FLICC
Newsletter

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Army Marches Ahead With CORC

Board Talk

1999 FLICC Symposium On The Information Professional

Customer Service Continues To Be Rewarding

Second Annual FLICC Awards Deadline Is November 15, 1999

Editorial Staff

Army Marches Ahead With CORC

During the last fiscal year, FEDLINK encouraged federal libraries to participate in a cooperative research and product development project with OCLC, the Cooperative Online Resource Catalog (CORC) Project. One group of federal libraries participating in CORC, the Department of the Army, recently completed its planning phase and is moving ahead with implementation. The Army program's goal is to provide access to the Web resources of the Department of the Army by creating a database of USMARC records describing Army Web resources that are available for use on the Army Intranet, thus providing the Army with improved user access to its own Web materials.

OCLC, in cooperation with libraries around the world, launched the CORC project in January 1999 to explore the cooperative creation and sharing of metadata by libraries. Participating libraries use prototype software to contribute to the new database describing electronic resources. Automated tools speed subject assignment, provide authority control, extract descriptors, and translate metadata from Dublin Core format to USMARC and other formats. The CORC Research Project has a basis in two other significant Internet-based electronic resource cataloging efforts at OCLC—the OCLC InterCat project and the OCLC NetFirst database. Bibliographic records from both InterCat and NetFirst were used to begin building the CORC database. It has grown as participants have described thousands more resources.

"The CORC project represents the most ambitious project yet undertaken by the OCLC Office of Research," said Terry Noreault, Vice President, OCLC Office of Research. "We strongly believe that libraries must serve as the portal of choice for their users' access to the digital information environment. This is a vital mission for libraries so they can fulfill their societal role in enhancing access to information, but it is also important because libraries can do this better than any other institution."

Army Libraries Begin Initiative

Eight U.S. Department of Army libraries under the direction of the DCSPER (U.S. Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel) are participating in the OCLC CORC Project. The participating libraries are the National Defense University Library, Pentagon Library, U.S. Military Academy Library, U.S. Army Combined Arms Research Library, U.S. Army War College, and USACE Office of the Chief of Engineers Library, USACE Waterways Experiment Station Library, and USACE Cold Regions Research & Engineering Laboratory Technical Information Center.

Representatives from the Army libraries participating in the project attended a meeting at the National Defense University Library in mid-July to finalize their planning for a three-phase initiative. "Beyond contributing records to CORC, this project will create a database of metadata records describing Army Web resources which may be made available through the Army Intranet in the future, thus improving user access to Army Web materials," said Ann Parham, the Army Librarian. "Member libraries will have the option of exporting the records to their own OPACs."

In addition to adopting a multi-phase approach to the CORC project, the participants established four working groups to document and recommend policies for the project. The working groups are divided into functional areas including collection development policy, cataloging policy, pathfinders, and quality assurance. The working groups are composed of three to four people from participating libraries. Immediately following the training, participants moved into Phase One by beginning to catalog the web resources of their own institutions. At the same time, working group members began work on their respective policies.

Phase Two of the project is more ambitious and will catalog Web resources produced by other Army institutions and commands. Participants will partner with Army libraries from other commands or groups, such as MECC (Military Education Coordination Conference), to identify and catalog sites. Parham expects both the scope of the project and the number of Army participants to expand during Phase Two. "Expanded participation has at least two benefits. First, the workload will be spread among more libraries and increase the number of resources cataloged. Second, it offers more Army librarians an opportunity to be among the leaders in the effort to organize the Web within a supportive environment," said Parham.

Other Army libraries will then be invited to participate in CORC in one of two ways: (1) by partnering with a CORC participant and recommending resources for cataloging, or (2) by taking CORC training and participating as a full member of the group. "We will also be contacting other federal libraries to discuss their policies and lessons learned," said Parham.

In October, FEDLINK hosted a meeting of federal CORC participants to encourage the exchange of experiences with CORC. Representatives from most of the federal participants, including the Army, attended. FEDLINK is also sponsoring a CORC pilot for libraries covering earth sciences with NOAA, U.S. Geological Survey, Interior, EPA, NASA Goddard, and the Naval Research Lab. (For more information, see the March 1999 issue of FEDLINK Technical Notes on the FLICC Web site at http://lcweb.loc.gov/flicc/tn/1999/03/tn9903.html.) Other federal libraries participating in CORC include the Air University, the Smithsonian Institution, the National Labor Relations Board, and the National Wetlands Research Center.

