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President
Council on Library and Information Resources

THE ORGANIZATION

The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) is an independent, not-for-profit organization that works to expand access to information, however recorded and preserved, as a public good. CLIR was formed in 1997 from the merger of two organizations, the Commission on Preservation and Access and the Council on Library Resources. CLIR identifies barriers to information access and use, and through its projects, programs, and publications, helps society understand the risks and possibilities of the changing information environment.

CLIR is governed by an independent self-perpetuating Board of Directors composed of academic leaders, heads of academic and public research libraries, representatives from scholarly associations, and members of the scholarly publishing, information distribution, and archival communities. The Board establishes policy, oversees investment of funds, sets goals, and approves strategies for their achievement. The Board's policies are carried out by CLIR's program staff, under the direction of the President. The program staff develops projects and programs in response to the broad charges of the Board. CLIR works closely with the Digital Library Federation on matters pertaining to digitized libraries.

CLIR is not a membership organization, but is supported by fees from more than 180 sponsoring institutions that see CLIR's agenda as being important to their own. CLIR's projects are largely supported by grants from public and private foundations, contracts with federal agencies, and donations from individuals.

CLIR's projects and activities are aimed at ensuring that information resources needed by scholars, students, and the general public are available for future generations. CLIR's greatest asset is its flexibility to respond to the needs of libraries and archives and to anticipate issues that will have an impact on their ability to serve their communities. CLIR's Board has identified four interrelated areas—all focused on the long-term accessibility of scholarly resources—for the organization's attention. These areas include:

  • Scholarly Communication. CLIR is committed to developing and strengthening the working relationships among scholars, librarians, and archivists even as it recognizes the growing gap between institutional budgets and the costs of acquisition and preservation of scholarly materials; the fragility and instability of many recording media that scholars wish to access; and the inadequate search and retrieval mechanisms for non-print and special collections. CLIR works to address these problems by providing decision-makers with the information they need to make informed choices and by providing managers with the tools they need to manage their information resources with the ultimate goal of achieving maximally useful scholarly communication throughout the world.
  • Preservation and Stewardship. CLIR not only advocates for the use of proven preservation materials, it also convenes experts to assess the merits of new preservation solutions that range from mass de-acidification of printed works to structures that are useful for archiving digital information.
  • Place as Library. This programmatic effort inverts a previous CLIR endeavor ("the library as place") and considers what libraries can best do as we move increasingly into a dispersed and digital environment for information resources. Envisioning libraries in this newly transforming context is the focus of this programmatic effort.
  • Leadership. To ensure profession-wide leadership with the energy and vision to adapt to rapid changes in the library and archival field, CLIR, in collaboration with EDUCAUSE and Emory University and with the support of the Woodruff Foundation, continues to help sponsor and support the Frye Leadership Institute. The Institute trains potential leaders of information organizations—librarians, IT specialists, and university faculty and administrators—to manage the information resources of the campus in the future. CLIR also hosts a fellowship program that provides new scholars in the humanities a unique opportunity to develop expertise in new forms of scholarly research and information resources that support them, both traditional and digital, that are challenging research institutions.

THE POSITION

The President of CLIR provides strategic and visionary leadership to the organization. The President is accountable to the Board of Directors for all aspects of CLIR's activities and programmatic and financial operations. Working with the broad charges provided by the Board, the President guides the organization in developing CLIR's agenda of activities and projects for Board approval. The President is responsible for raising funds from foundations, corporations, institutions, and individuals that support CLIR's core functions and special projects. The President serves as CLIR's principal public persona, representing the organization to the library, archival, foundation, scholarly, and corporate communities, participating in many national and international conferences, and creating and sustaining partnerships with other organizations that serve the communities with which CLIR is engaged.

The President manages a staff of highly capable program professionals and support personnel. These include two Program Directors who oversee projects related to CLIR's programmatic areas; Director of Finance, who manages budget, investments, and administrative operations; Director of Communications, who manages CLIR's extensive publications program and website content; and other program and administrative associates. Not all staff members are full-time; some are shared with other organizations such as the Mellon Foundation and some are on contract to the Digital Library Federation.

