ALCTS Electronic Discussion Forum premieres
Contact: Charles Wilt
Executive Director, ALCTS
(312) 280-5030
cwilt@ala.org
For Immediate Release,
May 6, 2008
Registration begins May 8 and ends May 13 for ALCTS leaders and membership to take part in an electronic discussion focusing on communication. The discussion begins at 10 a.m. EDT on May 14 and concludes at 6 p.m. EDT on May 16. The facilitators for this discussion are Pamela Bluh and Dina Giambi.
Discussion topics in the ALCTS electronic discussion forum will be pertinent to the ALCTS areas of interest but may cover a wide range of issues. Topics will be announced in advance, and the discussion will last for a short period of time, generally 2 or 3 days. The facilitator will provide a summary of the discussion at its conclusion.
Since the ALA Midwinter Meeting in Philadelphia, the Board of Directors of the Association for Library Collections & Technical Services (ALCTS) has used the “7 Measures of Success,” an evaluative tool from the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), to review the association’s strengths and weaknesses. The process revealed that ALCTS members have a very favorable impression of the association’s services. However, to be more successful, the assessment results underscored the need for improvement in three areas: communication, collecting and using data and organizational adaptability.
Effective communication is the cornerstone of a remarkable association, and improving communication is a priority. A proven means for accomplishing this is to host electronic discussions on topics of immediate interest. Other associations have been hosting such discussions successfully for several years. Topics are discussed while interest is “hot” and individuals choose to participate in the discussions that interest them.
Since creating an organization with improved transparency and better communication is a high priority for the ALCTS leaders and membership, the first electronic discussion will focus on that very topic: communication.
Please register in advance to participate in the discussion.
To register go to: http://lists.ala.org/sympa, click on ALCTS (spelled out) under the <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />ALA division heading and then choose alcts-eforum@ala.org. A login and password are required to register. Instructions for obtaining a login and password may be found on the list
homepage.
Topics and dates for future discussion will be forthcoming. Suggestions for topics are welcome. Send those suggestions to alcts@ala.org with the subject line “ALCTS E-Forum”.
For more information on the “7 Measures,” visit the ASAE website at: http://www.asaecenter.org/PublicationsResources/7measures.cfm and the ALCTS “7 Measures” survey and results at: www.ala.org/alcts .
ALCTS is a division of the American Library Association.