Standards, Standards, Standards

In order to document the efforts of the first phase of the project and the implementation decisions made at the July meeting, the working groups developed a variety of policies and presented them at the FEDLINK-sponsored meeting in October. Preliminary plans include a possible third phase in which the Army would catalog some Web resources produced by other military services. The collection development working group has already begun to identify which kinds of relevant resources from other government, commercial and non-profit entities to catalog. These resources include, but are not limited to, topical/informational Web pages, Internet-based text documents and electronic versions of paper-based text documents, conference proceedings and papers. To select resources, Army CORC participants will use a variety of criteria including: scope and relevancy (electronic resources will be from the research area of the Army CORC participants or the individual institution. Resources will include military, government, commercial, or educational institutions); information quality (electronic resources will be reviewed by each library for acceptable research quality and source organizations); and appearance (resources should have acceptable functionality and design quality).

The cataloging working group will set standards requiring all records be cataloged in USMARC format using AACR2. Although no call numbers will be added, CORC-supplied Dewey call numbers will remain. Records will also contain available URLs for resources cataloged and each cataloging institution will enter its OCLC symbol into the record.

The quality assurance working group has identified a variety of statistics they will collect on a monthly basis to oversee the number of hours spent working on CORC-related projects, the number of original records created and completed, the number of records revised and updated, and the number of broken links (non-functioning URLs) corrected. Those in the pathfinders working group will explore the use of pathfinders for reference access to subjects important to the Army mission. A CORC pathfinder can also store searches on related subjects that are executed in real time as the user brings up the pathfinder, so that recently added or revised resources can be found using pre-defined keywords and/or subject terms. A library may download the pathfinder to their home page, or link to it from their home page to the OCLC CORC system.

Since metadata and cataloging Web resources were popular program and conversation topics at the Army Library Institute (held in conjunction with the American Library Association conference last June), Parham believes cataloging Web resources is here to stay. "As leaders in this new area of cataloging, the decisions we make over the course of this project may serve as the standard for other Army libraries in the future."

OCLC Outlines CORC's Goals

The project started in early 1999 with a small number of users but OCLC expects it will grow to more than 100 participating institutions this year. Participants have committed at least one-half full-time equivalent (FTE) to the project over the next 12 to 18 months. (The Army and Earth Sciences groups each contribute to the .5 FTE requirement.) By the end, OCLC hopes many aspects of CORC will be absorbed and/or moved into production at OCLC so that their systems and services will be of immediate use to libraries and will become increasingly useful to them as the online resources catalog grows.

OCLC wrote the software needed within their Mantis framework to use the standards that are important whenever data will be shared across institutions. CORC offers both full USMARC cataloging and an enhanced Dublin Core mode. Mantis offers flexibility, so libraries are able to develop local options as well. The integration of local and shared information in an easily maintainable form is an important aspect of CORC, as is OCLC's desire to automate as much of the creation and use of records in the catalog as possible. For example, CORC will automatically fill in fields describing resources and offer good editing facilities so that records can be reviewed and upgraded as rapidly as possible. All activity will be through Web browsers.

More detailed information is available on OCLC's home page at purl.org/corc including answers to Frequently Asked Questions such as "How do participants benefit from their participation in the CORC project?"

All Libraries May Participate

Applications are welcome from libraries interested in participating in this cooperative project. If your library can commit at least 50 percent of one person's time over 12 months to describe resources and design your library's Web links, please request an application via email to [email protected] or visit http://www.oclc.org/connexion/ for more information and an online application form.

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Board Talk

At a recent FLICC Executive Board (FEB) meeting, members delved into the stimulating topic of Knowledge Management, or "KM." Is this concept being discussed or promoted in your agency? If it is, it may provide a fertile opportunity to demonstrate the importance of what you do for your managers and patrons.

The concept of knowledge management emerged in the corporate world about 10 years ago. It rests upon the assumption that the most important asset in the majority of service organizations is their intellectual capital. Thus, the most vital focus of management is creating the environment and the tools for organizational knowledge to be expanded, shared, communicated, captured, accessed, and absorbed. Along with "intellectual capital," Library of Congress subject headings also relate the term "organizational learning" to KM, which seems reasonable since the object of organizational communications is to learn something that will help you (and the organization) carry out your mission more effectively, creatively, and efficiently.

This summer I attended the monthly meetings of the Knowledge Management Training Consulting Network—a group of federal managers, executives, training officers, human resource and operations development specialists, and librarians who are trying to spread the word about KM in their agencies and use KM tools and concepts to change the "knowledge culture" in their professional environments. Included among the network members are the Chief Information Officer of the Navy (who supervises the Librarian of the Navy) and the Chief Knowledge Officer (yes, that is her official title) of the General Services Administration.

