Corporate Bunker or Cyber Cafe: Rethinking the Strategic Role of the Library in the Corporation ― A Case Study

摘要

Certainly one of the most painful questions to be asked of a corporate librarian is "what is the value of the 'library' to the business?" Following an initial pause, often there is a volley of cost savings figures cited, and even a smattering of anecdotal evidence illustrating the value of the library. Invariably, the question raises anew the irrepressible issue "what is value?" and "how do we measure it?" Given the fact that some estimates put the total number of corporate libraries in the neighborhood of 10,000 with an associated operating budget of $3.2 billion, the question is not easily avoided. Indeed, not to address the issue directly can and has invited competing business demands vying for scarce library and information resources. The traditional way most studies have approached the issue of valuation has been to employ an "economic replacement" cost approach or to ask end-users directly to evaluate the utility of services received. In our view both approaches are flawed. Cost analysis is not the same as valuation analysis. An object or service may, for example, cost $17.50 to reproduce or replace, but the value of the service may be far less or far greater than $17.50. A replacement cost approach may therefore under or over-estimate the true value of services, and it is highly unlikely, that even the directionality let alone the magnitude of the bias can be discerned. On the other hand, asking end-users to evaluate services consumed avoids the "cost" problem but creates a problem of comparability and objectivity. Two individuals may perceive the value of the same service quite differently. Library-assisted document searches are a case in point. Some end-users prefer to do their own searches while others will prefer professional assistance. Are we then to conclude that the aggregate value of the service is "zero?" and if not, how do we combine utility scores across individuals and across business units? So what is to be done or said in response to the question, "what is the value of the library to the business? and more pointedly, what can or should we as practioners be doing to enhance that value? We believe that the key to understanding and measuring the value of information services is to take a strategic rather than product or service perspective. In our view, corporate libraries and information services only create value, to the extent to which they directly or indirectly contribute to the strategic goals and objectives of the corporation. Creating, sustaining and enhancing value requires a continuous process of aligning and realigning the infrastructure, processes and services of the library on the one hand, with the larger corporate objectives on the other hand. Based on work-in-process at Bristol Myers Squibb (BMS), this paper illustrates this value-alignment or strategy-focused approach. As part of a larger space-needs assessment study, BMS undertook a long-term strategic assessment of the future position of the library within the corporation. The main driver in this assessment was to enhance the overall value of the library to the corporation. While the work is ongoing, we believe the approach and methodology used here has broader applications outside of the pharmaceutical industry. Prior to describing this work however, we first look at a couple of the prevailing archetypes of the corporate library. The first is what we have termed the "bunker" mentality, and the second, its counterpoint, here referred to as the "cyber cafe." These two models provide a useful context for understanding the concept of the strategy-focused library.