In this training update, I have included the following details:
1) NEW COURSES – writing a business plan; implementing knowledge management initiatives
2) FEBRUARY COURSES
3) CONFERENCES Aslib is supporting
 
NEW COURSES
Implementing Knowledge Management Initiatives, 31 January 2008
The focus of the morning sessions will be the presentation and discussion of a Case Study undertaken by the presenters at a prominent metropolitan transportation authority. This project employed many of the techniques covered in the Knowledge Mapping toolkit presented in the seminar, including:
 
            * enterprise ontology and stakeholder analysis
            * information audit and knowledge elicitation
            * mapping of information and knowledge resources onto process models
            * analysis of knowledge requirements into competence profiles for work planning
            * the construction of a knowledge map and thesaurus using Topic Maps
 
The Case Study is offered as an exemplar of Knowledge Mapping in practice but its real value will be to serve as a stimulus for delegates to describe their own information auditing or Knowledge Mapping projects. By sharing experience in a collaborative environment, all present should depart with a broader and deeper understanding of the benefits of mapping knowledge and the barriers which can present themselves in practice.
Further details will appear on the web site shortly at www.aslib.com/training/section3.html
 
Business Plans: how to produce a workable and convincing business plan - a half day course
5 February 2008, 13.45-17.00
A well-conceived business plan is a powerful aid to achieving better results, not only in the commercial world, but in any other field of activity. Unfortunately many plans are marred by a lack of realism, the failure to build in contingency measures to cope with different future situations and the absence or inadequacy of vital elements. This course will explain the soundly established principles for devising a plan that works whether it is one page in length or far more complex. Another common cause of failure is poor construction and presentation of otherwise viable plans and so the course also shows how to produce ones that will compel attention and acceptance.   Course Director: Chris Murphy
Further details: www.aslib.com/training/2/1.html
 
 
FEBRUARY COURSES
 
Negotiating Online Subscriptions, Friday 1st, pmA key introduction to the thorny issue of negotiating with suppliers, covering: preparing for meetings; practical clauses for letters reserving the right to cancel your subscription; What to look at in the contract ; hints and tips for arguing your case; how to get the price down and/or negotiate more favourable terms; strategies to keep costs down for future years; discussion of own experiences and concerns.  Course Director: Fiona DurrantFurther details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/2/08.html
Business Plans: how to produce a workable and convincing business plan - a half day course, Tuesday 5th, 13.45-17.00
(See above)
Indexing: Principles and Practice, Wednesday 6thIndexing is one of the best known of 'traditional' library/information activities. Its importance has not diminished in the digital age. On the contrary, indexing is of even more importance in digital environments, so that information can be efficiently found from sources such as the Internet, or intranets. Indexing is an important part of the broader process of metadata creation. Many library/information workers are expected to index material, but not everyone is given sufficient training. This course covers general principles of indexing, and the indexing process, and also specific points of practice, in the indexing of all kinds of material, emphasising the value of controlled indexing languages. The relations between indexing and other ways of analysing and denoting content (abstracting, summarising, classifying, categorising etc.) are emphasised. The course also deals with understanding, and creating, indexing policies, which govern the way in which indexing is carried out.
Course Director: Prof. David Bawden
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/4/16.html
 
Finding Digital Information: Sources and Searching, Thursday 7th
There has never been such a great amount of publicly available information, nor such a variety of tools and systems for finding it. But this wealth of information sources and searching options can be confusing, and many people rely on just a few familiar sources.  This course is designed for those who have to carry out searches - reference or research - of varied kinds, and who need an overview of the kinds of sources available, the kinds of systems which give access to them, and the most effective ways of finding the right information quickly. The course covers different kinds of queries (reference and research, open and closed ..), and the way these are matched to sources and search techniques. It deals with varying kinds of resources: by level (primary, secondary…), by content (full-text, bibliographic, factual …), and by environment (web pages, structured online databases …). It compares the main search systems and interfaces (web search engines, metasearch engines, online databases …), illustrates some effective search tactics, and shows how these can be combined into a strategic approach for finding the right information. Finally, it shows how novice searchers can gain expertise in the systems which are most useful to them, and how to keep up with new developments.
Please note: this course aims to give an overview, and does not deal with any one search system, or any one type of information resource, in depth. It is intended for those with limited experience in searching, and is not a 'masterclass'.  Course Director: Prof. David Bawden
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/6/05.html
 
