Advisory Groups

DSpace projects are generally organized through the university library system. You may need to convene advisory groups that focus on particular areas of the project – for example to set service-wide policies on how DSpace works.

Advisory groups can help to anticipate, identify, and solve problems, as well as to build support and gather feedback for the system.

At MIT, the DSpace team relied on a series of advisory groups, each described below. Depending on the nature of your project, and the culture at your institution, you may find you need more or fewer teams addressing DSpace issues. Advisory groups may meet for only a short time, or intermittently over the course of the project. What’s important at this stage is to gain acceptance and input from as broad a base as possible.

• DSpace Planning Group
• Policy Advisory Group
• Faculty Advisory Group
• Operational Advisory Group
• Community Users' Group

DSpace Planning Group

The DSpace Planning Group is established for the time period prior to launch of the DSpace service and integrates the DSpace service into the operation of the university library. To accomplish this, the group will:

• Build understanding of DSpace among library staff and solicit input on building the service.
• Investigate the operational impact of DSpace on the library.
• Define a service model for DSpace at your institution.
• Recommend an accountable management structure for the DSpace service.
• Define staffing requirements.
• Plan for the initial implementation inside the library’s organization.
• Recommend appropriate policies to the Policy Advisory Group with respect to DSpace implementation within the university/institution.

At MIT, one of the library’s Associate Directors led the group, which included the following members:

• Library technology director
• All DSpace Project Team Members, including User Support Manager and DSpace System Manager
• Library collection services representative
• Library public services representative
• Library system office representative
• Academic computing liaison
• University Archivist
• Special contributors from other departments affected by the effort

This group met weekly prior to the launch of DSpace and as needed during the operational phase. This group’s recommendations can be found in the DSpace Transition Planning Group report.

Policy Advisory Group

The Policy Advisory Group makes policy decisions related to DSpace services, standards, and functionality. If the decisions are judged to have significant financial, service, or public relations impact, they are referred to the library’s administration for endorsement.

This group determines policy relating to the following issues:

• Requirements for DSpace communities and contributors
• The nature and intended use of content in DSpace
• Service offerings

At MIT, the library’s Associate Director for Collections chairs the group, which also includes the following staff members:

• Information technology managers from both the library and the university at large
• Heads of each of the major divisions of the university library and archives
• DSpace User Support Manager
• Library technology director

This group meets quarterly at MIT (and more frequently as issues arise).

Faculty Advisory Group

A Faculty Advisory Group can provide guidance from the perspective of DSpace users, both as contributors of content and as end-users of the system. This advisory role is important during all phases of the project – from building communities to learning about how users access information in DSpace. Members of this group can be very helpful in building credibility and acceptance for the DSpace project at your institution.
At MIT, the University Librarian chairs this committee, which includes faculty from a diverse range of fields and disciplines. The Faculty Advisory Group is convened on an annual basis to provide this vital user feedback to the future development of the service.

Operational Advisory Group

The Operational Advisory Group provides two-way communication between the DSpace team and individual library units. It advises the technology director on issues that impact library services and staff. Its members also help to spread information about DSpace at the university.

This group is charged with providing the DSpace staff with input from those who work with end-users. This helps the DSpace group identify the following:

• Priorities and timing for new development and code fixes
• Communications and training needed for faculty, staff, and end-users
• Information about DSpace features, bugs, work-in-progress, user interface, and development plans

The DSpace User Support Manager chairs this group, which includes the following members:

• DSpace System Manager
• A representative of the subject specialist/reference librarians from each divisional library
• A staff member with metadata experience
• Systems office or IT representative
• University Archives representative

The Operational Advisory Group meets monthly.

Community Users’ Group

When your DSpace service has a critical mass of communities, establishing a Community Users’ Group will facilitate direct feedback to the DSpace team. As an interim strategy, you can add a few end users to the Operational Advisory Committee.