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The author shares her story of advocating open access for the past twenty years. She then introduces the meaning, routes, brief history of open access, and findings of the latest OA2020 Progress Report. As for current developments, she outlines some trends on scholarly publishing that have raised concerns from the academic community. The prevalent COVID pandemic demands for a faster scientific communication channel. It is further reinforced as open access publications is one of the essential elements in the UNESCO Recommendation on Open Science adopted by Member States in 2021. The author further discusses the roles of libraries and transformative agreements have played in supporting open access.

Research data management (RDM) services in a research institution require broad collaboration of multiple administration and service entities, including research office, IT office and library. Cross-unit RDM support coordinated at the institutional level (top-down) is a common model in many pioneering universities, especially those in Europe and the UK. For institutions in which such top-down RDM initiatives is not yet present, libraries can play a pivotal role to bring in changes from bottom-up. Libraries have the expertise in many areas that are instrumental in developing RDM support, such as scholarly publishing, metadata standards, repository infrastructure and collaborative professional culture. The chapter portraits a design framework for libraries to build RDM services grounded on understanding community needs and utilizing existing organizational capacity. It will explore ways to adapt local strategies in policies, tools, infrastructure and outreach with references from global practices.

In this mini-chapter, we will describe how HKUST Library adapted flexibly in the face of challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, to eventually reach a “new normal” in delivering collections and services to students, faculty, and staff virtually and in-person. It will cover hygiene and physical protection of the facility and its collections; social distancing measures for library staff at work and for library patrons; virtual access at work and for patrons; user education; and new services developed in the face of COVID-19. It will consider what methods enabled the Library to cope with changes and what innovations will likely become the “new normal” going forward. © 2021 David Baker and Lucy Ellis Published by Elsevier Ltd.

As the Chair of the JULAC Consortiall Committee, the speaker shares on what the Committee have done in the past 20 years. The talk covers its history, major milestones such as savings exercise, HKMAC and others. Its main duties is to negotiate with vendors and publishers to protect the interests of members. A recent survey reviews members' concerns. Lastly the hope of the Committee in the new Shared Integrated Library System in the area of consortia collaboration, joint collection development activities and the challenges ahead.

Today librarians face stern challenges from many directions: technology, social media, users’ demands and internal processes. How should we upgrade our skill sets and learn to take up new roles? In recent ARL libraries’ vacancy postings, it was found that more than half of the advertised positions were newly created or redefined jobs. As such staff development should be mission-critical. A case study of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library is presented on its staff retraining and reskilling practices. Formal training spans from new staff orientation, refresher sessions and user education workshops, to specialise and cross-training. Informal training includes Connect Time and Fun Cafe. Other channels include sessions on upgrading technical skills, consortial training, learning circles and collective learning. There have been competency profiles in different areas that help librarians to identify skill gaps and areas for development. To fill these gaps, librarians can learn from the business which includes learning in the staffs’ annual objectives and enforces a link between learning and performance. The library will then be a learning organisation that we grow together with our users. The future of libraries relies on librarians' capacities to continuously transform our roles and skills.

描述香港八所高等院校的深入合作計划 - 共同分享新一代图书馆集成管理系统; 包括系统的特性, 其中的过程及面对的机遇与挑战。

When the HKUST Learning Commons opened its door, a promotion plan in engaging users was launched with remarkable results. In the next four years of operation, a lot of enriched learning activities and events took place. The Library’s image and identity has been greatly improved. An assessment of the Learning Commons was done with overwhelmingly positive responses from the users. This led to the extension of the space, services and hours and even rejuvenation of other floor. Using the HKUST Learning Commons as a case study, this paper presents six different phases of planning and outcomes with focus on how to engage users.

This is a case study of the HKUST Library. The 2012 academic reform in Hong Kong higher education has given opportunities for the Library to transform itself. Examples were given on how it re-designed its space and revitalized services to demonstrate its values in the academic institution.

A library is more than just a repository of bookshelves. Its design will enhance user experiences. This presentation shares the experiences of HKUST Library on using new design themes to renovate its space. It also reflects on how new space could try out new technologies and services.

How did the HKUST Library align its strategic plan with the University’s priorities? This presentation outlines several specific ways with many examples on how the Library achieves the University’s major Developmental Goals in 2011-16.

