SIM faculty, staff, and students:
IM Public Lecture: Janet Burt-Gerrans (Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner for Nova Scotia)
The Information Management Public Lectures give attention to exciting advances in research and professional practice. The topics are diverse reflecting the importance and global extent of Information Management in today’s society. The lectures are open to all members of the Dalhousie campus and surrounding community. Click here for the full schedule. We encourage you to attend in person, but if that is not possible you can access a recording on our website following the lecture. Live streaming is not currently available.
1994 Called – It Wants its FOI Law Back: Things Nova Scotians Should Know About Their Right to Know
Janet Burt-Gerrans
Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner for Nova Scotia
Lecture Details
Tuesday, September 25th, 2018
12:00pm
Weldon Law Building, Room 104
6061 University Ave
Co-sponsored with Dalhousie Libraries.
Abstract: Almost 25 years have now passed since Nova Scotia’s access to information law was proclaimed. Our law is badly outdated and no longer up to the task. September 28 is Right to Know Day around the world. What better time to discuss the shortcomings of our law, recommendations for improvement and things citizens need to know to ensure that they continue to have a robust and meaningful right to access government information. Join the staff of the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner for a lively discussion of big data, access martyrs, duty to document and other access problems and solutions.
Biography: Janet Burt-Gerrans, BA, JD is a legal professional with multi-sector public administration experience spanning roles in government consulting, labour relations, and public service delivery. She is a Senior Investigator with the Information and Privacy Commissioner’s Office responsible for leading investigations and oversight activities.
IM Public Lecture: Jamal Shahrabi (Amirkabir University of Technology)
The Information Management Public Lectures give attention to exciting advances in research and professional practice. The topics are diverse reflecting the importance and global extent of Information Management in today’s society. The lectures are open to all members of the Dalhousie campus and surrounding community. Click here for the full schedule.
Big Data Analytics and Artificial Intelligence Techniques to make Better Management Systems (Jamal Shahrabi)
Jamal Shahrabi
Amirkabir University of Technology, Iran
Lecture Details
Thursday, September 13th, 2018
1:30pm
Room 5053, Kenneth C. Rowe Management Building
6100 University Ave
Abstract: Big data analytics is the process of examining large and varied data sets to discover hidden patterns, unknown correlations, market trends, customer knowledge and other useful information that can help organizations make more-informed business decisions. All industries now are facing with a large amount of data and complex management issues with a much more competition than before. The most important benefits of big data analytics compare to classical analytical methods are speed and efficiency. Few years ago a business would have gathered data, run traditional analytics and provided information that could be used for future decisions, today that business can identify insights for immediate decisions by smart management systems. Meanwhile all organizations and industries are involving with a broad range of decision making criteria and multiple different internal goals and targets that make decision taking difficult. In this situation classical analytical methods do not work anymore and Multi Agent Systems (MAS) are needed. Multi Agent Ensemble Learning Systems are used in a variety of domains for making collaborative smart decision support systems by discovering a solution by agents on their own, using learning. The most important part of the problem is how the agents will learn independently and then how they will cooperate to establish the common task.
Biography: Dr. Jamal Shahrabi received his PhD from Dalhousie University. He is a faculty member of Industrial Engineering and Management Systems faculty at Amirkabir University of Technology (AUT). His research interests lie at the intersection of data science (particularly data analysis, artificial intelligence, machine learning & data mining) and Management and Marketing (particularly smart management, operations management, management information systems, business intelligence, customer knowledge discovery, customer relationship management & smart marketing,). His research contributions has been to develop the efficient machine learning and data mining models to solve the real management and marketing problems by designing smart models and systems for smart decision making and smart management. He has been succeed to make a synergy of university and industry to solve the industry management problems and provide the opportunity of involvement of students in real industry issues. He has managed 9 big size industry projects so far. He has published two book chapters, 13 books in Persian, 136 conference papers & 34 outstanding ISI journal papers with 865 Citations So far. Graduating 73 Master and 5 PhD students under his supervision and teaching several different bachelor, master and PhD courses in the field of management and marketing is his honor.
Cassandra Larose: Information Without Borders 2018
Re-posted from CEGE Connection (the Centre for Executive & Graduate Education blog):
Dalhousie’s 13th annual student-run Information Without Borders Conference (IWB) will be held on Tuesday, February 12th, 2019. IWB conferences are recognized for their relevant, progressive and thought-provoking themes aimed at professionals in the field of information management. Past conferences have focused on topics such as Digital Governance, Managing Health Information, and Climate Change Adaptation. An added incentive to attend: the 2019 IWB Conference is being held during the year that the School of Information Management is celebrating SIM50.
In a recent virtual interview, CEGE Connection spoke with Cassandra Larose, the IWB 2019 Co-Chair, to discover what is being planned for IWB 2019.
