Cornell has been on a quest for several years now for better ways to manage e-resources. Like other libraries, Cornell's current handling of electronic resource data is a labor-intensive patchwork that cannot fully meet the needs of users or staff. From the ERM, the Library is seeking a better end-user interface for e-resources, less complex and labor-intensive processes for loading and transferring e-resource metadata, and more efficient and effective staff support for e-resource selection, evaluation, tracking, administration, and troubleshooting--all leading to better user services.

Karen Calhoun, M.L.S., M.B.A., is Associate University Librarian for Technical Services at Cornell University Library. A major contributor to the development of Cornell's Library Gateway (http://www.library.cornell.edu) and a frequent speaker on technical services in the digital library, Ms. Calhoun's recent research and operational interests have focused on the organization of electronic resources, metadata, and library staff development. She led the Cornell team that co-developed the portal software ENCompass with Endeavor Information Systems, Inc. Earlier this year, Ms. Calhoun visited the Hong Kong University Libraries to help the staff analyze their technical services workflows. Before joining the Cornell library staff seven years ago, she worked for eleven years at OCLC, Inc.