Planning for the Future of Government Information

Planning for the Future of Government Information: The Government Documents Roundtable Strategic Plan 2010-2015 and beyond

Respectfully submitted by: The GODORT Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Committee Introduction

What is the Government Documents Round Table (GODORT) and why does it exist? While the historical facts of the Round Table’s origin can be found in A History of the Government Documents Round Table : of the American Library Association 1972-1992 the question of why the Round Table exists, and more importantly what should it’s future be, is far more difficult to answer. In part the Round Table exists to support the public in their quest to acquire government information and to support librarians in their effort to manage that content while guiding users to the most effective resource for their unique need.

However, there has been an underlying sense over the years – while we have met each challenge as it has arisen – that there was much left undone. Many in our Round Table believed that there was more that we as an important part of the American Library Association should be doing to advocate for continued free access to all types of government information; much more that we should be doing to support individual librarians; and much more that we could be doing to improve our organization’s mission and profile.

In 2007 the membership approved the creation of an Ad-Hoc Strategic Planning Committee charged with developing a new mission and strategic plan for GODORT that would serve to direct GODORT’s future efforts to grow the organization. Increasing and retaining membership, while central to the planning effort, was not the sole goal of this effort and all areas including the committee organizational structure and the types of programming and services provided were to be considered. The plan provides GODORT with a rewritten mission as well as goals for five years and ten years out, the implementation of which will be developed by a subsequent group or committee taking into consideration specific recommendations received from the membership and beyond during the strategic planning process.

The members of the GODORT Ad-Hoc Strategic Planning Committee undertook a variety of tasks (detailed herein) to meet this charge. Our recommendations are offered with the hope that they will help guide the Round Table and its membership to a future where we strive together with other organizations to respond to old concerns and new technologies while continuing to serve our members, our users and our individual home libraries. Central to all of our considerations has been the guiding ideals of our Round Table’s founders that government information is a public asset and that GODORT as an organization within and beyond ALA must continue not only to support but to defend the concept of free, permanent and un-encumbered public access to tax payer paid for research and government information.

2 GODORT Strategic Plan

Contents Introduction Mission

Key Action Areas 5 Years Goal Area I Goal Area II Goal Area III Goal Area IV Goal Area V

10 Years Goal Area VI Goal Area VII Goal Area VIII

Appendices

3 GODORT Mission

To provide a forum where information professionals can collaborate to ensure the public has free and open access to information paid for, supported by, or developed at government expense.

Objective 1: To advocate for free, transparent and open access to government information and data at all levels and jurisdictions.

Objective 2: To foster, in a collaborative environment, meetings that enable information professionals to share experiences and knowledge that result in better access to government information for the public.

Objective 3: To provide training about government information, in a collaborative setting, for government information professionals and others strive to meet the government information needs of their patrons.

Objective 4: To provide a forum in which future technologies are reviewed and evaluated against both current and future information needs to assist in the planning and progress of government information.

4 Methodology

One of the most challenging tasks facing any group undertaking a strategic analysis of its organization and services is to determine what kinds of data and information are needed. The GODORT Ad-Hoc Strategic Planning Committee (GAHSPC) initiated five specific methods to gather the necessary background information. All of the data and reviews are posted on the GODORT WIKI.

First, the Committee reviewed, summarized, and discussed the literature in the business and library communities on strategic planning efforts and best practices. At the same time, the Committee reviewed the ALA Strategic Plan ALAhead to 2010 and GODORT’s own strategic plan of 1990.

Second, all Committee members were asked to scan recent publications that looked at the broader issue of access to information in libraries and the future of libraries in general. These were then summarized for easy referral.

Third, an effort to acquire new data about the Round Table was launched. This took the form of an online survey of the RT that was mandated as part of the Committee’s creation but was created and developed in conjunction with the GODORT Membership Committee. The survey was made available to the community in fall 2007 with the results relevant to the Committee’s task extracted and summarized.

Fourth, three open forums for the government information community were sponsored as additional venues to seek information relevant to the strategic planning process. Two of these forums were held at various Depository Library Council meetings including Spring 2007 in Kansas City and Fall 2008 in Washington DC. The third and final forum was held at the 2009 ALA Midwinter Conference in Denver. Both DLC forums were well attended with very active participation from both GODORT members and non-members. The results of these discussions are also available on the GODORT WIKI.

