Newsletter No. 132
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FreePint
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ISSN 1460-7239 6th March 2003 No.132
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IN THIS ISSUE
EDITORIAL
MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES
By Duncan Parry
FREEPINT BAR
In Association with Factiva
a Dow Jones & Reuters Company
JOBS
Consultants Roster
Communication Manager
Researcher
Deputy School Support Services Manager
TIPS ARTICLE
"And the winner is ... Our experience with selecting a CMS"
By Briget Lander
BOOKSHELF
"Research Methods for Business - A Skill Building Approach"
Reviewed by Crystal Sharp
FEATURE ARTICLE
"Information Literacy in a Corporate Environment"
By Jane Macoustra
EVENTS, GOLD AND FORTHCOMING ARTICLES
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**FREE TRIAL OF COGENTA'S RESEARCH DIRECTOR TO FREEPINT MEMBERS ONLY**
The Research Director software provides professionals with a research
management environment giving a single point of access to YOUR
specific internal and external information sources. Also, create your
own 'intelligent agents' to do the research for you; run multiple
search queries simultaneously; store and manage your research and much
more. For your free trial, please complete this form:
<http://www.cogenta.com/form/free_trial.htm>
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>>> ABOUT FREEPINT <<<
FreePint is an online community of information researchers. Members
receive this free newsletter every two weeks packed with tips on
finding quality and reliable business information on the Internet.
Joining is free at <http://www.freepint.com/> and provides access to
a substantial archive of articles, reviews, jobs & events, with
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Please circulate this newsletter which is best read when printed out.
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EDITORIAL
When it comes to running a community Web site, nobody has all the
answers. Generally, the only way you can find out if a new feature is
going to work for any particular group of people is by trying it out.
The FreePint Bar is one such example of a feature which has taken
a lot of work to provide, but with whose take up I've been
thrilled. There are now 20,000 research questions and answers,
and 10,000 FreePinters receive the Bar Digest twice a week.
There's been a lot of work behind the scenes to get this far, of which
you may not be aware. For instance, every posting triggers an alert
for us to moderate the message. We make no bones about removing dodgy
postings and correct obvious spelling mistakes (e.g. 'teh' instead of
'the'). This helps to keep the quality high and averts any
embarrassment for the poster. If we see a message on a particular
topic and know an expert in that area, then we notify them. We've been
doing this every day (including evenings and weekends) for four years,
and moderated over 2 million words.
We've added lots of utilities to the Bar in this time, mostly in
response to user feedback. 'Preferences' let you add a default
signature to postings, choose how many items to view per page, the
format of dates, etc. In the Bar you can easily send a posting to a
friend, jump to a particular message or run a quick search.
You can now receive the Bar Digest in HTML format so that Table of
Contents links work. Also, after the gruelling project of adding
categories to all postings, the 'Bar Browser' now provides browsing by
subject <http://www.freepint.com/bar/browser>.
Of course, none of this matters if you don't actually have anyone
using the service. We're extremely grateful to everyone who has
provided their expertise at the Bar. I'm sure you'll join me in
thanking Factiva too, for their continuing sponsorship.
So, let's raise a virtual glass to the FreePint Bar. Here's to all
its contributors and supporters. <http://www.freepint.com/bar>
Cheers
William
William Hann BSc(Hons) MCLIP, Founder and Managing Editor
Email: <william@freepint.com> Tel: +44 (0)1784 420044
Free Pint is a Registered Trademark of Free Pint Limited (R) 1997-2003
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**** FREE Education Registration now Live! ****
Total Library Solutions 2003
26-27 March, Hall 10, NEC, Birmingham
Register now to avoid the queues!
*70 exhibitors *up to 40 FREE seminars *library leaders' forum debates
*PLUS FREE independent educational programme with 4 streams
for the school, public, special and academic library sectors
<http://www.total-library.co.uk>
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>>> Free Pint Search Tools Exchange <<<
27th March 2003, Central London
"This session will cover the latest search engine news and features,
specialised research tools and gadgets. Gary Price will share
forthcoming trends and developments he's picked up from
his insider contacts at the major search companies."