Cassandra Larose:
Plans for the 2019 IWB Conference are well underway. Our 2019 theme is Access to Information, which is relevant within our world of advanced technology. For example, access is the topic of a recent media discussion in Nova Scotia. Access to information applies to everyone, not only corporations or governmental agencies. Who has access to information, including personal information? How do we obtain and make use of the information that is available? What information should be accessible? Or protected? What policies should be in place to facilitate the transfer of knowledge and information?
We are excited about the conversations that will come out of this conference and invite anyone interested to consider attending. We encourage you to connect with us over our social media venues for updates in the coming weeks: @IWB_Conference on Twitter and @iwbconference on Facebook. Our website is iwbconference.ca. Registration information and speaker announcements will be coming Fall 2018.
A special message from SIM students on the executive committee: We want to hear from you! Email iwb@dal.ca with questions or suggestions.
Congrats to the SIM Class of 2018!
From SIM Director, Dr. Sandra Toze: The School of Information Management would like to congratulate all of our newest MLIS & MIM graduates! It was an eventful few days with a reception hosted by the Faculty of Management Monday night, followed by our breakfast and awards ceremony Tuesday, and finally the formal convocation ceremony and reception that afternoon. As was highlighted at our morning event, our students are impressive, and it was wonderful to meet and celebrate your achievements with your friends and families. We extend our best wishes to those graduates who were not able to attend.
To celebrate Dal’s 200th anniversary all graduates received a Dal 200 pin, and a beautiful commemorative book.
We encourage you to read this wonderful profile about our MLIS graduate Brian Lesser produced by Nicole Maunsell in the Dean’s Office, Faculty of Management.
We welcome all our new graduates to the SIM alumni family, look forward to hearing about your successes and supporting you in your ongoing careers. Please continue to communicate with us via LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter (@dalsimnews), and this blog. You are all now members of our SIM Associated Alumni, and we look forward to seeing you at Alumni events.
Special thanks also to our Award sponsors including APLA, NSLA, SLA, the Vagianos and Harrison families and our alumni. And special congratulations to the 2018 convocation award winners (see full list below).
Well done, Class of 2018. We are very proud of all of you!
– Dr. Sandra Toze
2018 SIM Convocation Award Winners
Anne Galler Award (Special Libraries Association, Eastern Canada Chapter): Rebecca Shaw
Atlantic Provinces Library Association Award: Margaret Vail
MLIS Director’s Award: Alison Brown
MIM Director’s Award: Sean Hofstetter
Information Technology Leadership Award: Alicia Whidden
SIM Leadership Award: Lindsay Warner
Louis Vagianos Medal: Brian Lesser
Nova Scotia Library Association (NSLA) / SIM Graduate Award: Christine Cousins & Adrienne Colborne
SIM Research Award (MLIS): Alison Brown
SIM Research Award (MIM): JoAnne Akerboom & Monty Price
SIMSA Outstanding Service Award: Rebekah Prette
Beta Phi Mu Candidates: Alison Brown, Brian Lesser, Kim Mortimer, Rebekah Prette, & Rebecca Shaw
Call for Participation: 2018 International Conference on Knowledge Management
SIM is a sponsor of this event. Visit the ICKM website for full details.
14th International Conference on Knowledge Management
November 9th – 10th, Vancouver, Canada
CALL FOR PAPERS & PARTICIPATION
Knowledge Management seeks to spark action and change, moving beyond the end goals of collection and storage in previous iterations of practice and theory in the field. This separates KM from many other related fields. Even when focusing attention on codification and the elements that enable action, the end goal is always what that codification allows organizations and systems to do. The 14th annual International Conference on Knowledge Management seeks research and practice into work with knowledge that sparks action, decision making, change, etc. It will mark an important moment for reflection and advancement in the field. All topics are welcome, but topics that specifically address this action element are especially welcome.
ICKM provides academics, researchers, developers, practitioners, Information Professionals, and users from all over the world a forum for discussion and exchange of ideas concerning theoretical and practical aspects of information and Knowledge Management.
ICKM has a proven track record of success with the first conference held in Singapore in 2004, subsequent conferences have been held in Charlotte, North Carolina 2005; Greenwich, London 2006; Vienna, Austria 2007; Columbus, Ohio 2008; Hong Kong 2009; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 2010; Johannesburg, South Africa 2012; Montreal, Canada 2013; Antalya, Turkey 2014; Osaka, Japan 2015; Vienna, Austria in 2016; Dallas, Texas in 2017. ICKM 2018 will be held jointly with ASIS&T 81st Annual Meeting in Vancouver, Canada.
SUBMISSION INFORMATION
All submissions will undergo blind peer review. Submissions should be labeled under one of the following types:
- Research Papers. This is to present quality state-of-the-art research in all related KM areas; for researchers with interest in KM and related areas this is a primary citation source. Submissions should not exceed 20 pages. These papers can be in many different formats to include: integrative literature reviews, theories/frameworks, case studies, the broad spectrum of quantitative and qualitative studies.
- Experience Reports. This is for developers or users of KM systems having interesting evidence to share about a practical KM approach, product, solution, or application. Submissions should not exceed 15 pages.
