4. Objectives, issues, and key strategic initiatives 2008-2010

Key Area 1: Information Resources

Objective: To ensure that the selection, acquisition, creation, cataloguing, storage and preservation of scholarly information are in line with the needs and requirements of the University community. Provide prompt, seamless, reliable and easy-to-use access to high quality scholarly information, regardless of the location of the information or the user.

Ongoing activities:

To evaluate, select, acquire and/or license new materials (both print and electronic);
To catalogue resources and provide information about, and access to, them through the Library catalogue and the web sites;
To provide resource discovery tools to enable access to electronic resources including e-journals, e-books, databases, web sites and repositories;
To provide physical access to print and other collections held in branch libraries;
To provide co-ordinated resources under the 'one Library' banner while still meeting individual campus and faculty needs;
To promote and preserve the University’s intellectual output;
To promote and preserve the University’s collections;
To contribute to the University's information management strategy.

Issues: The biggest challenge is to ensure that the Library continues to deliver high quality information resources to meet the differing needs of Monash students and staff and other users affiliated with the University. Monash University’s broad range of activities and international footprint, together with the dramatically changing information environment, has led to changes in the way resources are selected and managed, with increasing emphasis on electronic resources.

The Library is, therefore, rethinking its information resource access principles and discovery mechanisms. The resulting Resource Discovery Framework seeks to examine the best approaches to resource discovery and provide access to resources the Library acquires, creates or stores.

The Library is also reviewing its approach to the preservation and retention of print resources. With other Group of Eight libraries it is investigating the feasibility of a last copy retention strategy for infrequently used material. Under this proposal a member library would accept responsibility for retaining and making available specific titles, thereby allowing other libraries to dispose of their copies.

The full research output of the University remains under-captured and under-promoted. The Library is leading the national ARROW project, which has received significant government funding to build a national network of institutional repositories to store research outputs and make them accessible. At Monash the repository is being used for many purposes, including the research needed as evidence for the national Research Quality Framework (RQF), doctoral theses, patents granted, research image collections, open access journals and, most recently, research data. The next few years are critical to the success of ARROW, and also to the Monash University ePress initiative, which will be reviewed to ensure that it continues to address the University’s needs in the most effective way.

Monash is the first member outside Europe to join the Nereus consortium. Nereus is made up of prestigious academic institutions in the world of economics and aims to make new economics content accessible to the world. A significant body of Monash material will be contributed to Nereus.

The Library is actively involved in the development of a co-ordinated information management strategy for the University. The emergence of e-Research has involved the Library in policy development for research data management and preservation.

Key Strategic Initiatives

Strategies	Actions	Measures/Targets/KPIs	Responsibility
1.1 Make electronic information easier to locate and use.	Improve MultiSearch functionality for end users by investigating and implementing new features	End user functionality improved and communicated to users.	Director, Central Services; Director, Information Resources; Subject librarians; Faculty Teams; Communications Manager.
	Review involvement in AARLIN and the use of MultiSearch and SFX beyond 2008, and make recommendations.	AARLIN involvement reviewed and decisions made and implemented. MultiSearch portal and federated searching reviewed and recommendations made.	Director, Information Resources; Director, Central Services; Directors, Client Services.
	Implement the Resource Discovery Framework recommendations.	Recommendations implemented.	Director, Central Services; Director, Information Resources.
	Review and improve Library publications and communications.	Improvements made in Library publications.	Directors, Central Services; Client Services, Information Resources.
1.2 Develop collections to support research and teaching.	Continue research collection adequacy studies.	Studies completed as required, needs identified, strategies formulated.	Director, Information Resources; Directors, Client Services; Subject Librarians.
	Build research collections in key faculty research areas in collaboration with researchers.	Collections improved in designated areas e.g. Islamic studies.	Director, Information Resources; Directors, Client Services; Subject Librarians.
	Promote research collection strengths.	User knowledge of collections strengths increased.	Directors, Client Services; Subject Librarians; Communications Manager.
	Initiate Language and Learning skills collection adequacy study.	Study complete. Language and Learning skills collection improved.	Learning Skills Team; Subject Librarians.
1.3 Manage the national ARROW project.	Support the development of institutional repositories in Australian universities.	Project objectives achieved, as detailed in the ARROW operational plan.	ARROW Project Manager; University Librarian.
1.4 Position the ARROW repository for future needs.	Capture and promote Monash University research output through the ARROW repository.	Research output captured.	ARROW Librarian; University Librarian; Director, Information Resources.
	Expand the content of the ARROW repository.	ARROW content expanded.	ARROW Librarian; University Librarian; Director, Information Resources.
	Develop a capacity to maintain the ARROW repository into the future.	ARROW embedded into collection management processes. Ongoing maintenance established.	ARROW Librarian; University Librarian; Director, Information Resources.
	Use the ARROW repository to support the RQF at Monash University.	All RQF documentation available via the ARROW repository, with security measures in place.	ARROW Librarian.
1.5 Showcase economics academic content through the Nereus consortium.	Enable ARROW economics content to be harvested to Economist Online.	Economics content on Economist Online and NEEO.	Director, Information Resources; Director Central Services; ARROW Librarian.
1.6 Showcase Monash University's research activity through expanding the offer of the Monash University ePress and identifying sustaining strategies for its future development.	Expand the number of titles published by ePress.	Number of titles on offer.	ePress Manager; University Librarian.
	Review the objectives, business case and activities of the ePress.	Review completed and recommendations implemented as appropriate.	University Librarian; ePress Manager.
1.7 Provide leadership for the University in information management.	Advise the University on its information management strategies and on metadata standards.	Advice given to appropriate forums.	University Librarian; Director, Information Resources; Director, Central Services.
	Assist in developing and implementing a data management strategy for University research data.	Assistance given and strategy implemented.	University Librarian; Director, Information Resources.
1.8 Re-engineer Library information resources processes to achieve productivity improvements.	Partner with library vendors, review processes.	Reduced backlogs, and material is available faster.	Director, Information Resources.