<http://www.freepint.com/exchange/st270303.htm>
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MY FAVOURITE TIPPLES
By Duncan Parry
* MailWasher <http://www.mailwasher.net/> - Sick of spam? This free
software downloads your emails from POP3 accounts and allows you to
bounce spam emails back to their senders, as if your email address
doesn't work - hopefully convincing them to delete you from their
lists.
* Trillian <http://www.ceruleanstudios.com/> - Sick of having to
switch between MSN Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, ICQ, IRC and AIM to
talk to friends and colleagues? Trillian lets you use all these IM
networks from one application. Free and commercial versions
available.
* NEC by Clay Shirky <http://www.shirky.com/> - A thought provoking
mailing list "about Networks, Economics and Culture". Past topics
have included the effects of P2P technology and weblogs.
* The Microcontent News Blogging Software Roundup
<http://www.microcontentnews.com/articles/blogware.htm> - A useful
discussion of weblog software for both personal and community use,
including free, hosted services and solutions you can put on your
own server.
* Metapad <http://www.liquidninja.com/metapad/> - Windows Notepad is
often too simple for editing text or html files, and Word too
cumbersome. Metapad is a free text editor that offers features like
a recent files list, find and replace, and easy text case changing
options.
Duncan Parry works in the UK editorial team of European pay-per-click
search engine Espotting <http://www.espotting.com/>, creating
advertising campaigns for the websites of leading UK brands.
Submit your top five favourite Web sites. See the guidelines at
<http://www.freepint.com/author.htm>.
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****Subscribe to Factiva's InfoPro Alliance Newsletter****
As a member of the InfoPro Alliance, you will receive our
monthly e-mail newsletter telling you about the latest enhancements to
Factiva.com, product tips, TechTalk and links to our new online
sessions for advanced searchers
<http://www.factiva.com/infopro>
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FREEPINT BAR
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Need help with a research question? Post it alongside the 20,000
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Here are some of the latest featured jobs:
Consultants Roster
Trade Services Consultants
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<http://www.freepint.com/go/j2322>
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Government department requires communication manager with strategic
and creative communications expertise
Recruiter: Recruit Media
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Researcher (Birmingham)
Information Researchers (qualified) for Birmingham and Milton Keynes
with 1-2 years business research experience. To 25,000 pounds
Recruiter: Glen Recruitment
<http://www.freepint.com/go/j2328>
Deputy School Support Services Manager
A deputy role in academia, ensuring support services (structure,
strategy and integration) are developed, implemented and managed
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[The above jobs are paid listings]
Find out more today at <http://www.freepint.com/jobs>
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The International Trade Centre (ITC), the focal point of the United
Nations system for technical co-operation with developing countries
and transition economies in relation to trade development, is seeking
applications for its roster of consultants for future short-term
assignments to support and develop Trade Information services within
trade support institutions. Applicants should have: a professional
qualification in library/information management, at least 5 years
relevant work experience, knowledge of information environments in
developing countries and transition economies and fluency in English,
French and/or Spanish. Applicants should complete a Personal History
form available at www.intracen.org/jobs and forward this to
HRSRoster@intracen.org
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TIPS ARTICLE
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060303.htm#tips>
"And the winner is... Our experience with selecting a CMS"
By Briget Lander
The Delft University of Technology Library has just completed a
selection process for a Content Management System (CMS). The system
will soon be used to manage our websites and our scientific publishing
activities - and is likely to have a profound impact on how we do
this!
This article should not be read as a generic 'How to select a CMS'
piece (there are lots of those already available on the web), but is
offered as a case study of what we did and what we learned on the way.
The whole process from realising we needed a new system, to signing a
contract with a vendor took just over a year and we are only now ready
to start the real work of implementation.
So why a CMS...? Well, quite simply, the library had outgrown our
out-of-the-box html editor/website management tool. Outgrown it
both in terms of capacity and functionality. The size of our main
website and the number of specialist websites being managed by the
library has grown considerably in the last two years and our old
system just wasn't designed for multi-site, multi-lingual content
management. Compounding this, our local product supplier had gone out
of business and we were left without any support to handle problems
that arose more and more frequently.
Everyone involved in making or managing the library's websites was
crying out for a new system, so there was no difficulty drumming up
support for such a project.