- Capacity Building Workshops. This come from trainers, teachers, or facilitators having done work of survey or wanting to share in-depth educational knowledge with a broad audience. The education track is an excellent opportunity to share tutorial and methodological findings. The anticipated audience will consist of additional interested people from industry. Submissions should not exceed 5 pages plus demonstrational material. Each contribution should include empirical application evidence.
- Best Practice Demo or Forum. This is for practical work that can be presented through hands-on-experience or presentations to receive focused feedback. It is an opportunity to show KM cases, discuss and receive feedback from all participants. Submissions should not exceed one page plus technical installation requirements (if any).
- Gong Show Contributions. This will consist of very short presentations about visionary and outrageous ideas towards the next generation of KM. The audience will vote for the best idea. If you have far-reaching idea about either technology or novel use this is your opportunity to share, get feedback, and even win an award. The submission required is a 5-page extended abstract indicating the originality of the approach.
- Young Researcher Networking Event Contributions: Master or PhD students in one of the above mentioned areas, either in early stage or late stage, are encouraged to share ideas with peers and receive feedback in a relaxed atmosphere with senior people from research and development communities. Supervisors of master or PhD students are kindly asked to encourage their respective student participation. The submission required is just a one page abstract reflecting the theme and status of the work.
- Works-in-progress posters. This is for research or practice in early stages looking to solicit feedback and spark discussion. Submission should include an extended abstract (not to exceed 1,000 words).
Submission Deadlines:
- The deadline for research paper submission is June 15, 2018.
- The deadline for all other submissions is July 15, 2018.
Submit Online at: The Conftool submission site is available here: https://www.conftool.com/asist2018
Contact: ickmconference@gmail.com
For Further Information go to https://www.asist.org/events/ickm/
Fiona Black Retirement Celebration (May 23rd)
It is with mixed emotions that I announce Fiona Black’s retirement from Dalhousie University on June 30.
Fiona came to Dalhousie in 2001 as an Assistant Professor in the School of Library and Information Studies, and later became the Director of the School of Information Management, which began her distinguished career in academic leadership. Fiona served as Associate Dean (External Programs) as well as Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Management before joining the Office of the Provost in 2012 and being appointed Associate Vice-President Academic in 2013.
Please join us on May 23, 3:30 – 5:00 p.m. in the University Club Pub to wish Fiona well, to celebrate her many contributions to Dalhousie University, and to thank her for 17 years of sharing with us her passion for learning and teaching – Carolyn Watters, Provost
There will be a SIM celebration in future. Stay tuned!
Management Research Day (May 9th)
Rebekah Prette Receives Faculty Leadership Award
On March 7th, 2018 the 7th annual Dalhousie Student Impact Awards gala was held. The Dalhousie IMPACT Awards is an annual event hosted by the Dalhousie Student Union in collaboration with Dalhousie University, to recognize outstanding individuals and student groups that impact our community.
![Dr. Sylvain Charlebois (Dean, Faculty of Management) & Rebekah Prette [credit: S. Toze]](https://blogs.dal.ca/sim/files/2018/04/IMPACT_Rebekah-Prette.png)
Rebekah Prette, MLIS student and current Chair of the School of Information Management Student Association (SIMSA) received the Faculty of Management Leadership Award.
Faculty Leadership awards are given “to a student in good academic standing in each Dalhousie faculty. These students exemplify the highest level of passion for their discipline, take initiative in creating new opportunities, and encourage their peers to engage in faculty initiatives. Faculty Leadership Award winners positively impact other students in their faculty and the reputation of their faculty at Dalhousie outside of the classroom.”
Read the full recap of the gala and award winners here.
Congrats Rebekah!
[Photo: Dr. Sylvain Charlebois (Dean, Faculty of Management); Rebekah Prette. Credit: S. Toze]
Research Bootcamp for RAs, TAs, and grad students
For the 4th year, the Dalhousie Libraries is offering Research Bootcamp, a suite of sessions designed for teaching and research assistants and graduate students. If you or someone you know could benefit from developing effective and efficient information management techniques and literature search skills to support research endeavors, please share this information with them.Sessions will run from May 14–June 6 and will cover: library basics; literature reviews (searching and writing); citation tools; writing abstracts & grant proposals; copyright, open access & predatory publishers; legal resources; business and competitive intelligence resources, PubMed and other health sciences databases; humanities resources; Canadian data and stats; grey literature; research data management; Excel; data visualization; conference posters. Complete session list and descriptions are available at http://dal.ca.libguides.com/ResearchBootcamp/2018/Schedule
Faculty can recommend the workshops to their RAs/TAs or register on their behalf. Participants can attend most sessions in-person in Halifax (various Halifax Campus locations) or via video conferencing at the Agricultural Campus or DMNB.
Event website, including schedule, session descriptions, FAQs http://dal.ca.libguides.com/ResearchBootcamp
Register by May 7 at https://dallibrariesresearchbootcamp2018.eventbrite.com/