Initial consideration - this document is for "public consumption" as a statement of intent for and from ICSTI as well as a policy baseline for actions.

Table of Contents

1. Mission Statement/Statement of Purpose
2. Vision Statement
3. Strategic Aims, Objectives and Key Tasks

1. Relevance
2. Enabling
3. Project Development
4. Collaboration
5. Developing the ICSTI Organisation and Membership Value

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Mission Statement/Statement of Purpose

The International Council for Scientific and Technical Information (ICSTI) fosters cooperation among all stakeholders engaged in the scientific communication process with the aim of improving the effectiveness of scientific research. It fully exploits its unique position at the intersection of scientific and technical knowledge creation, organisation, dissemination and use, to identify and act upon key challenges, without politicized or commercially driven agenda. ICSTI is a broad-based, international, not-for-profit membership organization.

Vision Statement

ICSTI will address the drivers for change and initiate programmes and projects of direct relevance to current and future scholarly communication concerns. ICSTI will actively promote and provide a forum for the exchange of experience, expertise and understanding, and create the opportunity for organizational networking and collaboration across the scientific and technical information (STI) communities.

Strategic Aims, Objectives and Key Tasks

Aim 1: Relevance

To work to a dynamic agenda of direct relevance to ICSTI stakeholders, that addresses emerging STI issues of significance and breadth, engages the spectrum of ICSTI members and transcends conflict of interest and competition.

ICSTI activities will be undertaken within the broad domain that encompasses the processes and technologies of STI creation, the organisation, retrieval, authority and preservation of STI, as well as issues related to intellectual property and access. Its priorities will be guided by the needs and demands of its diverse membership and audience constituencies which comprise research scientists, research libraries, scientific research centres, primary secondary and tertiary publishers, learned societies, governmental organizations, funding bodies and software and search engine companies.

ICSTI's principal objective during the plan period will be to focus at two levels: on generic issues related to innovation and change and on a differentiated short-list of specific areas common to the STI communities that avoid duplicating the work of others. ICSTI will position itself as a facilitator to evaluate the potential consequences of change and as the catalyst for practical responses/solutions to common problems.

Key tasks will be:

• Affirmation with stakeholders that ICSTI would deliver value by addressing innovation and change management issues that would include the impact of social networking, the semantic web, and data-centric information systems.
• Consultation with ICSTI members to agree ICSTI priority attention be given to the following, both within and across disciplines: E-Science; management and integration of publications and datasets; interface with users, their requirements and practices; research workflow tools.
• Address the changing roles and models related to access, retrieval and preservation.

Aim 2: Enabling

To draw on the collective authority and reputation of the ICSTI membership and recognize the unique value to the STI sector of ICSTI's international, cross-sectoral position, and work to establish ICSTI as a central force that enables leadership and balanced discussion of global STI initiatives and issues, leading to outcomes with consensus. ICSTI will continue actively to support standards, laws and regulations which maximize access to and use of STI information.

In order to realize this aim it will be ICSTI's objective during the plan period to determine ICSTI's role as 'broker' and agree the fora that would need to be created. It is inherent in this objective that ICSTI's most effective contribution will be at a 'targeted'and specific level.

Key tasks will be:

• To recommend the place and mix of ICSTI-led or joint projects, ICSTI-led or joint conferences or 'top-table summit' events as effective means to address interests common to various parts of the STI information chain.
• To develop ICSTI leadership using an evidence-based approach to major STI issues that will be based on the commissioning of research studies and data gathering.
• To consider ICSTI's capacity as a global coordinator to monitor national STI developments that may be replicated or adopted internationally.

Aim 3: Project Development

To initiate a new programme of solely and jointly developed, cross-cutting as well as discipline specific, project based activities, which attract the engagement of multiple organizations.

In order to achieve this goal ICSTI will set as the objective the early identification of a range of projects that inform and deliver value to existing and potential members, and contribute to the greater efficiency and understanding of scientific communication. ICSTI will commit resource to the start-up of this initiative and will seek to access the increase in cross-national project funding for science research.

Key tasks will be:

• To establish a management and support structure with project champions and modus operandi guidelines/timelines for completion of projects and delivered results.
• To build on ICSTI's science portal initiatives and its experience as principal sponsor of the WorldWideScience.org Alliance to model for the future.
• To initiate, in particular, projects which will involve the new or next generation of information users.

Aim 4: Collaboration

To identify and sustain partnerships with member and non-member organizations, which have complementary objectives and resources which collectively enable fulfilment of ICSTI's renewed statement of purpose and achievement greater than would be possible alone.

ICSTI's strategic plan objectives will centre on: firstly, developing a facilitating role that achieves coherent and improved access to financial support from national and international funding agencies for the activities of ICSTI and its partners, and; secondly, on strengthening the strategically significant 'special' relationship with CODATA, ICSU and the scientific unions on all matters relating to information and data.

Key tasks will be:

• Proactively seek out publisher, library and user organizations and communities which undertake activities consistent with ICSTI's strategic priorities.
• Establish and reinforce connections with the main national/international groups which fund scientific research.
• Explore the benefits of joint presentation of conferences with other organizations to extend reach, raise profile, and deliver tangible outcomes to members more cost-effectively.
• With ICSU and CODATA develop close working relationships with practising research scientists, provide meaningful access to science decision-makers, and position ICSTI at the forefront of changes in information seeking, sharing, and usage behaviours of research scientists. Specifically pursue joint projects and joint approaches to funding sources.

Aim 5: Developing the ICSTI Organisation and Membership Value

In order to fulfil the aims of the organisation and in particular to be of significantly greater value to stakeholders, ICSTI is determined to raise its profile, to streamline its management structures and decision making processes, to be more outward-looking and responsive, and to introduce effective channels of communication with members.

ICSTI will strive to achieve the following principal objectives during the early phases of the plan period:

A. Develop and implement a communication strategy that increases both the visibility of ICSTI and awareness of ICSTI's influential leadership role across the STI communities; and dimensionally improves information flow to members and potential members to deliver a higher base level of membership value.

Key tasks will be:

• To develop the use of web technologies to enable collaborative exchange and participation.
• To agree and provide the most appropriate range of member information services drawn from: regular bulletins/news updates and alerts, peer-to-peer member exchange space, regular 'critical issue' communiqués customized to member interests, facilitated strategic 'brainstorm' events.
• To commit marketing investment to promote ICSTI's evolving agenda, its projects and its conferences.
• To create a value proposition that will drive the expansion of ICSTI's membership both by country and by type. Attention will focus on growing the membership of the individual scientific unions, attracting national academies and learned societies, re-connecting with publishers, and adding 'new generation' information companies.
• To ensure that the membership classification and dues structure will encourage membership retention and growth.

B. Review and if necessary reform the governance of ICSTI to enable more effective leadership and responsive management, speedier and more transparent decision making, and timely succession planning. Also to review and simplify committee structures and meeting formats.

Key tasks will be:

• To define an enhanced role for the Executive Board that requires more engaged participation in the governance and direction of ICSTI.
• To consider the appointment of an Executive Director with the current level of Secretariat support.
• " To reduce standing committees to a minimum, complemented by task and timeline specific working groups coordinated by the TACC.

C. Ensure that ICSTI's future is financially robust by seeking proactively to supplement membership income. This to be achieved largely through the collaboration and project development programmes.