Alison JonesLibrary and Information Manager

Meyer Vandenberg

Intranets for information management and

accessibility

Scope of this paper

? The library component of our Intranet on SharePoint? Library catalogue? Knowledge management repository? What has worked well, what has not

? Developing a search engine? Current in house project

? Building a taxonomy to provide metadata? Related to developing a search engine

Meyer Vandenberg

? 8 partners, 35 practicing certificates, 80+ staff? Key staff in knowledge management: 1 library

staff member (me), 3 IT staff, 1 training coordinator

? Commercial law firm, with broad coverage and expertise but a strong Canberra knowledge and focus.

Meyer Vandenberg’s Intranet

? SharePoint based? Free to use as I see fit to meet the needs of

my end users (don’t need HTML or other language)

? Storing information? Communicating information? Accessing information

This will be screen shot of kermit bookshelves

Why build an in-house search engine?

? No “out of the box” solution? No apparent method of browsing precedents

to suit every area of practice? Firm needed better search capability on

SharePoint anyway? Plus we had the staff expertise

MVoogle with search results showing

Mvoogle with preview screen showing

But what about…

Metadata??

Creating a taxonomy

1. Work with end users2. Use precedents already available to draft up

a taxonomy to discuss with lawyers. 3. Develop it in lawyers’ natural language4. Give room to grow the taxonomy and space

(fields) for non-standardised terminology

Projects that work…

…are collaborative – the lawyers, the librarian, the IT staff, other experts on staff all involved

…have room to respond to inevitable changes in the legal world and within the firm

Further information…

Alison Jones, Library and Information ManagerMeyer VandenbergT (02) 6279 4435

E alison.jones@meyervandenberg.com.au