Stephen Phillips studied Librarianship and History at the College of Librarianship Wales, joining the Information Profession in 1987. Stephen has held a number of positions at various organisations, including Charter plc, Merck Inc, Grant Thornton and KPMG. In 1994, he joined Morgan Stanley as a senior researcher; in 2000, he was appointed Global Head of Business Information Services (BIS). Since then, he has restructured the group and engaged in a range of strategies to develop the BIS operation and raise its profile within Morgan Stanley.
He has led or supported a number of high profile initiatives: empowering end users with a range of information products and tools; deploying sector specialisation within the BIS teams; embedding specialist research staff into the business; offshoring and outsourcing aspects of the function; improving the transparency and accountability of the function; leveraging a range of technologies to develop or improve service provision. Stephen has written, or contributed to several articles in the professional press. He has given a number of presentations and facilitated workshops at many conferences and events, including Online Information 2008 and 2009 and the 2009 and 2011 Perfect Information conferences.
Liz Blankson-Hemans is a strategic marketing professional and information management expert. Most recently, she was Director of Marketing for Dialog, with oversight for strategic planning and implementation of marketing initiatives for the EMEA/AP region.
Prior to Dialog, she was manager of the Central Information Services at Clifford Chance, the international law firm, where she was responsible for providing a wide range of resources and services, including managing vendor supply relationships and contract negotiation, research and reference services as well as resource and systems management.
Since joining SLA in 1997, she has served her association at various levels, local and international. She is currently serving on the SLA Board of Directors at Chapter Cabinet level, and also been a member of several committees including the Nominating Committee, the DLDP Committee, and the Public Relations Advisory Council. Additionally, she has volunteered in several capacities on the SLA Europe board, including Membership Secretary, Diversity Chair and Early Careers Committee, and was President of the Chapter in 2004-2005. She is now Public Relations Chair for the Chapter.
Marie Grace Cannon gained her undergraduate degree in Philosophy and Literature from Warwick University in 2010, before beginning her career in librarianship as a graduate trainee for Norton Rose LLP. Following her traineeship Marie studied at UCL, completing her MA in Library and Information Studies in November 2012. While studying, Marie ventured in to the academic sector through volunteering at Senate House Library and working at the London Business School. It was also during this time that she first got involved with the SLA when she was awarded the SLA Early Career Conference Award co-sponsored by the Legal Division, and attended the annual conference in Chicago in 2012.
Since then she has become a board member and blog editor for SLA Europe, and a member of the Legal Division. Marie is currently enjoying her first professional post as an Information Officer at Trowers & Hamlins LLP, and has been confirmed as a speaker on the subject of new professionals for the BIALL conference in Glasgow 2013. Marie is particularly interested in social media, open access and the development of new professionals, and regularly writes on these issues at her blog, and can be found on Twitter as @mariegcannon
Darron Chapman has worked with TFPL since January 1990. During this time he ensured that TFPL’s recruitment business was part of a fully integrated portfolio of services provided by TFPL for all sectors of the knowledge and information world in the UK and overseas. This has given him a broad and unique view of developments in the information and business world. As an established member of the executive team his extensive knowledge of the information world and his management responsibilities has helped determine the direction of the company.
Darron has played an active role in TFPL’s thought leadership programmes such as ebic and tfpl connect. He has championed and directed a variety of research projects focusing on skills and emerging knowledge and information roles. He launched the first recruitment service dedicated to knowledge management. Post acquisition by the the IDOX Group he became Managing Director of TFPL Ltd and over saw the merger in 2009 of Intelligent Resources into TFPL Recruitment now known as TFPL Intelligent Resources.
Géraldine Clément-Stoneham grew up in Switzerland. After she obtained her MA in Musicology and English from the University of Geneva, she decided to move to London to pursue her studies at UCL where she completed an MA in Library and Information Studies. She finally set her mind on a career in the City. After 11 years spent between investment banks and a large international law firm, Geraldine is currently the Corporate Knowledge and Information Manager at the Medical Research Council.
Her experience covers a wide range of activities including knowledge and information management, competitive intelligence, legal and commercial research, information systems architecture, information governance, open access publishing, team coaching and training.
Geraldine speaks regularly at conferences and is a strong advocate of continuous professional development. She writes about her experience in her blog, Knowledge Ready and shares via Twitter @geraldinecs. In her spare time, she likes to go back to her first love, music, and performs regularly in concerts around London.
John Coll is Head of Access and Enquiries at the National Library of Scotland in Edinburgh. He manages all aspects of access including reading room services and enquiries as well as remote access to the Library’s innovative licensed digital content. He also has responsibility for the Visitor centre and SCOTBIS (the Scottish Business Information Service).John graduated from University College Dublin with a degree in history and politics and a post-graduate diploma in Library and Information Studies from the College of Librarianship Wales. He has over 25 years experience in information provision and has worked in a variety of other organisations including legal libraries and an investment bank. He has a strong interest in resource discovery and the application of technology to improve customer service.
Neil Infield is Manager of the Business & IP Centre at the British Library. He manages a team of 12 business and intellectual property reference experts, providing information and advice to inventors, business start-ups and entrepreneurs. In his three years at The British Library Neil has introduced a number of innovations, including a range of workshops and one-to-one business advice sessions, as well as free downloading to memory sticks. He has spoken widely on innovation in business information, including at Online Information 2007 in Sydney, and Online Information 2008 in London.
