Public Interest Journalism — Where to from here?

Speaker:
Sophie Black
Deputy Editor
Crikey

As the media landscape continues to rupture both here and overseas,
how will quality journalism prevail in the age of new media?
What is a sustainable funding model?
Can twitter single-handedly save journalism,
or does it threaten to reduce our attention span to 140 characters for good?
Rupert v Google, new media v old media, the death of the newspaper,
the role of social networking and the potential demise of investigative journalism.

Sophie Black is a journalist, media commentator and Deputy Editor of Crikey.
Her reporting covers immigration, climate change,
the publishing and advertising industry, indigenous affairs, the media,
US and federal politics, and the odd bit of salacious gossip.
She also commissions writing from a network of experts,
from private eyes to politicians, to pack Crikey with new voices each day.
As a media analyst and political commentator,
she has anchored Channel 31’s Conflict of Interest,
done stints as resident media analyst on Channel Ten’s The 7pm Project,
appeared on Sunrise, ABC2 Breakfast, the TODAY show,
The Morning Show, and 9am with David & Kim
and has regular slots on both commercial and ABC radio.

Not a VALA member?
Visitors are welcome at VALA meetings – just come!

Date
Wednesday 25 November 2009
5.30 p.m. Sparkling wine and extra nibbles for Christmas
6.00 p.m. Meeting

Venue
Tutorial Room, Ground Floor, Baillieu Library,
University of Melbourne
See Google Maps for details.
(On-site parking available after 5.00 p.m. –
have gold coins available for the parking fee.
Public transport via tram.)

The link below points to a consultation on a proposed researcher development framework. I have not read it yet, but such a framework is surely a place where the core principles of curation should be introduced. We (and you) have until 11 December to comment…
 http://www.vitae.ac.uk/policy-practice/1…

Chris Rusbridge
Director, Digital Curation Centre

source:  RESEARCH-DATAMAN at JISCMAIL.AC.UK

She is director of UKOLN, see http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/ukoln/staff/e.j.l… for details

well worth a listen IMHO

NOTICE OF MEETING
Baillieu Library, University of Melbourne
Wednesday 28 October 2009

Australian Policy Online (APO) goes open source…

Speaker:
Amanda Lawrence
Managing Editor
Australian Policy Online

Amanda will discuss the process of upgrading the Australian Policy Online website,
which was launched in its new form in May this year.
In particular she will look at the process of selecting a content management system
for CCI and APO, and the implementation of the open source CMS Drupal.

Amanda Lawrence is managing editor of the gateway website
Australian Policy Online  apo.org.au) hosted by
the Institute for Social Research at Swinburne University of Technology.
She also edits the Creative Economy weekly newsletter and manages
the website for the ARC Centre of Excellence for Creative Industries and Innovation  www.cci.edu.au).
She is currently completing a Graduate Diploma in Library and Information management at RMIT.
Since completing an arts degree with honours at the University of Melbourne,
Amanda has worked in various roles in the book industry, including
manager of the Literature Program at the Asialink Centre from its inception in 1996 until 2005,
program manager at the Victorian Writers Centre,
newsletter editor and bookseller at Readings books and music,
and coordinator of the 1999 Melbourne Festival of Poetry.

Not a VALA member?
Visitors are welcome at VALA meetings – just come!

Want to join Committee and the speaker for dinner (your expense) afterwards?
Dinner RSVPs only by 5.00 p.m. Monday 26 October:  vala at vala.org.au or (03) 9725 2725

Venue
Tutorial Room, Ground Floor, Baillieu Library,
University of Melbourne

Date
Wednesday 28 October 2009
5.30 p.m. Wine and nibbles 6.00 p.m. Meeting

This biennial award, always a surprise to its recipient, is presented to an individual or organisation who or which is, in the opinion of the judging panel, currently making an outstanding contribution to the development of information technology usage in Australian libraries and is positively and significantly influencing development in information technology usage within libraries. Find out more details of this Award, by visiting the Robert D. Williamson Award 2010 page at http://www.vala.org.au/awardrw10.htm.

Guidelines and nomination forms are available from the Website, or from the undersigned.