Apart from website management issues, our scientific publisher, Delft
University Press, which is part of the library, was investigating ways
of improving their publications and their efficiency by using XML. A
good CMS that supported XML publishing would be well received.
Before I go too far, it might be useful to give a quick definition of
what I mean by a CMS - a quick search of Google will give you loads of
material with more detail. Unfortunately, each article will give a
slightly different definition - I suggest reading a number of articles
and as a team, come to your own working definition which you can then
also use for internal communication.
In this article, a CMS is a software system which helps collect/author
content, store/manage it and then publish it. And these three tasks
are controlled by an integrated workflow tool.
The first step was to form a project group of stakeholders from around
the organisation - marketing, subject librarians, publishers and IT
support. A group of about 8-10 people initially met three times with
the aim of listing our content types and analysing our current content
management processes. This was difficult for our website activities
because there was, in fact, very little in the way of defined process.
For our scientific publisher, the processes were much more well
defined because of the rigorous requirements of scientific peer
review. The processes were well defined but entirely manual and
sucked up a lot of administration time.
The project group drew current content processes on simple flow charts
and this helped to identify where the problem areas were and where
things were working just fine. Then the group listed different
content types that were in use in the library - mainly Office
documents, html files and images plus some content stored in a couple
of Access databases.
The next step was more fun - envisaging what we could do when we had
the CMS of our dreams! The ideas at this stage came from our
imagination and from what other organisations were doing. The project
group were also informed by product literature.
The result of this project phase was a very detailed list of wishes
and requirements. The main headings for this 'Wishes and Requirements'
document were: Input/Authoring; Storage; Publishing; Workflow;
Webserver services; User management; Technology (system requirements);
Supplier.
The last one, Supplier, was of special importance for the library
after previous bad experience. This section included requirements on
the number of local technical staff and local support staff, stability
of the company and client references.
Now that we had an idea of what we needed, it was time to look at what
was on offer.
Where to start in such a large and fluctuating market!? Our 'long
list' of products was built up from many sources but there were two
particularly useful starting points. One was a report from the Joint
Information Systems Committee (JISC) on CMSystems which includes a
very lengthy list of products. The other good starting point for us
was a report entitled 'Content Management Systems Guide 2002' - a
Netherlands market scan produced by a consulting group called entopic.
The products listed in these two publications, plus products that
recurred in background reading and on the CMS-List (a CMS users email
discussion group) all found their way onto our long list of about 30
products. The only criteria for getting onto our long list was the
system must be:
* Open (built in non-proprietary language, able to integrate with
many databases, not limited to any one operating system)
* Able to support XML content storage and publication
* Scalable
The first criterion proved to be the most effective at weeding out
many products which otherwise sounded fine.
An aside: To Buy or To Build? While scanning the CMS market, we also
considered building our own system - from open source or Oracle
components. We did a bit of reading and visited another university who
had built their own system. However, we decided that in our situation,
with limited capacity for developing and then maintaining a complex
system, this was not the option for us.
With the long list more or less complete, the next step was to collect
product literature from vendor websites, product reviews, white papers,
news articles and opinions. It was important to vary our sources to
get a mix of marketing guff, professional (but not necessarily
un-biased) opinion and user opinion. Independent information is always
the best but is difficult to find. Information about price is like
hens teeth - hard to find and not very useful when you do! Although
price information could be useful for grouping products into 'low' or
'high' end, it is unlikely to indicate how much you'll end up paying.
The long list was whittled down to about ten products by comparing
what was known about the product with our list of requirements. After
quite some discussion, the list was further reduced to a short list of
just four products. Each of these vendors was asked to respond to our
detailed list of requirements and we arranged for demonstration
visits.
With hindsight, our list of requirements should have been less
detailed and more open ended. Although we did leave room for some
explanations, we didn't leave enough room for the vendor to expose
their opinions and biases.
In preparation for the demonstration visit, each vendor was sent a
small sample of our content and some use scenarios. They were asked
to structure the demo like so: up to half hour on company/product
overview, up to 2 hours working through our scenarios, finishing with
half hour for follow up questions. This worked better with some
vendors than others! At each demonstration, a number of stakeholders
were present and after each presentation we listed plus/minus points
and tried to draw some conclusions.
