Research Libraries, like other organisations during the COVID-19 pandemic, have been facing difficult choices concerning which services to offer, whilst minimising risk to their staff, communities, and users. As the post COVID-19 era beckons, library leaders are urged to adapt flexible strategic plans that apply to every facet of library operation to ensure the organisations remain both safe and resilient in the future. This paper discusses leadership skills and practical techniques that can be applied to help build resilient libraries and deliver positive new change in the post-COVID-19 recovery period. Our findings indicate that leaders need to find ways to realign library ambitions to this uncertain new operating environment. The focus should be directed to digitisation and supporting systems, as well as on sustainability and transformative services. These are a must for the future of libraries.
In recent years the University of Edinburgh [UoE] has seen change, mergers, external partnerships and innovation at the heart of its growth and activity. Collections at UoE were not immune from these changes and have pioneered projects that both support and highlight unique educational cultures. Technology and the dissemination of collections has not only engendered positive relationships with academics but has created wider opportunities for the use of collections in teaching, learning and research. This momentum and an established commitment to the interoperability of data and standards presented an opportunity to look for a global solution to collections management within the converged, cross disciplinary environment. This included harnessing expertise in the University with systems development for large European projects and wider project management. This session will explore how UoE became the first European contributor to the collections management tool Archives Space. Snapshots of a converged culture and how 'archives' have benefited from this (including how 'techies' and 'archivists' worked together). An upbeat finale will look at what the team at the UoE achieved and are excited about for the future.There are a number of national and international institutions and project comparators and collaborators that we became involved with. This allowed us to have external checks and balances and prevent too much of an internal focus. The University of Edinburgh has led Musical Instruments Museums Online (MIMO) [1] and Europeana [2] projects and work and been proactive members of UK The Archives Hub portal [3] and ArchivesSpace [4] with information from this feeding through to Europeana and the Archives Portal Europe [5]. A restructure of the Library and University Collections Division (L&UC) at the University of Edinburgh followed the appointment of a new Director of Library and University Collections in 2012, and led to four sections being formed (Research and Learning Services, Collections Development and Access, Special Collections and Centre for Research Collections, and Museums).[6] The four heads of sections along with the Director form the Senior Management Team. Out of this restructure came a vision of an ambitious and dynamic service with discovery of the collections at the heart of it.'Library and University Collections (L&UC) is responsible for the University of Edinburgh's digital and physical collections. We work in partnership to deliver the services that bring our collections to the university community and the wider public. L&UC is a Division of Information Services working within a converged structure of IT, Library, Online Learning and Museums. The range of collections includes over 3,500,000 physical items, 330,000 ebooks, 50,000 journal titles, and 60KM of museum objects, archives, manuscripts and rare books. Fast, seamless discovery providing access to and use of the collections is vital, whether that be via an online device or physically, in one of our ten libraries or six museum facilities...
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