Informationsinfrastrukturen im Wandel. Changing ... - DINI

Andreas Degkwitz, Peter Schirmbacher 219
The incipient process of services integration at German universities is
now developing dynamically and in a variety of directions. Where implementation
has already started, one can expect projects to be completed in
three years‟ time. At the end of each project phase, the results have to be reevaluated.
The Deutsche Initiative für Netzwerkinformation and the multifarious
activities of its study groups are playing a decisive role here.
Thanks to these efforts, interdisciplinary forums for co-operative development
and information transfers are being made available to deal both with
general questions of information management and with more specific ones
relating to individual areas. As a result, DINI is performing a catalytic role
in an ongoing process of change. The present publication is a good example
of this. The following contributions describe integration projects that were
presented at workshops (run and based on concepts and plans prepared by
the DINI-AG “information management”) at the universities of Duisburg-
Essen and Cottbus in 2003, 2004 and 2005. Projects included those supported
by the funds in the DFG‟s promotion campaign entitled “Leistungszentren
für Forschungsinformation” (service centres for research information)
and others without access to this kind of support. By and large,
the contributions provide an exemplary view of the present state of service
integration at German universities. In this respect, the current publication is
representative of the on-going debate taking place at German universities.
It is surely premature to make an accurate assessment of the success and
sustainability of the current projects. The results of a two-to-three-year
phase that focused on elaborating planning concepts and implementing the
first measures showed that a considerable degree of optimisation had been
achieved. At the same time, however, problems and risks were identified
that could still jeopardise implementation in future. It was quite evident that
the individual projects were implemented in a manner that was largely
adapted to the o. k. local conditions and circumstances of the universities
concerned. Hence, we cannot assume that there is an “ideal” organisational
or structural model. Ultimately, it is less a question of organisational structures
than of optimising services. That said, however, organisational and
structural issues should not be disregarded in future, but continually reexamined
and addressed to take into account new requirements in regard to
o.k. information, communication and media supplies. The development of
e-learning and e-science, and the traditional organisation of research and