The advances in digital technologies continue to play a critical role in shaping the future of academic libraries. The digital revolutions in broadband, mobile devices, social networking and cloud computing have led to a fundamental transformation of physical libraries into the digital domain. Conventionally library resources and services were delivered in a physical building. Now most libraries have maintained their virtual presence in addition to their physical asset. Almost all libraries have an appealing and elaborate website. A virtual library provides its users digital collections of all formats – e-books, e-journals, databases and multimedia. Besides, it embarks on digitisation of virtually all media – text, image, audio, video, multimedia – from its own special collections and scholarly or archival assets. This digital information is discoverable and accessible by remote users. A wide range of virtual services are also deployed for its users. For example, reference, learning support, information literacy, current awareness, exhibition and mobile services are all virtually available. Outreach and promotion are performed through social networking. This chapter provides an overview of different practices in this evolution, drawing from examples of overseas libraries as well as the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library.

The advances in digital technologies continue to play a critical role in shaping the future of academic libraries. The digital revolutions in broadband, mobile devices, social networking and cloud computing have led to a fundamental transformation of physical libraries into the digital domain. Conventionally library resources and services were delivered in a physical building. Now most libraries have maintained their virtual presence in addition to their physical asset. Almost all libraries have an appealing and elaborate website. A virtual library provides its users digital collections of all formats – e-books, e-journals, databases and multimedia. Besides, it embarks on digitisation of virtually all media – text, image, audio, video, multimedia – from its own special collections and scholarly or archival assets. This digital information is discoverable and accessible by remote users. A wide range of virtual services are also deployed for its users. For example, reference, learning support, information literacy, current awareness, exhibition and mobile services are all virtually available. Outreach and promotion are performed through social networking. This chapter provides an overview of different practices in this evolution, drawing from examples of overseas libraries as well as the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe a collaborative project on issuing a library card for common access among all eight higher education libraries in Hong Kong. Design/methodology/approach – The project was undertaken by two committees and a task force of cross-institutional membership. The new common library card adopts the “patron-record-on-demand model,” reducing the risks involved in patron data transfer across institutions. Historical narrative combined with usage analysis from the launch date of the project was outlined. Findings – The new common library cards were well received. About 63 percent of old cards were replaced by new ones. New applications jumped 43 percent while physical access to host libraries increased by 8 percent during the reporting period. Originality/value – This paper describes in detail the processes of developing a common barcode, an automated card registration system and the issuing of the common library cards. Libraries pursuing an efficient way of sharing library resources will be inspired by the level of collaboration involved in this project.

This presentation highlights the research support services provided by the HKUST Library. Some emerging trends on research supports and a case study on supporting 2014 Research Assessment Exercise are also profiled.

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe HKUST Library’s active participation in helping the university prepare for the 2014 Research Assessment Exercise (RAE 2014) in Hong Kong. Through the process the authors demonstrated library’s value and librarians’ expertise in supporting research. Design/methodology/approach – This is a case study that highlights how HKUST Library tackled this complex exercise. The effort was delineated as three stages: the design stage when the authors proactively supported the electronic system design for RAE 2014, the formation stage in which the submission infrastructure was built, and the data process stage. Findings – Based on the Library’s experience in creating and managing the Institutional Repository and the Scholarly Publication Database, the participation proved to be instrumental in designing and building the electronic infrastructure for the RAE 2014. After the project, the HKUST research community had higher trust and regard of the Library, both for the research information management systems and librarians’ expertise in providing research support service. Practical implications – The paper elaborates details of HKUST Library’s effort, including human resource deployment, project management strategy, operational tactics, challenges the authors faced and keys to success. The experience demonstrates that libraries and librarians can establish credibility and gain respect from research communities through delivering tangible outcomes. Originality/value – There is very few case studies in the literature on libraries’ participation in and contribution to RAEs. This paper fills a gap in the area.

Purpose – The purpose of this case study is to describe the space transformation of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library (HKUST Library) into a learning commons and how learning activities have been substantially multiplied by engaging academic and supporting units. This experience is used to posit a number of anticipated directions for library space planning; Design/methodology/approach – This paper focuses on the design elements of the learning commons and how these elements have created an effective platform for a variety of learning activities. It outlines an assessment study on how students liked the transformed space and viewed its added values; Findings – In the digital era, academic libraries can be transformed for new, effective and collaborative use. By integrating technology and flexible design, the new space excites existing scholars and attracts a broad range of new users. Students, faculty and administrators react positively to the new space, as it offers effective learning ambience. By engaging and co-creating with university partners, the new space functions as an active facilitator of learning – a hub that supports interaction and an effective platform to support pedagogy towards team projects, multimedia work and whole-person development. Future library spaces need to exhibit characteristics tailored to various user groups and their specific usage needs; Originality/value – The experience of the HKUST library will have broader implications for other academic libraries embracing their mission-critical nature and assets. It shows that libraries can embrace challenges in the digital and virtual world by creative and innovative use of their physical space.