Fifth, a final survey via an e-mail message, using questions from the earlier all-member survey, was sent to former GODORT members who have not renewed their RT membership but who have continued in

5 ALA. This generated about a dozen detailed responses that will be considered as the final plan is assembled.

Brief GODORT History

The first GODORT Strategic Plan was written in 1990 (printed in DTTP, December 1990, p. 269-271) and has successfully guided the organization for the past 18 years. This is a remarkable record. Structurally it began with a brief introduction and mission statement. These were followed by the heart of the report made up of assessments of both external and internal factors followed by a conceptual plan of goals with specific action steps. The external assessment looked at four factors through the lens of constraints and opportunities. The six internal factors were described in terms of strengths and weaknesses.

Although the details and conclusions are different in this GODORT Strategic Plan, the factors that informed this plan remain remarkably consistent with earlier efforts. In 1990 the external factors were information technology, economic pressures, government funding, and government policies while the internal ones were structure, finances, programs, meetings, relations with ALA and other organizations, and the publication Documents to the People, DTTP.

The plan was created in a climate of political activism accompanied by diminishing resources. Thus the path for GODORT moving forward could have taken a political adversarial stance to respond to the former or a management/facilitative view to address the latter. The management perspective was predominant in the 1990 Strategic Plan, but GODORT’s continuing role as a strong advocate for government policy, free access to information, and other issues within the American Library Association (ALA) was not neglected.

Many of the action steps were achieved while others lacked follow through and were not continued or struggled with a lack of committed support. One example of this is the government agencies liaison program which ebbed and flowed depending on the enthusiasm of the individual members of the Federal Documents Task Force (FDTF). More recently the FDTF has been experimenting with a ‘virtual’ government agency liaison program that may provide a model for future electronic participation. The introduction of new forms of electronic communication which have only recently blossomed make it

6 possible to consider providing some arrangement for non-members or members who cannot travel to Annual and Midwinter conferences to fully participate in the work of GODORT.

Finally the plan created neither a strategy for assessing the success of its recommendations nor any recognition that strategic planning is an ongoing process that should offer mechanisms for making adjustments other than a complete re-do of the plan. Also, there was no description of the methodology by which relevant information was gathered and weighed and recommendations reached. All of these items are essential to a strong strategic plan.

Key Action Areas

5 Years

Goal Area I: Open Culture

Goal Statement: GODORT welcomes all members and participants.

Strategic Objectives: 1. Foster a welcoming and friendly environment that embraces both government information professionals as well as other information professionals with an interest in government information but for whom it is not a primary responsibility. 2. Create a mentoring program for perspective and new members. 3. Actively seek to involve new members in the work of GODORT both formally and informally. 4. Create a new member package describing GODORT, its structure, its role within ALA, abbreviations, and how to become active. This could be available in either electronic or hard copy format. 5. Explore the offering of career advancement support for members.

Goal Area II: Outreach

Goal Statement: GODORT members are the leading advocates for access, dissemination and awareness of government information and actively work with other ALA groups and organizations beyond the library community.

Strategic Objectives:

7 1. Broaden base of appeal to information professionals whose responsibilities vary beyond government information services 2. Continue training, advocacy roles and initiatives within the government information and library communities. 3. Create a public relations/marketing plan for guidance in outreach 4. Develop and implement a ‘planned giving’ campaign to continue growth of GODORT’s financial resources 5. Develop advocacy efforts beyond the confines of the library community that partners with other information, publishing and technology communities

Goal Area III: Membership

Goal Statement: GODORT offers members a variety of ways to participate in and contribute to the organization.

Strategic Objectives: 1. Immediately develop virtual membership within ALA guidelines 2. Provide a variety of participation and leadership opportunities for members 3. Continue to explore and use technology to foster active membership and participation 4. Create more informal opportunities for participation in Round Table activities

Goal Area IV: Balanced focus on all government information

Goal Statement: GODORT is an organization committed to providing access and information equally for all types of government information

Strategic Objectives 1. In conjunction with Goal Area V pursue the creation of new committees, task forces or discussion groups to allow integration of NGO, IGO and other types of governmental information and data less emphasized in the past

Goal Area V: Structure (Committees/ Meetings)

Goal Statement: GODORT has an organizational structure that supports its mission and goals while allowing it to be flexible and responsive to change.

