Upon arriving at Bank Negara’s Knowledge
Management Centre (KMC), I was quite impressed with this spacious and
sophisticated building which is less than one year old. Its design is
influenced by the shape of the cowrie shell, as cowries were the first currency
used in Malaya – a lovely way to bridge old with new.
I wasn’t really sure what to expect to see
or learn during my visit to this KMC as I wasn’t sure what the purpose of this
agency was. Why would a bank need a library? However, after talking to the head librarian, my
understanding of the purpose and function it plays in the banking world was
much clearer. Services and resources are provided for lecturers, PhD students
and anyone interested in the field of banking. The public is also welcome to
use the facility.
Creative
ways of offering in-house professional development are utilised at the KMC.
They have monthly knowledge sharing sessions where they
discuss feedback from users to highlight ways they can improve their services.
They also spend time sharing simple articles in order to improve their command
of English. This is a strategy that I feel would work well with my team and I
hope to incorporate it into our training sessions (which definitely need to
take place on a more regular basis).
Nowadays many libraries are finding ways to
reach out to their patrons and offer flexible services, but this is not the
case with Bank Negara’s KMC. Because they have created an attractive and
inviting facility which they want patrons to come in and use, they do not
provide any remote services; users can not even check the catalogue off-site.
This surprised me, as it doesn’t fit with the ethos most libraries are trying
to create. Other libraries that I am familiar with, including my own, are offering
flexible access to the catalogue, eBooks, digital resources and online
databases. This has certainly given me something to ponder.
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