During the demonstrations, some important differences emerged about
the focus of vendors - did they pitch their product towards content
aggregation/syndication or e-transactions or web formats or something
else? Did their product have a bias towards whole-document
(unstructured) content? Or atomised content components (structured
content)? Did they know anything about publishing on paper?
After all the demos it was crunch time. Fortunately, although all
four short listed products basically met most of our requirements, the
choice was easy. One vendor had a particularly solid background, the
product supported XML well and was designed to manage more than just
web content. Equally important, the project group all had a good
'feeling' for this vendor - not very scientific and rather difficult
to document, but nevertheless crucial. This vendor stood out as being
more understanding of our situation, more responsive to our questions
and more knowledgeable and open. Thankfully they were not the most
expensive and they had good local representation. We had a winner!
The final step in our selection project was to document our process
and present our recommendations to the management team. They had been
kept well informed of our progress throughout and the project had also
been subject to an external process review part-way through - which
meant we had no last minute hurdles to overcome.
Before finally signing a contract with the vendor, the library
undertook a six weeks Proof of Concept project which proved to be
helpful in establishing a good relationship with the vendor and
allowing us to get some hands on experience with the product before
making that final commitment.
So that is the story so far. The library (not least our project team
members) has learnt a lot about content management as we progressed
through the selection process, but as I say, the hard work is only
just beginning as we start to implement our new system. Eventually,
we see the CMS playing a pivotal role in all our university library
functions - from publishing and document delivery, to information
mediation and archiving.
Useful resources
----------------
By no means an exhaustive list, but here are a few
resources which were particularly helpful:
* CMS-List - searchable archives are found at
<http://cms.filsa.net/archives/cms-list/> but have not been
updated for 6 months
* JISC TechWatch Report - Content Management Systems, Sept 2001,
download from <http://www.jisc.ac.uk/techwatch/reports/>. Note that
the list of products is not updated and will be largely out of date
by now because of a very dynamic CMS market
* CMS Guide 2002 - Gids Content Management Systemen, published by
entopic <http://www.entopic.com/>, ISBN: 90-806653-1-2
* CMS Watch <http://www.cmswatch.com/> - a good source of reviews,
news articles and market overview
* ZDNet <http://www.zdnet.com/> - quite a good source for product
reviews, technology overviews and there is even some prized
price information!
* PC Magazine <http://www.pcmag.com/> - another source for technology
and product reviews, lists and comparisons of products
* Metatorial.com <http://www.metatorial.com/> - Articles, clear
diagrams and simple definitions from a CMS consulting
company in the US.
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Briget Lander is currently part of the IT Innovation and Development
group of the Delft University of Technology Library in the Netherlands
<http://www.library.tudelft.nl>.
She holds a B. Engineering and a M. Library and Information Studies
from New Zealand universities. This has proved a useful combination
of qualifications when working variously as knowledge manager, project
leader, business researcher and IT trainer in private and public
(academic) environments.
If you would like to know more about the Delft University of
Technology Library's CMS project, perhaps you are about to undertake
such a project in your organisation, please feel free to contact the
library at <info@library.tudelft.nl>.
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Related FreePint links:
* 'Computer Industry' articles in the FreePint Portal
<http://www.freepint.com/go/p27>
* Post a message to the author, Briget Lander, or suggest further
resources at the FreePint Bar <http://www.freepint.com/bar>
* Read this article online, with activated hyperlinks
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060303.htm#feature>
* Access the entire archive of FreePint content
<http://www.freepint.com/portal/content/>
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Recruit Media is delighted to announce we are now registering all
new information graduates seeking their first year pre-library school,
corporate experience. We have a range of clients in the legal, fiscal
and consultancy arenas who are all looking for bright information
graduates with plenty of initiative, enthusiasm and business acumen.
This is an ideal opportunity to get a years corporate experience as
required by leading information masters programmes. Please send
your CV to bizinfo@recruitmedia.co.uk
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>>> FreePint Intranet Governance Exchange <<<
20th March 2003, Central London
"This Exchange will provide delegates with an
opportunity to consider some of the organizational
aspects of intranet management and governance."