Anyone can nominate a person deserving recognition, so nominate someone today. If you wish to nominate someone, but cannot fully complete the form, then go ahead, and we will work with you and others to find out more.

Please feel free to pass on this request to your colleagues.

Thank you

Alyson Kosina
Executive Officer
VALA – Libraries, Technology and the Future Inc.
Reg No A0011933K ABN 75 344 574 577
P.O. Box 509
Mooroolbark VIC 3138
Phone: (03) 9725 2725 Fax: (03) 8625 0079
Email:  vala at vala.org.au

Applications close at 5pm AET on 20th October 2009.

For more information intending applicants should consult the application guidelines at http://www.aurorafoundation.org.au/

If you have any queries regarding the Aurora Leadership Institute 2010 please contact Michelle Woolven on 0408 554 999 or  michelle.woolven at gmail.com

The ALIA Aurora Scholarship is once again available and gives the successful recipient $4000 towards the cost of Aurora.

More details available here
 http://www.alia.org.au/awards/aurora.sch…

Sue Hutley

Executive Director
Australian Library and Information Association

My name is Lili Luo from the School of Library and Information Science at San Jose State University. I’m conducting a survey study to explore the value of research methods education to LIS professionals. I’d greatly appreciate it if you can take 5 to 8 minutes to complete the survey.

The survey study seeks to understand how librarians apply research skill in their workplaces and how education/training in research methods can help them with their work. Results from the study will further the understanding of practitioner research and will bridge the gap between research and practice.

The survey is anonymous and participation in the survey is entirely voluntary. By clicking the link below and completing the survey, you are consenting to participate in this study:

 http://slisapps.sjsu.edu/phpq/phpq6/fill…

The survey will be available till Oct 22, and again, your participation is very much appreciated! Please contact me at  lililuo at slis.sjsu.edu if you have any questions regarding the survey.

Thank you very much!

Regards,

Lili Luo
Assistant Professor
School of Library and Information Science
San Jose State University

Invite you to hear:

Dr Judith Broady-Preston, Senior Lecturer, Department of Information Studies, Aberystwyth University in the UK speak on her research about the nature and role of the information profession in contemporary society: “Radical transformation? Issues of professionalism, structuralism, social identity and self esteem in a volatile environment”

Date and time: 5:30 – 6:30 pm Tuesday 13 October

Venue: Seminar Room RMIT University Library (Swanston Library Building 8, Level 5
360 Swanston Street, Melbourne)

For catering purposes please register by email to  bonna.jones at rmit.edu.au by Friday 9 October.

 http://www.alia.org.au/groups/newgrad/so…

Daniel Giddens

(on behalf of the Victorian ALIA New Graduates Group Committee)

Always popular, the Resumé and Key Section Criteria event attracted over thirty people this year. Three experienced professionals gave three different perspectives on these very important elements of a job application process. These were: Derek Whitehead, Director, Information Resources and University Copyright Officer, Swinburne University of Technology Library, Trevor Mackay, Branch Manager, Sandringham & Hampton Libraries, Bayside Library Service, and Brad King, Victorian State Manager of The One Umbrella, a specialist recruitment agency for information professionals.

Derek spoke first and gave a good insight into recruitment processes at Universities, sharing with the audience how, just as it can be a time-consuming, stressful and hopefully rewarding process for applicants, this is also the case for those recruiting. There can be many layers and rules involved in such a process. New people are a risk, a large investment, whose impact might end up being good or bad, so trying to make the right choice isn’t easy. There might be quite a few people who make up a selection panel, although five is common. The amount of information supplied to them from a HR department to assist in their decision making can be quite a lot. Making and receiving applications for positions has become more automated, with many Universities having their own e-recruitment websites and SEEK being a common place to post advertisements. It was interesting that Universities account for about 25% of library employment in Australia.

Research any position you apply for, be able to show/say why you want the job, not just because it is A job, even though you may be happy with any job. Be realistic about your capabilities when looking at a job advertisement. Don’t overstretch yourself. However, if you lack experience, as a new graduate librarian would, use related experience. There are two types of Key Selection Criteria or Key Selection Capabilities – objective and personal – what can you do versus what kind of person are you. When KSC distinguish between criteria as mandatory and desirable, these are very loose, based on the judgement of the selection panel; usually it means mean one is more important than the other. Support all your claims with evidence, using an acronym like STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Results).

