Consultants appointed for major study of library systems

2 April, 2009

On 16 December 2008 SCONUL members learned at their Autumn Conference that SCONUL had been successful in obtaining funding from HEFCE to undertake a shared services feasibility study into the LMS and related systems landscape. LMS (Library Management Systems) are the large-scale software applications used to run library processes. The new work follows on from the jointly-funded JISC/SCONUL LMS study that reported in April 2008 - see http://www.sconul.ac.uk/news/lms_report/lmsstudy/ - and the follow-up community engagement event on 27 June 2008.

The current feasibility study will address the following key questions

• What, if any, opportunities exist to develop a shared service response within the current Library Management System (LMS) landscape for UK higher education libraries
• What, if any, opportunities exist to develop a shared service response for a next generation open source LMS landscape for UK higher education libraries
• Whether there is a viable business case to support any such opportunities
• How any such shared service opportunities might be structured, delivered and governed

Following a tendering process, the contract for the study has been let to a consortium consisting of Sero Consulting, Ken Chad Consulting and Curtis + Cartwright. The project will be directed by David Kay of Sero Consulting. The study will be starting immediately and membership of the project Steering Group is currently being finalised. The project report is due to be forwarded to HEFCE by the end of November 2009.