<http://www.freepint.com/exchange/ig200303.htm>
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FREEPINT BOOKSHELF
<http://www.freepint.com/bookshelf>
"Research Methods for Business - A Skill Building Approach"
Written by Uma Sekaran
Reviewed by Crystal Sharp
Research Methods for Business, now in its fourth edition, is an
extremely comprehensive, yet readable (yes, really) textbook on
research methods. While it is directed towards students of
business - all its examples relate to business situations
and problems - it can be an extremely useful reference book
for almost any consultant, manager or decision-maker.
The organization of material is effective in its intended "skill
building approach". The earliest chapters have a general discussion of
what research is - its purpose, different approaches to conducting
research, and issues related to the use of technology in research. The
middle section focuses on the research process - preliminary data
gathering (literature review, background statistics), problem
definition, theoretical frameworks, hypothesis testing and research
design. The later chapters discuss methods - measurement of variables,
operational definition and scales, quantitative and qualitative
research issues, reliability and validity, data collection methods,
questionnaire design, ethics, and data analysis and interpretation. An
entire chapter is devoted to the construction of research reports and
the final chapter draws all the material together in presenting two
case studies illustrating the use of research in managerial decision
making. Wherever possible, explanations of concepts are enhanced with
"real world" examples. Each chapter begins with a listing of the main
topics and chapter objectives and ends with a summary, discussion
questions and points to ponder. Some chapters include practice
exercises or projects (it is a textbook after all).
The major strength of this book is its clear and concise presentation
of the complex and wide range of topics relevant to research, while
constantly stressing practical considerations, ethical issues and the
need for sensitivity in cross-cultural research. It is comprehensive
enough to give readers a solid grounding in research methodology and
applications, even though it does not present formulae and
mathematical derivations of individual tests. For those who need it,
there is a module (sort of appendix) which is a refresher overview
of some statistical terms and tests.
One aspect that can be developed to greater depth in future editions
is the technology section which presents a fairly cursory overview of
the increasing possibilities and uses of technology in research.
While techniques, concepts, and methodology can be taught, there are
aspects of research that one only develops with experience and
understanding of the problem under study. Intelligent design, use and
analysis of research is essentially an art. This book attempts at
capturing that tacit knowledge in its presentation of case studies and
examples. It is worth keeping on the reference shelf and consulting
from time to time, even after one has ceased being a student.
Instructors of research methodology can use a teaching resource
for this book from the publisher's website in the form of a resource
manual and PowerPoint slides for each chapter at:
<http://www.wiley.com/college/sekaran/0471203661/wave_i.html>.
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Crystal Sharp is Owner/Director of InformAction, CD Sharp Information
Systems Ltd, a contract research company specializing in knowledge
transfer and project management in health services research in Canada.
She can be contacted at <crystal@cdsharp.com>.
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Related FreePint links:
* Find out more about this book online at the FreePint Bookshelf
<http://www.freepint.com/bookshelf/methods.htm>
* Read customer comments and buy this book at Amazon.co.uk
<http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0471203661/freepint0c>
or Amazon.com
<http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0471203661/freepint00>
* "Research Methods for Business - A Skill Building Approach"
ISBN 0471384488, published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc., written
by Uma Sekaran
* Search for and purchase any book from Amazon via the FreePint
Bookshelf at <http://www.freepint.com/bookshelf>
* Read about other Internet Strategy books on the FreePint Bookshelf
<http://www.freepint.com/bookshelf/strategy.htm>
To propose an information-related book for review, send details
to <bookshelf@freepint.com>.
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>>> FreePint Deep Linking & Website Evaluation Exchange <<<
13th March 2003, Central London
"Looking at the question of how to measure the quality,
credibility and trustworthiness of web sites; and minimizing
the potential legal risks involved in 'deep linking'."
