Conversations with Leading Academic and Research Library Directors: International Perspectives on Library Management

Conversations with Leading Academic and Research Library Directors: International Perspectives on Library Management presents a series of conversations with the directors of major academic and research libraries. The book offers insight, analysis, and personal anecdote from leaders in the library field, giving a unique perspective on how the modern library operates. Readers will learn about the most up-to-date trends and practices in the LIS profession from the directors of 24 internationally acclaimed academic and research libraries in Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Russia, Singapore, and the UK and USA.

This is the first book focusing on leaders and managers of library institutions to offer a global outlook. Facing the need to respond to the expectations of changing populations that librarians strive to serve, this book aims to develop a new understanding of the core values of academic and research libraries, and asks how librarians can innovate, adapt, and flourish in a rapidly shifting professional landscape.

• Presents conversations with library leaders from 24 major institutions
• Offers a global perspective on the operation and management of libraries
• Discusses the director’s impact on institutional structures and future landscapes
• Gives insights based on first-hand experience

Patrick Lo is currently serving as Associate Professor at the Faculty of Library, Information & Media Science, the University of Tsukuba in Japan. He earned his Doctor of Education from the University of Bristol (U.K.), and has a Master of Arts in Design Management from the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, a Master of Library & Information Science from McGill University (Canada), and a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Mount Allison University (Canada).

He also took part in a one-year academic exchange at the University of Tübingen in Germany from 1990-91. He is efficient in Chinese (both Cantonese and Putonghua), English and German. Dr. Patrick Lo has presented about 100 research papers and project reports focusing on librarianship, humanities, and education at different local and international workgroup meetings, seminars, conferences, etc., including: Mainland China, Hong Kong, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Turkey, United States, and Sweden, and at institutions including the Library of Congress (U.S.), Austrian National Library (Vienna), University of Vienna, National Library of France (Paris), National Institute of Informatics (Japan), Konrad-Zuse-Center for Information Technology (Berlin), etc. His research interests and areas of specialty include: comparative studies in library and information science (LIS); art and design librarianship and information literacy.

Dickson Chiu currently teaches at the University of Hong Kong. He holds a PhD, and MSc in Computer Science from Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST). Chiu started his own computer company while studying part-time. He has published numerous papers in international journals and proceedings, edited over 15 books and proceedings, and is the founding Editor-in-chief of the International Journal on Systems and Service-Oriented Engineering. His research interests include librarianship and cross-disciplinary approaches in information management involving workflows, software engineering, information technologies, management, security, and databases.

Allan Cho is an academic librarian at the University of British Columbia, Canada, in the Humanities and Social Sciences division. His subject liaison areas include Digital Humanities, Asian Studies, English, and Library and Information Science. His work also supports the community engagement initiatives and cultural programming at the Irving K. Barber Learning Centre. He is also an instructor in the Department of Library and Information Technology at the University of Fraser Valley in British Columbia, Canada. Cho holds MLIS, MA and M.Ed. degrees from the University of British Columbia. His research focuses on digital media, digital humanities, and emerging technologies in libraries.

Bradley Allard is currently a Reference and Outreach Librarian at the Clark County Public Library (Winchester, Kentucky). He received an MLIS from the University of Kentucky, an MA in Japanese Language and Literature from Washington University in St. Louis, and a BA in English Literature from the University of Kentucky. He has also spent time studying in Japan as an exchange student particularly at the International Christian University and the University of Tsukuba. His research interests focus on services to disadvantaged groups in public libraries, services to international students, and the internationalization of academic libraries.