Strategic Objectives: 1. Review current committee structure and meeting schedule to create an organization that has ongoing review and flexibility for encompassing new areas of interest 2. Develop the best model for GODORT activities and member participation at both ALA Midwinter and Annual conferences

8 3. Encourage less formality (while remaining in conformance with ALA requirements) at GODORT meetings in a way that supports participation by all attendees 4. Eliminate or merge committees with overlapping tasks or areas of interest so as to streamline the organizational structure to allow GODORT members more flexibility in their ALA schedules. Look for joint programming opportunities for committee that cannot be merged

10 years

Goal Area VI: Expanded Outreach

Goal Statement: GODORT members are the leading advocates for access, dissemination and awareness of government information and actively work with other ALA groups and organizations beyond the library community.

Strategic Objectives: 1. Continue to increase collaboration with larger ALA Divisions such as ACRL, RUSA and PLA 2. Increase awareness of the value of government information for libraries of all types through the use of presentations, programs and events at conferences outside of ALA and DLC

Goal Area VII: Development of financial resources

Goal Statement: GODORT is a financially solid roundtable able to support numerous programs, pre-conferences and projects important to the vision of our organization

Strategic Objectives 1. Continue to build GODORT finances through various development and income generating activities

9 2. Create a financial plan that will guide GODORT into the pursuit of Divisional status when/if the desire to pursue the goal exists

Goal Area VIII: Explore becoming a Division in ALA

Goal Statement: As an ALA Division GODORT can pursue activities related to its mission on a larger scale. Divisional participation will communicate to the library community that all types of government information is relevant to many different areas of librarianship.

Strategic Objectives 1. Identify partners within ALA to support or participate in an effort to become a division. 2. Increase membership numbers equivalent to the smallest division of ALA - which stands at 918 members (as of 2008) 3. In conjunction with Goal Area II: Development of Financial Resources, pursue financial endeavors similar to other ALA divisions to provide support for Division status

Recommended Next Steps

1. Submit final report to GODORT membership for a vote at the GODORT Membership Committee Meeting at ALA Annual Conference 2010 2. Creation of an Implementation Committee. The Implementation Committee will be responsible for putting the plan into action and for creation of assessment mechanisms 3. We recommend that the Implementation Committee take care to review the Appendix of the Strategic Plan to see specific action items suggested via the survey and information gathering forums

10 Appendix

GAHSPC Charge

The purpose of the Ad-Hoc Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) will be to create a vision and strategic plan for GODORT that will serve to direct GODORT’s future efforts to grow the organization. Increasing and retaining membership, while central to the planning effort, is not the sole goal of this effort and all areas including organizational structure and the services provided are to be considered. The plan should provide GODORT with goals for five years and ten years out. These goals should be in line with the articulated strategic planning goals of the American Library Association. The SPC will be appointed by the Steering Committee and will exist for approximately 18 months, producing a final document by ALA Mid-Winter of 2009. The SPC will conduct as much work as possible between ALA conferences using a collaborative electronic work environment.

Appoint eight members: 5 Roundtable members (with effort to include newer members and “experienced” members), 1 GPO rep, 1 vendor rep, 1 Membership Committee liaison. Current GODORT Chair serves as a non-voting Ex-Officio member.

Appoint a Chair or Co-Chairs from the eight committee members

Conduct research into similar organizational structures, engage in ‘visioning’ activities related to GODORT’s future and organizational structure, and craft a draft planning document – via online collaboration. Share draft plan with Steering and ‘reaction panels’ for review and comment.

11 Following this feedback – adjust the final strategic plan proposal and submit to Steering for review and approval before ALA Mid-Winter 2009. Distribute to current membership prior to ALA Mid-Winter 2009 for discussion and vote at the membership meeting.