<http://www.freepint.com/exchange/el130303.htm>
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FEATURE ARTICLE
<http://www.freepint.com/issues/060303.htm#feature>
"Information Literacy in a Corporate Environment"
By Jane Macoustra
The concept of Information Literacy (IL) recently reared its head as
part of a project I was working on. As an Information Professional, IL
is a competency that I have taken for granted, because it is a natural
part of what being an IP is all about. However, others in a corporate
organisation may not possess these skills. IL has been around for a
long time and is a well documented subject - especially in an academic
context (7), but there is very little information available when it is
translated across to a corporate or workplace environment. I have not
specified putting IL into practice in any particular type of
organisation, to enable the reader to understand the broad concepts
that can be put to use. Due to length restrictions, this article is a
brief outline of the main issues, and therefore is by no means fully
comprehensive.
What is Information Literacy?
-----------------------------
"Information Literacy is defined as the ability to know when
information is needed, and ability to locate, evaluate and effectively
use that information for the issue or problem at hand"
Empire State College Online Study about IL
<http://www.esc.edu/ESCONLINE/ACROSS_ESC/LNS0ES.NSF/
d48590b0a6487d33852565a10073c9f6/f80218ae67e9570685256b1e005d1dea?OpenDocument>
The Association of College & Research Libraries
<http://www.ala.org/acrl/ilstandardlo.html> created a set if IL
standards for higher education, which have been approved by the
American Library Association.<http://www.ala.org/>. The ALA has a
Presidential Committee <http://www.ala.org/acrl/nili/ilit1st.html>
dedicated to Information Literacy.
IL is one of the competencies of librarianship and is also an
important part of knowledge management concepts. IL has been described
as the following:
* "Finding, managing and sharing information and knowledge" [1]
* "Executives have become computer-literate. The younger ones,
especially, know more about the way the computer works than they
know about the mechanics of the automobile or the telephone. But not
many executives are information-literate. They know how to get data.
But most still have to learn how to use data.
"Few executives yet know how to ask: What information do I need to
do my job? When do I need it? In what form? And from whom should I
be getting it? Fewer still ask: What new tasks can I tackle now that
I get all these data? Which old tasks should I abandon? Which tasks
should I do differently? ...
"A 'database,' no matter how copious, is not information. It is
information's ore. For raw material to become information, it must
be organized for a task, directed toward specific performance,
applied to a decision. Raw material cannot do that itself ...
"This knowledge society requires that its members learn how to
learn." Peter Drucker, 1992. [2]
* "Information Literacy implies that an individual be able to
determine when information is needed and define the information
needs in searchable terms. He/she is familiar with the vast array
of information resources available and proficient at accessing and
using them to locate desired information". [3]
* In her 2002 White Paper, Bonnie Wai-Yi Cheuk highlights the issues,
best practices and challenges for IL in the workplace and makes
recommendations that highlight the cost to businesses if employees
lack information literacy skills. She also addresses IL from a
knowledge management context. [4]
Information Literacy Competencies
---------------------------------
* Knowing when information is needed [5]
* Identifying the information needed to address a given
problem or issue
* Finding the needed information
* Organising the needed information
* Using the information effectively to address the problem
or issue at hand
Key characteristics of an information-literate person [6]
* Engages in independent, self-directed learning
* Uses information processes
* Uses a variety of information technologies and systems
* Has internalised values that promote information use
* Has a sound knowledge of the world of information
* Approaches information critically
* Has a personal information style that facilitates his or her
interaction with the world of information
Implementing Information Literacy in a Corporate Environment
------------------------------------------------------------
These concepts can be introduced into an organisation by implementing
some of the following ideas:
* Introducing the concept of IL to management as part of a knowledge
management initiative, demonstrating how IL can save money in the
organisation, with efficient use of research skills and
better-trained staff.
* Teach the teachers - training staff who are responsible for the
induction of new employees and continuing education within the
organisation about the concepts of "learning to learn", "lifelong
learning", "knowing what you know", and also effective teaching
and communication skills.
* Use induction courses to demonstrate the use of the corporate
internal databases and systems - including e-mail and intranet.
Provide hard-copy quick reference sheets showing how and where to
get information within the organisation for future reference.
Laminate the reference guide - it is less likely to be lost or
thrown away.
* Include in the induction courses how to submit different types of
information, such as know how within the organisation for sharing
with colleagues, demonstrating that this concept is part of the
organisation's culture.
