NISO to Undertake Gap Analysis of ERM-related Data and Standards

New Working Group to Report Results and Recommendations for Next Steps

Baltimore, MD - July 1, 2009 - NISO is pleased to announce the approval of a new work item to focus on Electronic Resource Management (ERM) Data Standards Review. The proposal for this new work was reviewed and approved by NISO's Business Information Topic Committee which will now create a working group to undertake a review and gap analysis of ERM-related data and standards. Following the analysis, the working group will make recommendations regarding the future of the ERMI data dictionary within the context of the broader electronic resource management landscape, to be delivered in a report to the Business Information Topic Committee and made publicly available.

This project is an outgrowth of the Digital Library Federation's Electronic Resource Management Initiative (ERMI), first begun in 2002. A second phase of the Initiative was completed in late 2008. In follow-up discussions between Todd Carpenter, NISO's Managing Director, and Peter Brantley, Executive Director of DLF, regarding the future of ERMI, NISO agreed to perform a needs assessment with respect to ERMI and broader ERM-related data needs and standards, and to assume any appropriate maintenance responsibilities. A subgroup of NISO's Business Information Topic Committee, comprised of committee members Tim Jewell (Director, Information Resources and Scholarly Communication, University of Washington Libraries) and Ivy Anderson (Director of Collections, California Digital Library), was tasked with surveying this landscape to determine what, if any, further steps should be undertaken by NISO. This new project is an outcome of the ERMI landscape review and proposes next steps in this area. "This is the perfect time for an ERM data standards review-not only will it provide a much-needed assessment of the current state, but it will allow a formal mechanism for hearing from the different communities on where clarification, improvement, or further investigation is needed," commented Topic Committee co-chair Kathleen Folger (Senior Associate Librarian, University of Michigan Library). Added co-chair Helen Szigeti (Business Development Manager, HighWire Press, Stanford University), "This is key if we are going to accurately identify how NISO can best assist with next steps in this area of business information development work."

The analysis will begin with a review of the ERMI data dictionary as it presently exists, and a mapping of ERMI data elements to those within relevant standards-related projects (e.g., CORE, SUSHI, ONIX-PL, etc.). Vendors, libraries using ERM systems, and other identified stakeholders will then be consulted via surveys and/or more in-depth interviews to solicit additional feedback.