Be aware of the “unstated KSC” too. – the panel is trying to determine your capabilities, but also how you will fit in with their organisation. How you present yourself throughout the process is very important. It is more than your application plus your interview and your referees. Your formatting, spelling and grammar, that initial phone inquiry, your Facebook site, are elements that may also have an impact. In terms of the interview, wear whatever you think the panel will think is nice, arrive early, and take a look around. Help yourself, by collecting as much intelligence as you can, use your networks, find out who is on the panel.

To access Derek’s PowerPoint, click here.

Trevor’s presentation was entitled ‘5 Tips To Land An Interview’ and can be found here. A handout is also available here. Before sharing these tips with the audience, he said it was very important to seek out a few different opinions on putting together Resumés and Key Selection Criteria documents.

His first tip related to the appearance and style of your resumé.
This will be your first impression to a selection panel; a judgement will be made quickly on whether to proceed any further with the application. Two or three pages is usually a good length, and 10 or 12-point Times New Roman or Arial font. However, your name and contact details should be bigger. Be sure to proofread what you have written. Also, customise your resumé for the job you are applying for. Create your own master document with all the things you have done, and pull from that what you need for a particular application. Look at the strategic documents of the organisations you are applying for (usually on the Web), consider what you can bring to the job in light of them and use this to help you make your case. Avoid putting hobbies in your resumé; it is nice to know you have a life outside work, but it is not a necessary element.

Tip two was: address the Key Selection Criteria.
Identify the keywords in the job description and use them to help you demonstrate how you are the person the organisation needs. If you don’t have relevant experience in the area you’re applying for, use experience you have from other occupations, your involvement in charity work, or volunteering, to help you answer the criteria. Or say how you would approach a situation if you cannot think of a good example.

Tip three encouraged the use of action and power words.
Action -analysed, developed, prepared. Power – co-ordinated, managed, led. These are strong words that emphasise that you did these particular things. But don’t use “I”, “my”, or “our” in a resumé. This should be a third person document.

Tip four was about being specific with examples, use quantifiers.
Trevor’s acronym to help applicants address a criterion, or show their achievement of something, similar to Derek’s STAR, is PAR – what was the Problem, the Action that you took and the Result. Show the detail. Quantify what you have done.

Tip five was about prioritising content in your resumé.
Include content that is relevant to the position. List your most important, relevant or impressive experience first.

Trevor also showed the audience a recent advertisement for a Children’s Librarian at Bayside. He said that the successful applicant was very impressive. She was able to demonstrate in the interview why she was the best person for the job, by sharing how she would run a Children’s Storytime session and make improvements as a Children’s Librarian. The panel realised that she had actually come into the library as a member of the public, observed a Storytime session and used that experience to her advantage. This strengthens the point that you should seek out ways to get any bit of inside intelligence that you can to help you make the best impression.

Key points Brad made included:

If you use any acronyms in your application, write them out first and then simplify them. Making assumptions that a selection panel knows what you mean, can create confusion.
Make your resume specific to the job you are applying for.
Use a good mix of white space and text.
Make sure any file you send electronically is able to be accessed easily. If it isn’t, it may be to your detriment, as a selector may move on and only come back when they have more time. .RTF is a universal file type.
Explain any gaps you have in employment in your resume (e.g. maternity leave).
Use any relevant experience you have.
Choose your referees carefully and be sure to ask them first. You can use people such as a former supervisor instead of a current one, if for example this person does not know you well.
Sometimes a reference for a job may only come in the form of a basic letter of employment including your job title and term of employment. This is better than nothing at all.
Make sure you use the keywords in the Key Selection Criteria document throughout your application.
Get another person to proofread your application.
Research the organisation you are applying for – what do they want and what can you bring to them.
In terms of an interview:

Tailor your dress sense to the job you’re applying for.
Be early.
Be specific in the examples you give in response to questions.
Make eye contact. Initially respond to the person who asks a question.
Be aware of your ticks and body language.
Don’t ask about salary or benefits at the first interview. These can be easily researched by doing a websearch.
Realise that just as you may be nervous, your interviewer could be feeling the same.