* As another part of the induction process, have Library & Information
Services ("LIS") staff train employees on library orientation and
how to use the Internet. Assess if the employees know what the most
appropriate tools are for certain types of research. Teach employees
about how to retrieve accurate, timely and reliable information, how
to analyse their results and about "information overload" and how to
avoid the pitfalls. Demonstrate ways to present the findings of
research to add value to the data.
* Compile an electronic questionnaire to assess the IL level of
employees. Use the results of the questionnaire to select group
levels and specific criteria for different types of training,
depending on the individuals learning style.
* Include in the questionnaire a "needs assessment" section that
evaluates what employees need to do their work each day and the
satisfaction level of the information retrieved to do that work.
* Arrange "managing information" courses for all employees and train
all staff how to define a request for research that will give enough
information to the researcher to enable them to retrieve the answer
quickly and efficiently. Design electronic enquiry forms that can be
used for requesting the research and for the completion of the
research. The form could be useful for compiling analysis statistics
on LIS use and by whom, and the type of research requested, the
tools used and the outcome of the research. Examples of the type of
fields that can be used to compile the information would be:
requestor name, cost centre or department code, date & time of
request, deadline, time taken to undertake the work, who the work
was completed by, and details of the request. Other useful fields to
use could be the sources used, the sources where the information was
located and any acronyms or synonyms used.
* Train LIS staff by giving them "refresher" courses on updated
techniques on proprietary databases and Internet training to keep
their skills honed, and ensure they are using the most appropriate
resources in relation to their research.
* Assess the validity of the proprietary databases the organisation is
currently using. Are there new products on the market that could
provide a better service? Approach vendors for demonstrations and
make detailed assessments of the new products. Use a matrix to
compare them.
* Circulate a "recommended" list of web sites for use in the
organisation, which are industry specific. Publish a regular updated
list on the intranet to all employees that would include details of
new search engines and the search syntax required for the effective
use of them. Market the research products regularly on the intranet
to keep them in the minds of the employees, and offer tips for using
them.
* Arrange external continuing education courses, seminars, conferences
and distance education <http://www-icdl.open.ac.uk/> for employees,
to enable them benefit from progress in their field of speciality.
They in turn can demonstrate new ideas and initiatives to their
colleagues.
* Encourage employees to join professional memberships and to network
with their peers from other organisations.
Conclusion
----------
Companies need to start implementing IL processes into their
organisations. It is apparent from the studies that those who have
introduced IL into the workplace have a more efficient, and cost-
effective organisation. Those organisations that have implemented IL,
can also assist other companies to understand this subject and how it
can work for them, by speaking at conferences and sharing ideas.
Information Literacy is now being taught as a discipline in
universities and is becoming recognised as a valuable skill.
Those who are trained in IL will therefore be recognised by a
prospective employer as being a potentially valuable asset to the
organisation. Eventually IL may become a core essential skill that an
employer would expect every employee to be qualified in. The
importance of IL in the workplace is still underestimated. Those
organisations that have started to use the IL concept will already be
reaping the benefits financially and culturally. It is time for the
others to catch up.
References:
1. Skills for the knowledge economy; 1999; Abell & Oxbrow; Library &
Information Commission
<http://www.lic.gov.uk/publications/bulletin/issue1/feature1.html>.
2. Peter Drucker, "Drucker on Management: Be Data Literate - Know What
to Know, "Wall St. Journal: New York, Dec. 1, 1992, p. A16
<http://www.west.asu.edu/library/research/reference/business/infocompetencies.html>
3. Information Literacy: Advancing Opportunities for Learning in the
Digital Age <http://aspeninstitute.org/c&s/infolit.html>.
4. Bonnie Cheuk, "Information Literacy in the Workplace Context:
Issues, Best Practices and Challenges, "July 2002, White Paper
prepared for UNESCO, the U.S. National Commission on Libraries and
Information Science, and the National Forum on Information Literacy,
for use at the Information Literacy Meeting of Experts, Prague, The
Czech Republic
<http://www.nclis.gov/libinter/infolitconf&meet/papers/cheuk-fullpaper.pdf>.
5. ALA Presidential Committee on Information Literacy 1989
<http://www.ala.org/acrl/nili/ilit1st.html>.
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