Enquiry Handling, Friday 8th
Everyone has access to search engines these days, so information professionals need to demonstrate special expertise when it comes to finding the information their enquirers need. This course introduces participants to the full range of basic enquiry answering techniques, showing how it is possible to tackle any subject, even when you don't know what information sources may be available to help. Presented by the author of the best-selling Facet Publishing book Success at the Enquiry Desk, this course concentrates on practicalities rather than sources, but also includes suggestions for 25 multi-purpose information sources you can't afford to ignore. Course Director: Tim Buckley Owen.  
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/4/11.html
 
British Company Law, Tuesday 12th 
'Very important, but far too difficult for non-specialists' is how company law is typically viewed. This course distils the key legal principles which govern corporate activity for those who lack the time to follow lengthy conventional legal courses. It also goes beyond setting out the formal legislative framework to examine how these rules are applied in practice in British companies, featuring copious real life examples and looking at actual company documents. The course also identifies sources for researching companies and their directors. Course Director: Chris Murphy.  Further information, including how to book:
http://www.aslib.com/training/1/01.html
 
Web 2.0: An Overview, Friday 14th
Web 2.0 is said by some not to exist. Nevertheless, the new technologies associated with web 2.0 are increasingly described in the literature, and most significantly, are being used by your students, colleagues, friends and relations, as everyday information management tools. There are no rules, everyone can contribute, and no-one needs to use controlled vocabulary or command language. The phrase 'social networking' is no longer contained within the field of knowledge management, and there is a feeling that the information chain has undergone radical restructuring, without anyone saying so. People you know are becoming well informed, undertaking the roles of search specialist, critic and even publisher. If you do not know how information is being communicated, then it is hard, if not impossible, to find what you need, or even to be aware it exists. This one day event explains what is meant by web 2.0 applications, and looks at using weblogs, rss, wikis, podcasts, social linking and tagging, shared authoring tools, instant messaging, and social networking sites, within the context of an information management environment.  Course Director: Dr Lyn Robinson
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/5/03.html
 
Electronic Serials Management, Tuesday 19th
This one-day course will give you an introduction to the theory and practice of the management of electronic serials and offers the opportunity to gain an understanding of the rapidly-changing serials environment as well as an insight into the practical day-to-day management issues relating to it.   Course Director: Caroline Moss Gibbons
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/4/10.html
 
Business Information, Wednesday 20th
Effective performance in meeting business information needs requires an understanding of the key concepts, jargon and institutions relating to this type of information and an awareness of the principal sources through which it can be retrieved. This course meets both needs and is directed at information professionals who have either not previously dealt with information in the business field or only limited experience of handling it. Course Director: Chris Murphy
Further details, including how to book:  http://www.aslib.com/training/1/03.html
 
Basic Cataloguing and Indexing, Thursday 21st
This course is aimed at people who need to organise a collection of information but who have little or no knowledge or experience of how to do it. The collection may include books, periodicals, photographs, videos, computer discs, Internet page references and other material. The course will show beginners how to create and maintain control over this material so that required items and information can be retrieved. The emphasis is on practical cataloguing and participants are invited to bring typical material from their collections to form a group of items that can be considered in the practical sessions. The final section of the course considers how computers can assist in cataloguing and indexing, with practical demonstrations. However, no prior computer experience is needed for this. Course Director: James Shearer
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/4/02.html
 