Prior to The British Library Neil was manager of Business Information Services at Hermes Pensions Management in the City of London. He was responsible for market data services, creating their website and intranet, as well as creating and editing their staff newsletter. He has been active in SLA for nearly 20 years, including President of SLA Europe in 2003, In 2006 he was made a fellow of the association. In the few hours of spare time that his commuting and two teenage children allow Neil enjoys gardening and tennis. He recently succumbed to a mid-life crisis and bought a Kawasaki KR1-S motorbike.
Meghan Jones is the Assistant Systems Librarian at the University of Brighton. As a librarian, she has worked in the corporate, academic, health and legal sectors and has a particular interest in technology and social media in libraries. She is an Open Source in Libraries advocate and can be found on twitter as @barbaragordon.
Meghan graduated from City University in 2009 with a MSc. in Library and Information Studies. She currently chairs the Digital Communications group.
John Latham was Director of the Information Center at the Special Libraries Association from 1995 to 2009. John graduated from The Catholic University of America with a Masters in Library and Information Science and MA in History in May 1995 and taught courses on Financial Management of Information Services for the University of Toronto and the University of Maryland Masters in Information Management degree. Worked as a Chartered Accountant in UK for 27 years ending up as a Managing Partner of a large provincial firm of Chartered Accountants in Norfolk, England.
Penny Leach is an procurement specialist in the management of electronic information resources. A qualified librarian, Penny started her career in academic libraries including Durham University, King’s College London and the Institute of Advanced Legal Studies. At an early stage she transitioned in to commercial legal and banking information services, as Vice-Director at McKenna & Co. (now CMS Cameron McKenna) and then Business Manager at Goldman Sachs International . After a stint in the media intelligence sector as Head of Content at Gorkana, Penny is currently managing vendor relations for Business Information Services at the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
Lyndsay Rees-Jones is a ‘special’ librarian by experience, spending much of her practitioner career as a solo. She worked in engineering and utilities before joining CILIP as an Advisor initially focused on support for workplace librarians. Her current role is running the Membership Support Unit with two colleagues, including support for Branch and Group activists, and tools to help members in their careers and to self-advocate.
She began her networking ‘career’ as a student in Manchester, becoming the student representative on CILIP’s (then the Library Association) regional branch. Realising that professional networking was a powerful way of adding personal and professional value, Lyndsay has been an active contributor inside and outside the information profession. Including UKSG (1990 to 2010); WiM (a special interest group of the Chartered Management Institute); and SLA (which she joined in 1989). There is always so much to learn and cross-collaboration within and without professional domains can be mutually beneficial.
Bethan Ruddock graduated from MMU with an MA in Library and Information Management in September 2008, following a Graduate Traineeship at the John Rylands Library at the University of Manchester. She is currently Content Development Officer, Library and Archival Services at Mimas at the University of Manchester.
Bethan writes for the Copac Development blog and the Archives Hub blog, and has recently started her own professional blog. She has also co-authored a number of articles about Copac, and a journal article based on her dissertation (How UK academic libraries choose federated search engines) will be appearing in the near future.
Her association with SLA began in 2009, when she was one of the Early Career Award winners, selected to attend the conference in Washington. She now looks forward to the chance to engage with other new professionals, and encourage them to get involved with the work of SLA and SLA Europe. She is also a member of CILIP, and has recently completed her Chartership.
Marie-Madeleine Salmon is Head of Information at Publicis in Paris, in France. She is a specialist of marketing and communications devoted to libraries. She is involved in different librarians associations: SLA and ADBS in France, with an interest in promoting international exchanges between colleagues, shared experience and promotion of library careers.
For that purpose, at SLA she initiated and coordinated the ELT (European librarians Theater) at Online Information Exhibition in London, connecting participants from different countries. The objectives are to transform the ELT in a dedicated welcoming place for international and european networking, share and exchange contacts and experiences between different countries concerning libraries, librarians in Europe and outside and share about future of this profession.
Marie-Madeleine has a Masters in Marketing at Dauphine Paris University, and degree in Information Sciences. Her career began in the public sector at the French Ministry of Culture and Development, followed by a number of roles as Head of Information in different advertising agencies. The major themes of her research are: marketing libraries, communication tools for libraries and librarians, techniques of promotion for libraries and social media marketing for libraries. In 2006, Marie-Madeleine received the European Information Professional of the year award from SLA Europe.
Sam Wiggins works for Norton Rose as an Information Officer, based in their London office. Prior to his current role, Sam completed his BA in History at Cambridge University before taking up a Library Assistant position with Norton Rose in 2009. The following year he completed his MA in Librarianship at Sheffield University and returned to the legal sector.
Sam’s involvement with SLA began when he won an Early Career Conference Award to attend the 2011 SLA conference in Philadelphia, and has continued through his role as a member of the Events Committee, the SLA Europe Board and the SLA Legal Division. In his spare time, Sam blogs about a wide range of library and information issues, helps to run #UKLibChat discussions every month via Twitter, and has recently become a chartered librarian.
Simon Barron is a professional librarian specialising in e-resources and digital libraries. He is currently Business Analyst on the Qatar Digitisation Project at the British Library.
Simon graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University with an MA in Library and Information Management in 2010 and has since worked in a variety of libraries from academic libraries and public libraries to a prison library and an Army library. He also presents papers at conferences across the UK and has written articles for publication in CILIP Update, The Guardian’s Comment is Free, ORG Zine, and other serials. He regularly blogs on LIS issues and philosophy at Undaimonia and tweets as @SimonXIX.
Simon got involved with SLA after winning the Science-Technology Division’s Early Career Conference Award in 2012 and attending the SLA Conference in Chicago. As Co-Chair of the Early Careers committee, Simon hopes to offer other new professionals the same awards opportunities from which he has benefitted.
