22 October 2017
Being a CILIP Trustee
Since 2015, I have been proud to sit on CILIP Board as a Trustee and on CILIP’s Audit Committee. The elections for CILIP Board open at the beginning of November and I wanted to share the importance of the relationship I have with CILIP, why I am standing again and what I offer CILIP and the community in my role as CILIP Trustee.
(c) Fred Saunderson
What is CILIP?
CILIP (Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals), is the professional membership organisation for UK information & library specialists. We have an eclectic membership of over 13,000 members and currently CILIP is the second largest professional membership organisation of its type in the world.
In what ways am I already involved with CILIP?
Apart from being a CILIP Trustee, my relationship with CILIP, its members and the wider information and library community is extensive, well established and goes back many years. I have worked closely on a variety of projects and activities with CILIP, and have known CEO, Nick Poole for a long time.
As part of my professional relationship with CILIP, I provide copyright and compliance training for hundreds and hundreds of information and library professionals working for all types of organisations. I am involved in training and awareness raising via in-house training, seminars and conference papers, University lecturing and professional organisations, including CILIP, ASLIB, Ark Wilmington and RTA Regional Training. This type of training and awareness raising provides our information and library community with the skills and confidence to support them, their staff, students and members of the public.
I am a regular speaker at CILIP Annual Conference, but also try to support members of CILIP Regional Network and Special Interest Groups wherever I can. I am looking forward to presenting at the CILIP NW meeting in November when I am up in Liverpool. I am also excited to be working in association with the new CILIP Knowledge Management and Information Group on a half day session on information law together with Prof. Charles Oppenheim later that month.
From 2013-2016, I chaired LACA (Libraries and Archives Copyright Alliance), which is convened by CILIP. Together with my LACA, Wellcome and British Library colleagues we successfully lobbied for UK copyright reform. These reforms, implemented in 2014, are the most important in copyright law for a generation because they include innovative exceptions with broad benefits, such as data and text mining and more favourable provisions for library and information professionals. The UK copyright reforms are acting as a beacon of reform for the rest of Europe. I remain a member of LACA as we navigate the more turbulent waters of UK copyright legislation post Brexit.
Since 2012, I have arranged the programme and chaired the annual CILIP Copyright Conference. This annual event has grown from strength to strength, and out grown CILIP hosting space. I am already starting to plan the 2018 CILIP Copyright Conference.
Finally, I am currently co-authoring a book about information law compliance together with Professor Charles Oppenheim for FACET (the publishing arm of CILIP). Watch this space…….
Why did I become a Trustee?
I already had a well established relationship with CILIP, its members and the wider information and library community but I wanted to become more involved in the strategic direction of travel of CILIP at a crucial time of library closures and when CILIP was planning its future. Running a small business myself, I felt I could offer valuable business insight, as well as a professional perspective on risk, compliance and business planning. I had also successfully worked with CILIP CEO, Nick Poole, in the museum world, and I wanted to work with him again and his staff.
Why do I want to stand again as CILIP Trustee?
CILIP has a talented Board with diverse skills and experiences. I love working with them and want to do everything I can to support Nick and the Exec team in the successful implement of CILIP’s Action Plan and CILIP’s new membership offer.
I believe that my business acumen, professional compliance and risk skill set compliment the skills we already have on the Board, crucially bringing a synergy of sectorial understanding and business & compliance know-how at a critical time for CILIP and the members we represent.
What can you do?
The elections for CILIP Trustees open at the beginning of November. All the candidates are outstanding so CILIP wins every which way. CILIP members play a vital role in the process by voting and helping to shape CILIP’s future.