In the FEB discussion, Suzanne Grefsheim (NIH Library) related the early history of KM which involved experiments in 1988 by Johns Hopkins University Welsh Medical Library. Kurt Molholm (DTIC) had shared some of his thoughts on KM via the FEB listserv prior to the meeting:

"It's obvious that a changing environment and mission require organizations to: (1) tap enterprise resources, (2) work more effectively with fewer personnel, (3) provide continuity through personnel turnovers, and (4) work smarter. I have a premise: Quantity is not quality, stuff is not information, information is not power—it's only potential power. It's only power if it can be placed in the mind of a person (or some other intelligent device) so that it can be used to produce a decision, an action, or new information and knowledge. That's the challenge."

Joan Buntzen (Navy Librarian) also chimed in on the listserv discussion:

"Re: knowledge management, our project to deliver virtual library services and KM functionality to Naval-National Capital Region is still in development. We'll be choosing a contractor soon. The CIO wants a lot of bells and whistles...adaptive search capabilities, visualization, etc., in addition to a significant array of information resources and KM tools for collaboration...I think the challenge in this project is developing the overarching relationship between content and KM, i.e., metadata systems."

My interest in KM for federal libraries is this: If federal executives and managers start thinking about their responsibilities in terms of helping their staff be as knowledgeable as possible about their mission work and start focusing on improving knowledge transfer in their agencies, what group is best prepared to help them enhance knowledge flow and information processes? Librarians are the answer, of course. Admittedly, our primary focus has been static, documented knowledge, but most of you also have vertical files, rolodexes, or electronic indexes of experts who can take over where the collections leave off. At Arthur Andersen, where they consult about and sell KM systems, they hire librarians to be their "knowledge managers."

Do you think of yourself as a knowledge manager? Think about it...(and think about attending our program on November 16—see the box below.)

                                                Susan M. Tarr
                                                Executive Director, FLICC

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Customer Service Continues To Be Rewarding

Federal libraries continue to lead the way in encouraging and fostering excellence in customer service. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) Library within the Department of the Treasury is just one more example of how a federal library staff used team work to provide superior customer service consistently to Treasury Department administrators and agency coworkers. The OCC, headed by John D. Hawke, Jr., regulates the national banks.

Ed Hanley, Senior Deputy Comptroller for Administration of OCC presented the 1999 Administration Customer Service Award to Robert Updegrove, Administrative Librarian, and the rest of the staff of the OCC Library on May 4,1999. Each library staff member received a cash award and a letter of commendation which recognized individual contribution to the OCC Library. In his letter of commendation to staff, Hanley recognized each staff member as "a dedicated and capable professional who excelled in all types of reference work and helped develop the library's computerized capabilities." He also thanked staff for their individual efforts in making "the library a leader within the agency in mastering new information retrieval applications." He recognized their "commitment to quality service [as] was evident in all your work...your contributions toward achieving Administration's customer service goals are recognized and appreciated."

Senior OCC Administration managers selected the OCC library for the 1999 Customer Service Award. This management team defined the criteria for success, reviewed the nominations, and unanimously selected the OCC library for this esteemed award. The Customer Service Award is presented annually to the administrative division which consistently meets or exceeds customer service standards. Demonstrated streamlining of work processes, cost reduction, efforts to understand customer needs, and improvement in quality, timeliness, and responsiveness to customer requests are among the specific criteria the management team uses to choose the recipient or recipients of this award.

The staff at the OCC library received recognition for their achievement of the Treasury administration's customer service goals and their continued commitment to quality service. The presentation of a group award encourages continued enthusiasm and responsiveness to the agency's needs and expectations. The OCC library has been frequently cited for outstanding customer service. According to Updegrove, "customer service is important and should come from the top down."

The library also has a strong customer service culture because customer service is viewed as its primary responsibility. In 1998, executive committee members and diversity representatives from the Department of Treasury conducted a series of diversity/trust building sessions. During these sessions, participants commented on customer needs and standards for customer service within the OCC. As the sessions moved from division to division, the OCC library staff was repeatedly cited for its outstanding customer service in the retrieval and forwarding of information to co-workers in various districts.

The OCC library staff also conducted its own survey of its customers. Their results further underscored the staff's shared conviction that outstanding customer service means doing a job well. To improve customer service, Updegrove placed all his professional research librarians at desks adjacent to the OCC library's main entrance, stressing attention to customer needs and prompt, courteous service. Many requests for library assistance originate by telephone or fax, or are received through the OCC library conference board.

Although the increased use of the OCCNet could decrease personal contact with library staff, such a lack of contact will not affect the level of service provided by the library staff. Updegrove hopes that the staff at the OCC library will continue its tradition of commitment and professionalism in achieving excellent customer service results.