Purpose – This paper aims to evaluate the impact of three concurrent demand-driven acquisition (DDA) programs on e-book collection development at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) Library; Design/methodology/approach – Counter Book Report 2 reports of the Ebrary, Wiley and JSTOR were analyzed from the launch date of the respective program to June 30, 2014; Findings – The value of two local DDA programs, Ebrary and Wiley, were seen. JSTOR program needs to be evaluated at local and consortial levels when the pilot is finished; Originality/value – The experience of HKUST Library will provide a reference point for libraries that are yet to implement their DDA program.

In this cloud era, more and more information is stored in the cloud for easy and around the clock access. Usage on e-resources has rapidly increased when compared with use of prints. The variety and formats of e-resources have multiplied over time. HKUST Library attempted to review the changing trends of its e-resources usage, including free OA resources, subscribed and proprietary resources, self-created learning resources and digital libraries. Some in-house studies, usage statistics and surveys were shared. Some observations on the Library’s patron driven acquisition on e-books was also highlighted.

Purpose: Using the HKUST Learning Commons as a case study, this paper seeks to reveal a number of insights on how to effectively engage different user groups within the university. Design/methodology/approach: The case study focuses on the user-group engagement process, highlighting the promotion plan and factors that enhance the user-group engagement. Findings: Two positive outcomes of the engagement were identified: the diversity of learning activities in the Learning Commons, and the elevated image of the library and librarians. Practical implications: The experience at HKUST reported in this paper highlights the need for libraries moving to the new "commons" service model to actively promote the facilities by engaging different user groups. The process itself is a necessary component to the success of the new service and facilities. Originality/value: The case study uses the user engagement framework to steer the promotion effort. The outcomes of the process have long-term implications for the image and identity of libraries, and subsequently enhance the library's potential in fund raising and resource allocation.

Academic libraries face rapid changes and tremendous amount of challenges in the 21st century. Challenges arise from at least four different dimensions, including the environment, technology, customers and internal processes. In response, this paper focuses on how academic libraries need to position themselves in these changing environments by anchoring on their foundational core missions. It first discusses 12 pertinent challenges in these four dimensions. The second part focuses on how academic libraries revolutionize and realign in six fundamental areas. The author will illustrate with some good practices and experiences in these revolutionary and repositioning processes.

Academic libraries face transformational forces from the environment, technology, users, and internal processes nowadays. Accordingly, librarians need to be dynamically capable and equipped with the abilities to integrate, build and reconfigure competencies to address these rapidly changing environments. This paper discusses how HKUST Library managed to be dynamically capable. The first key competency lies in its ability to decode, assess and filter incoming environmental challenges. The paper shares how the library staff members shouldered the responsibility of sensing the environmental impacts collectively. The second competency rests with the ability to realign its resources in a changing world. It discusses how HKUST Library reconfigured, redeployed and realigned its staff members to higher priority and technology driven areas. Finally it shows how the Library executed effective human resource strategies, such as maintaining transparent communication channels and providing collective learning opportunities. The attributes and new roles of academic librarians are also outlined.

This presentation summarizes different learning journeys of our students, showing the learning support provided by the HKUST Library. They include course reserve, federated search, citation linkers, streaming videos, accessing materials from other libraries, subject librarians, library guides, presentation advisory service and some e-learning initiatives.

Purpose – The main purpose of this paper is to discuss the strategic repositioning of an academic library using the dynamic capability framework. Design/methodology/approach – The discussion is based on the re-organizational process of the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library. Three stages are focused illustrating how the Library managed to be dynamically capable including (1) sensing the environmental impacts, (2) realigning and reconfiguring its resources, and (3) implementing effective strategies to respond to these challenges. Findings – The Library adopted a multitude of channels and media in sensing environmental challenges. By going through a strategic reorganization, the Library has realigned and redeployed its staff resources to better prepare for incoming changes. The reformed organization moved ahead with renewed culture and values, including better internal communication, team spirit, collective learning mechanisms, and effective user communication. Research limitations/implications – Reorganization is complex and can be highly stressful. Participative culture and effective communication seem to be successful mechanisms. Practical implications – Cross training on work procedures and routines in other units provided organizational learning mechanisms. This collective learning broadened staff’s work knowledge, enlightened their understanding of complex processes, fostered good team spirit, and improved overall effectiveness as more staff become aware of the overall performance implications of their actions. Originality/value – The paper shares various reorganization concerns and how they were handled. The benefits of a large scale cross training program are outlined.

