April 22, 2011

To: Council of University Librarians, via Bruce Miller, CoUL Chair
To: UC Libraries, CDL, and LAUC, via SOPAG for distribution
From: SOPAG, via Diane Bisom, SOPAG Chair

The Council of University Librarians (CoUL) has designated the Systemwide Operations and Planning Advisory Group (SOPAG) as the group responsible for managing the overall implementation of the NGTS (Next-Generation Technical Services) process and ensuring that progress is made on a timely basis over the next two years.

This message is to initiate the NGTS implementation and to share with you SOPAG's planning to date.

SOPAG is developing an organizational structure specifically to facilitate NGTS implementation, which has been approved by CoUL. The "NGTS Implementation Framework" document is available on the SOPAG website at this link:

http://libraries.universityofcalifornia.edu/sopag/ngtsframework.html

An NGTS implementation section has been added to the SOPAG website:

http://libraries.universityofcalifornia.edu/sopag/

SOPAG has appointed an NGTS Management Team as a sub-group within SOPAG. The NGTS Management Team will coordinate the implementation processes associated with the medium- and high-priority NGTS recommendations selected by CoUL. In addition to three SOPAG members and the past-Chair of the NGTS Steering Committee, the NGTS Management Team also includes a Project Manager and a Communications Manager. The Project Manager will track, manage, and schedule the projects. The Communications Manager will coordinate the dissemination of communications about the NGTS Implementation and manage ongoing feedback and comment avenues about the process. This is the NGTS Management Team membership:

Martha Hruska, UCSD, Chair
Vicki Grahame, UCI, Vice-Chair
Susan Parker, UCLA
Elizabeth Cowell, UCSC
Joan Starr, CDL, Project Manager
Emily Lin, UCM, Communications Manager

SOPAG and the NGTS Management Team, in consultation with the All-Campus Groups (ACGs: HOPS, HOTS, CDC, LTAG, RSC), are in the process of refining the organizational elements, identifying roles for each SOPAG member and working on charges and membership for the various groups within the structure. Once these assignments are complete, the groups and their memberships will be posted on the SOPAG website, and the link distributed.

SOPAG and CoUL recognize that NGTS Implementation will be a large, lengthy, complex, and detailed project that will significantly impact all 10 campuses, CDL and the other UC Libraries, and our user communities. While we intend to set an ambitious schedule, SOPAG also recognizes the time, effort, and resource implications of this transformative and collaborative initiative, especially at such a challenging time for the University of California. We are committed to this initiative, believe it will make the UC library system more efficient and better able to cope in an environment of constrained resources, and are confident that the expertise and excellence of our UC Library colleagues will make it a success.

Please feel free to direct questions, comments, and suggestions to your Library's SOPAG representative.

Thank you in advance for your support and contributions to the NGTS Implementation Initiative.

SOPAG Members:

Bernie Hurley, UCB
Gail Yokote, UCD
Vicki Grahame, UCI
Susan Parker, UCLA
Emily Lin, UCM
Diane Bisom, UCR, Chair
Luc Declerck, UCSD
Julia Kochi, UCSF
Lucia Snowhill, UCSB
Elizabeth Cowell, UCSC
Felicia Poe, CDL
Bob Heyer-Gray, LAUC