NFAIS Announces New Committee Structure

NFAIS Announces New Committee Structure to Foster Communication and Information Sharing Across All Sectors of the Information Community.

Philadelphia, PA, March 4, 2003 - NFAIS, the premier membership association for organizations that aggregate, organize and facilitate access to information, introduced a new committee structure during its 2003 Annual Conference. The key innovation here is that active participation is open to all members of the information community - and is not limited to NFAIS members.

"A New Information Industry is evolving and we must embrace it" said Marjorie Hlava, the incoming NFAIS President for 2003. "NFAIS needs to evolve in order to provide the organizational benefits members need, want and expect. We must foster understanding of secondary publishing in all its variations to the primary publishers, to the librarians, to the end user, and perhaps most importantly to those who are new to the business. We believe that the most effective way to accomplish this goal is to establish working relationships and to welcome their active participation within our committee structure!"

Hlava noted that NFAIS committees focus on issues of critical importance to all those involved in any aspect of information creation, gathering, dissemination or access. Information linking, standards, usage statistics, and best practices to name a few are all hot topics, and NFAIS members have been dealing with these issues at every stage of technology development. By opening up discussions on these challenging concerns beyond the boundaries of NFAIS membership, everyone will benefit - members included. Hlava noted that, "Our goal is to create an environment that not only showcases the wealth of knowledge and expertise developed by NFAIS members, but one that also fosters information sharing beyond its membership. We believe that as a result NFAIS will strengthen its position as a forum for developing partnerships, for information exchange, and for professional growth."

The 10 NFAIS committees open to all interested parties are:

• Conferences & Meetings
• The Humanities Roundtable
• Information Linking
• Information Policy
• Chief Information Officer Roundtable
• Library Education
• Membership
• Public Relations & Marketing
• Publications
• Standards

Hlava is enthusiastic about the opportunities offered through NFAIS' new policy. "Everyone in the Information Community is facing the same challenges - and opportunities. We should be working more closely together to develop joint solutions to common problems that work for our own individual organizations. We need a place to meet, to talk, and to resolve issues. NFAIS is that place!"

NFAIS membership currently represents major information providers across all research and business disciplines. For more information on NFAIS committees, membership, programs and services contact Jill O’Neill, Director, Planning and Communication, NFAIS, 1518 Walnut Street, Suite 307, Philadelphia, PA 19102 (Phone: 215-893-1561; Fax: 215-893-1564; Email: jilloneill@nfais.org).

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