Using Excel Spreadsheets to Manage a Library Budget, Friday 22nd, pm
What this course intends is to demonstrate how you can use Excel spreadsheets to manage your library budgets. To compare what you estimated you would spend which what you actually spent. To enable you to know at a moment's notice where you are at any point in time with your actual and newly predicted spend and not have to spend ages doing a manual reforecast. Common and more complex Excel formulas will be explored to make your professional life easier and to automate as much as possible. It is not intended to be a book-keeping course, but is aimed at the average library manager who is too busy to spend ages on budget management but for whom it is important they can lay their hands on vital, up-to-date information without having to have a major trawl through past invoices and catalogue records to try and work out where they are in the spending stakes.  Course director: Fiona Durrant
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/2/16.html
 
Copyright Policies, Dealing with Infringements and Risk Management, Tuesday 26th
Copyright and licensing are important strategic issues for information professionals, the effective management of which can reduce the risks of copyright infringements and create more efficient working practices. This workshop will develop a toolkit for dealing with infringements of copyright, managing risk and developing suitable policies and procedures. Participants will consider staff and user expectations, planning requirements, restrictions and how to create an environment where copyright is handled appropriately. The afternoon will build upon the areas covered in the morning by facilitating the development of an institutional copyright policy covering both the internal management of rights as well as copyright and licensing compliance for the use of third party materials held by the institution. The session will be concluded with an examination of how copyright policies can be successfully implemented and enforced.  Course Director: Naomi Korn
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/4/29.html
 
Running an Information Service with Limited Resources, Wednesday 27th
So you've been given an information service to manage. You have a room - perhaps containing shelves of publications inherited from your predecessor. You have a desk, with a networked computer and a phone, which is ringing.  Where do you start?  Step-by-step, this one-day course will take you through the basics of setting up and running an effective information service for your organisation. Participative and practical throughout, it includes exercises and feedback, with plenty of opportunity for discussion and ideas sharing.  Course Director: Tim Buckley Owen.  Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/4/12.html
 
Building AND DEPLOYING a Corporate Taxonomy, Thursday 28th
A Corporate Taxonomy is the backbone of an organization’s information architecture. Whether the focus is on records management, document management or knowledge management, a Corporate Taxonomy is key to effective storage and retrieval. A Corporate Taxonomy is different from a subject taxonomy in that it is a taxonomy of business activities. Corporate Taxonomies are therefore specific to an organisation and have to be custom-built. 
This interactive workshop uses a blend of presentation, discussion and practical exercises to explain the purposes of a Corporate Taxonomy and to introduce delegates to technologies, techniques and tools for building and deploying them.  Course Director; Bob Bater
Further details, including how to book: http://www.aslib.com/training/4/06.html
 
CONFERENCES
Aslib is supporting a number of conferences this year:
 
Records Management 2008: Preserving and Protecting Data and Information Assets, 27 February 2008, London (Aslib members are offered the early bird discount throughout on this conference)  www.unicom.co.uk/recordsmanagement
 
Web 2.0 and Beyond: Applying Social and Collaborative Tools to Business Problems, 5-6 March 2008, London (Aslib members are offered a 20% discount on this conference) www.unicom.co.uk/socialtools
 
The Essentials of Metadata and Taxonomy, 10 March 2008, CBI, London (Aslib members are offered a 10% discount on this conference)  www.henrystewart.com
 
 
IN-COMPANY TRAINING SERVICE
All our courses are available as onsite/in-company events.  Organisations that need to train 6 or more staff in the same subject will save on course fees by having the course onsite. Please contact me if you would like a quote.
 
If you have any enquiries about these or future events, please email me at [log in to unmask]
 
Kind regards,
Nicole Adamides, ASLIB Training
The Holywell Centre, 1 Phipp Street, London, EC2A 4PS
Tel: 020 7613 3031           Fax: 020 7613 5080
www.aslib.com/training    Email: [log in to unmask]
_________________________________________________________________
Get Hotmail on your mobile, text MSN to 63463!
http://mobile.uk.msn.com/pc/mail.aspx