GAHSPC Membership

Co-Chairs1 Membership Committee Liaison

Linda Johnson Kelda Vath University of New Hampshire Tacoma Public Library 603.862.2453 253.591.5611 [email protected] [email protected]

Marcy Bidney Ad Hoc Members Penn State University 814.865.0139 Current GODORT Chair: [email protected] Cassandra Hartnett Univ Washington Libraries 206-685-3130 Committee Members [email protected]

Marianne Ryan Purdue University Past GODORT Chair: [email protected] Aimée C. Quinn 765.494.2900 Past Chair 2007

Bill Sleeman

1 In the Fall of 2008 Marianne Ryan stepped down as Co-Chair and Marcy Bidney took her place

12 Kristina Bobe Past Chair 2008 Georgetown University The University of Maryland School of Law 202.687.7467 410.706.0783 [email protected] [email protected]

Jim Noel Marcive, Inc. 210.646.6161 [email protected]

Bill Olbrich St. Louis Public Library 314.539.0376 http://[email protected] [email protected]

Robin Haun-Mohamed [email protected]

GAHSPC Timeline2

DATE TASK

Jan-08 Extend Committee term to June 2010 Organize the 1st Forum at Spring DLC (draft questions, select facilitator & Jan - Feb 2008 note takers, special invitations to representative people) Feb. 15 - March 2008 Survey Results

Feb-08 Notes from GODORT History (refer to written history in plan)

Feb - March 2008 Review documents (PEW report; OMB report, other?) Review materials; start to work with environmental scan data; outline of April - June 2008 strategic plan; writing assignments? July - Sept 2008 Organize 2nd Forum

Oct-08 2nd Forum at Fall DLC

2 At the Midwinter meeting of 2008 the Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Committee requested and was granted an extension of time with the final plan due at Annual 2010

13 Oct - Nov 2008 Work with 2nd Forum environmental scan data

Jan-09 3rd Forum at ALA Midwinter

Jan - May 2009 Work on draft

May-09 Draft review by select members

Jul-09 Submit draft report to Incoming Steering for review and comment

Jan - April 2010 Edit draft Submit final report to Membership Committee for review and approval at April 2010 Annual 2010

Bibliography for literature reviewed:  Aamot, G. (2007). Getting the most out of strategic planning. College & Research Libraries News, 68(7), 418-426.  Allmang, N., & Ouimette, M. (2007). Case study: The NIST research library's experience using focus groups in strategic planning. Library Administration & Management, 21(2), 77.  Caldwell, T. (2005). Strategic thinking. Information World Review, (218), 23-24.  Cannon, T. H. (2004). Developing a strategic plan. College & Research Libraries News, 65(5), 258.  Casey, M., & Stephens, M. (2007). Living out loud. Library Journal, 132(10), 34.  Clay, E. S.,III, & Bangs, P. (2006). Beyond numbers. Library Journal, 131, 8-10.  Collier, M. (2006). Strategic change in higher education libraries with the advent of the digital library during the fourth decade of program. Program, 40(4), 334-345.  Ladwig, J. P. (2005). Assess the state of your strategic plan. Library Administration & Management, 19(2), 90.  McNicol, S. (2005). The challenges of strategic planning in academic libraries. New Library World, 106(11/12), 496-509.  Umbach, J. M. (2007). Satisfied with your strategy? Feliciter, 53(3), 114-114.  Vaughn, D. P. (2005). AASL's strategic planning. Knowledge Quest, 33(4), 4-5.  Wilson, S. (2005). Saint Paul's strategic plan. Library Journal, 130(15), 34-37.

Supporting documents reviewed:

14  Hiding in Plain Sight: Why Important Government Information Cannot Be Found Through Commercial Search Engines - from the Center for Democracy & Technology and OMB Watch  Information searches that solve problems: How people use the internet, libraries, and government agencies when they need help - Pew Internet & American Life Project report, 12-30-2007  Review of SLDTF Strategic Plan - K. Bobe, 10-11-2008  Strategic Plan of 1990  Strategic Planning Outline - M. Allen, 8-6-2007  Strategy for Gathering Information - B. Sleeman, 12-11-2008

Data Collections:

For results from the GODORT Membership Survey, The GODORT Past Member Survey and the three forums held by the Ad Hoc Strategic Planning Committee see the Strategic Planning page on the GODORT Wiki. (These documents will be made available to Steering via ALA Connect while they are in the review period)