recovery, information security and integrity, and protection of critical IT systems and the digital content that they house?Recruiting,

Retaining, and Motivating Human Resources

Discussion Leader: Ernie Ingles, University of Alberta

• Given the competition in the economy for networking and technology-savvy individuals, what is your library doing to recruit, retain, and motivate the staff who will create and implement the digital future?
• Have you made any changes in how you review and reward new skills and competencies in salary administration and performance reviews?
• How do you include HR changes into your organizational planning? Defining an Institutional Strategy for Digital

Preservation

Discussion Leader: Carol Mandel, New York University

• What factors are having the greatest weight in your institution when deciding the priority given to defining/developing a local strategy for digital preservation?
• How do you connect and balance local requirements for digital preservation with national and global needs in this area?

Redefining Intellectual Access and the Expanding the Boundaries of Library Collections

Discussion Leader: William Gosling, University of Michigan

• With the growth of multimedia content and digitization of unique special collections materials, what choices are being made in your institution about how you provide intellectual access to these resources?
• What organizational strategies are being used to manage the re-thinking of cataloging practices and priorities? Have you reviewed or changed cataloging priorities/practices in the last few years?

Questions to be explored in small group discussions

• What strategies or plans do you have in your organization to address this issue?
• In what ways could local activities be leveraged into national/North American activities?