The author discusses the information literacy initiatives and assessment at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. Specifically she shares the experiences, obstacles, challenges encountered in developing the assessment plan and in piloting with schools.

In academia today, many attempt to measure excellence in research and scholarship by looking at publications and how they are cited. To measure the output and impact of a researcher’s work, different bibliometric tools are used. These discipline-specific workshops introduce different databases, open-access sources, and software to help track one's research output and analyze its impact.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to document Hong Kong University of Science and Technology's (HKUST's) experiences in developing its Institutional Repository and to highlight its programming developments in full-text linking and indexing, and cross institutional searching. Design/methodology/approach - This paper describes how HKUST Library planned and set up its institutional repository, how it acquired and processed the scholarly output, and what procedures and guidelines were established. It also discusses some new developments in systems, including the implementation of OpenURL linking from the pre-published version in the repository to the published sources; the partnership with Scirus to enable full-text searching; and the development of a cross-searching platform for institutional repositories in Hong Kong. Findings - The paper reveals what and why some policy issues should be adopted, including paper versioning, authority control, and withdrawal of items. It notes what proactive approaches should be adopted to harvest research output. It also shows how programming work can be done to provide usage data, facilitate searching and publicize the repository so that scholarly output can be more accessible to the research community. Practical implications - The paper provides a very useful case study for other academic libraries who want to develop their own institutional repositories. Originality/value - HKUST is an early implementer of institutional repositories in Asia and its unique experience in policy issues, harvesting contents, standardization, software customization, and measures adopted in enhancing global access will be useful to similar institutions.

In order to improve library instruction and to produce data that shed light on the value of this core library service, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library conducted a formal assessment on its instruction program in 2004. A group of 688 users from 25 one-shot sessions was surveyed by a questionnaire four to eight weeks after the sessions were conducted. Results showed that the majority of attendees remained positive about the usefulness of the library sessions; they retained and used the skills learned; the overall rating of the library sessions and the instructors were comparable to those of the university's credit course ratings.

The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Library builds the HKUST Institutional Repository, aiming to preserve and disseminate its institutional scholarly output. This paper describes the background which led to its birth, the growth and development of the project, the challenges involved and strategies adopted to achieve sustainability.

This presentation shows how scholarly communication has been reshaped and how HKUST Library developed the institutional repository in response to open access. The features of DSpace, further software enhancements and access statistics are highlighted.

Although reference transactions declined over the years, we saw a rise inhits on our library homepage and its resources. This session will examine how HKUST Library improved self-service on its website; how we use programs, cgi scripts, style sheets, etc. to make our databases, subject guides and quality internet sites more accessible and easily discovered; how we select internet sites, maintain the links and compile subject guides to help users find what they need.

Internet has reshaped reference service. While questions are still handledat the reference desk, most libraries offer some form of virtual reference service. Among them are email, web form, video conferencing, voice over IP, online chat, instant messaging, short message service, reference kiosks, collaborative reference service, etc. Other commercial products and search engine systems have also evolved. This session will trace the developments in virtual reference services, and review some usage studies.

At HKUST, our goal was to build a critical mass of scholarly publications in a short period of time. Size and speed were our concern. Copyright and self-archiving issues needed to be addressed. In this discussion, we will share the strategies we used, problems we encountered, issues involved and some pleasant surprises. In order to build the momentum, we decided to capture pre-existing collections of scholarly content and simultaneously harvest suitable publications directly from the sources. The grey literature of working papers and technical reports was our first target. There were over 600 papers of this kind scattered in departmental offices and in the cyberspace. We simply contacted departments and offered to collect and preserve them in digital format and to organize them in logical and easily retrievable fashion. Consequently, a total of 557 papers were deposited. Many faculty members have a practice of posting the full-text of their papers on their websites. We emailed 89 faculty and obtained permissions to post 144 papers in our Repository. We also wrote to 40 publishers and obtained permissions for another 119 papers. We encouraged faculty to submit their papers directly, but the response was disappointing. In order to raise faculty’s awareness of open access, we featured articles in our newsletters and held an anniversary celebration to honor our top contributors after the Repository topped 1,000 documents. Over the years, 50 conferences have been held on campus. For those proceedings published in-house with copyright owned by the university, we singled out papers authored by UST members and sought permissions on 107 papers. We also wrote to professional societies and publishers. Thirty-five conference papers were added as a result. Electronic dissertations and theses was a handy collection that was already accessible. We loaded the metadata of 110 open access theses from our Electronic Theses Database and obtained permissions from over 100 alumni on thei