The staff shares in Updegrove's beliefs that outstanding customer service means doing one's job well and properly. The OCC library staff tries to provide same-day turnaround service on most requests through team work and by helping each other, sharing knowledge, and substituting for each other another whenever a particular staff member is not available. The library staff also considers working for the OCC library a personally rewarding experience.

Updegrove believes that the keys to success are a highly trained professional staff with excellent interpersonal skills. "I am convinced that positive customer-oriented experiences are building blocks for cementing solid relationships between the field and headquarters," said Updegrove.

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Second Annual FLICC Awards Deadline Is November 15, 1999

The FLICC Awards Working Group, chaired by Mark Ziomek of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum Library, is ready for nominations for the Second Annual FLICC Awards Program. The awards program is designed to encourage excellence by recognizing outstanding federal libraries, information centers, librarians, and library technicians. All federal libraries and information centers, practicing federal librarians, and library technicians are eligible for these awards. The nominees must demonstrate outstanding, innovative, and sustained achievements during Fiscal Year 1999.

The Awards Working Group will review the nominations and submit a list of finalists to the FLICC Executive Board for their final selections. The award winners will receive a certificate and plaque honoring their contributions to the field of library information service at the annual FLICC Forum on Federal Information Policies in Washington, D.C. on March 30, 1999. FLICC will also cover any travel costs for the award recipient and library manager.

Awards Honor Institutions And Individuals

The objective of the FLICC Working Group is to further encourage outstanding accomplishment by federal libraries and information centers, librarians, and technicians. By presenting three awards, FLICC acknowledges the value of the contributions and individual efforts of the diverse federal information community. The Federal Library/Information Center of the Year award recognizes the federal library or information center which demonstrates outstanding, innovative, and sustained achievement in fiscal 1999 in its level of fulfilling its organization's mission and meeting the needs of its defined user groups. The Federal Librarian of the Year award recognizes a federal librarian who demonstrates active and innovative leadership and professionalism in the promotion and development of library and information services. The Federal Library Technician of the Year award recognizes a practicing library technician who demonstrates exceptional technical competency and flexibility under changing work conditions. FLICC distributed brochures and the nomination packets describing these awards to libraries and information centers throughout the U.S.A.

Thanks to the Awards Working Group

The implementation of the Awards Program is a result of the continued hard work of the FLICC Awards Working Group which is chaired by Mark Ziomek. The other members include Jonda Byrd of the Environmental Protection Agency, Blane Dessy of the National Library of Education, Rosemary Marlowe-Dziuk of the National Defense University, Doria Grimes of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Elaine Hickey of the Patent and Trademark Office, Shirley Loo of the Library of Congress, Kenneth Nero of the National Labor Relations Board, and Janet Scheitle of the TRALINET Center-U.S. Army.

Time for Nominations

To request nomination packets, visit the Awards Working Group Section of the FLICC Web site (http://lcweb.loc.gov/flicc/wg/wg-award.html) to print out a copy of the nomination forms, or write to the Federal Library and Information Center Committee (FLICC), c/o Library of Congress, LA-217, 101 Independence Avenue, S.E., Washington, DC 20540-4935, call (202) 707-4800, fax (202) 707-4825, or send email to [email protected]. The nomination packet includes the nomination form, selection criteria, and list of needed supporting materials. Deadlines for applications: All completed nomination packets must be postmarked no later than NOVEMBER 15, 1999.

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Editorial Staff

The FLICC Newsletter is published by the Federal Library and Information Center Committee. Suggestions of areas for Federal Library and Information Center Committee attention or items appropriate for inclusion in the FLICC Newsletter should be sent to:

FLICC Newsletter
Federal Library and Information Center Committee
Library of Congress
101 independence Ave., SE, Adams Bldg., Room 217
Washington, DC 20540-4935
Email: [email protected]
Internet: http://lcweb.loc.gov/flicc

FLICC Executive Director's Office
Phone: (202) 707-4800
Fax: (202) 707-4818

FEDLINK Fiscal Operations
Phone: (202) 707-4900
Fax: (202) 707-4999

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Susan M. Tarr

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Robin Hatziyannis

CONTRIBUTING WRITER
Irene Kost

EDITORIAL ASSISTANT
Mitchell Harrison

The Federal Library and Information Center Committee was established in 1965 (as the Federal Library Committee) by the Library of Congress and the Bureau of the Budget to foster excellence in federal library and information center services through interagency cooperation and to provide guidance and direction for the Federal Library and Information Network (FEDLINK).

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