The President manages an annual budget of approximately $500,000 and total net assets of nearly $8 million of which nearly $1.1 million is unrestricted. Although CLIR has developed a strong track record of support from the Mellon Foundation and other organizations that have an interest in CLIR's agenda, the need for unrestricted funds to cover non-allocatable administrative support and overhead will continue to be a challenge requiring the new President's creative attention.

To continue to build CLIR's strong reputation and catalytic role within the higher education, library, and research communities it serves, the President needs to be an energetic and articulate leader with a vision for libraries and the management of information resources and the stature to command respect from leaders of academic research universities and liberal arts colleges; research, public, and independent research library communities; associations of librarians and IT professionals; and research organizations interested in the management of information resources. S/he must have the leadership skills to implement this vision and the management skills associated with a good Chief Executive Officer, including the ability to hire, develop and retain a talented staff. At the same time, the President must be comfortable leading a small organization with a flat and somewhat fluid organizational structure that prides itself on being nimble and responsive to new ideas and opportunities.

The President must have the intellectual strength and communications skills to present the organization and its activities to a broad audience and to stimulate thinking among CLIR's many constituents. The President needs to identify and anticipate issues that will be of concern to CLIR and the ability to transform these issues into fundable projects that will be of interest to the funding community. Through effective grantsmanship and other fund-raising activities, the President will need to ensure that CLIR continues to receive the resources it needs in order to achieve its mission. The President must also have the interpersonal and relationship building skills to work effectively with and win support from CLIR's Board and the constituent communities its members represent. The successful candidate is likely to have held a leadership role in any of the environments from which CLIR draws constituents.

RESPONSIBILITIES

  • Provide visionary and strategic leadership to CLIR, working with the Board of Directors to define the organization's objectives and to approve a set of initiatives that realize them.
  • Represent CLIR to a broad range of constituencies, including Board members, academic leaders of research universities and liberal arts colleges, members of the research, public, and independent research library communities, scholarly associations, the information management community, the scholarly publishing community, and CLIR's many sponsors and supporters.
  • Continue to build and maintain strong relationships with foundations and other funding sources to provide core support and project funding.
  • Create and maintain relationships with relevant professional associations, research institutions, and other organizations whose business focuses on libraries and information resources. Continue to position CLIR as a link between disparate communities.
  • Identify, create and oversee new projects and initiatives that address issues affecting the library and information community.
  • Recruit, retain, manage, and develop a highly educated and independent staff that is motivated to do its best work. Develop a strong sense of teamwork and establish an environment of mentoring and support.
  • Represent CLIR both in person and in print, speaking out on critical issues affecting libraries and scholarly communication and disseminating vision and ideas to a broad audience of decision-makers, both nationally and internationally.
  • Provide astute financial management of a complex budget that includes core support and project funding with revenues from a variety of public and private sources and in which the proper allocation of costs is a constant concern.

REQUIREMENTS

  • A broad vision for libraries and the management of information resources combined with a passion for defining the role of the library in higher education and society, for making human knowledge more available, and for promoting constructive change.
  • An advanced degree (doctorate preferred) with a strong grasp of the issues affecting research and scholarly communication and the needs of those who engage in and value these activities. Must have the intellectual strength to frame these issues into workable projects.
  • Demonstrated leadership skills that derive from the experience of having implemented a vision, engaged and won support from a variety of stakeholders and constituencies, interacted with and energized a Board of Directors, and set strategic direction for an organization.
  • A strong track record of successful grantsmanship and fund-raising activities.
  • Demonstrated success in managing and motivating a staff and in recognizing and supporting talent.
  • Excellent project management skills together with the insight and creativity to develop new projects.
  • Strong interpersonal, collaborative, and relationship building skills.
  • Superb written and oral communication skills; the ability to make a persuasive and compelling argument. Ability to play a visible role in both national and international venues.
  • A high degree of energy combined with tact, sound judgment and the ability to distill important issues; a strong work ethic and willingness to roll up one's sleeves to get the job done.
  • A sense of presence and self-confidence that will win the support and trust of CLIR's many constituent communities.

Nominations and applications, including a cover letter, curriculum vitae, and names of five references, should be sent in digital form (Word, PDF, etc.) in confidence to James F. Williams II, Secretary to CLIR (James.Williams@colorado.edu). Review of candidates will begin July 5 and continue until a president is named.

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