Organization

As a "federation," DLF is a consortium intended to have a limited central organization. DLF has a structure with essentially five components: the Office of the Executive Director, the Board of Trustees, the Executive Committee, DLF initiatives, and the DLF Forum.

Office of the Executive Director

The office consists of the Executive Director, a small support staff, and the various support structures that CLIR provides. It is responsible for setting the goals and direction of the Federation, managing the program activities and finances of the DLF, supporting information sharing amongst the DLF members, communicating about the DLF and its activities to the broader community, establishing external alliances and recruiting new partners.

Board of Trustees

The Board of Trustees is the governing body of the DLF. It meets two times a year and provides oversight for the DLF program activity and initiatives. The Board consists of the Directors of those institutions participating as Strategic Partners. It also includes the President of the Council on Library and Information Resources and, ex officio, the Executive Director of the DLF. Representatives of allied institutions participate in the Board with a voice but no vote.

Executive committee

The Executive Committee of the DLF acts as a bridge between the Board, the DLF Executive Director, and CLIR, as appropriate. It drafts Bylaws when needed, for the consideration of the Board; it advises the Board on issues such as the strategic plan, DLF program direction, membership criteria and issues, and dues and fees; it has authority for setting meeting agendas for DLF, and for meetings of the Board; and it is responsible for DLF governance between meetings of the Board.

Advisory groups

Advisory groups may be convened by the Executive Director to advise on program development in key areas. They comprise experts drawn from DLF institutions and help to articulate and prioritize need for research, development, and information sharing within those areas. They may also take a role in initiating consulting on and reviewing the work conducted by any DLF initiatives undertaken within those areas and communicating their accomplishments to DLF members and a wider audience. Advisory groups may be established in areas that reflect the members' interests, for example, in:

Digital library architectures, systems, and services;
Standards and best practices;
Digital collections development;
Digital preservation;
Use, users, user support, and user services; and
the digital library's changing institutional roles and responsibilities.

DLF initiatives

DLF initiatives address the specific research, development, or information-sharing needs that are identified by the advisory groups or by the membership at large. Typically, they comprise a small number of digital library practitioners who collaborate as a means of addressing key challenges that each confronts within his or her own institution. Although task forces are expected to sustain their work financially, the DLF may support initial planning activities and the effort that is required to review, evaluate, and disseminate the results of their efforts.

DLF Forums

Forums are convened periodically and include a number of digital library practitioners from each of the member institutions. They serve as meeting places, market places, and congresses. As meeting places they provide an opportunity for the DLF Board, advisory groups, initiatives to conduct their business and to present their work to the broader membership. As market places, they provide an opportunity for member organizations to share experiences and practices with one another and in this respect support a broader level of information sharing between professional staff. As congresses, Forums provide an opportunity for the DLF to continually review and assess its programs and its progress with input from the broader membership community.

For further information, please consult the following pages:

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