The past is a foreign country: transforming a bibliographic services team from copy cataloguers to metadata creators

In 2010 LSE's Bibliographic Services team took on the responsibility of metadata creation for the Institutional Repository. This paper outlines the background to this decision and the preparation and practicalities involved in redefining our workflows. Reflections are made on the successes and learning points of managing change and updating skillsets to make a traditional Bibliographic Services team relevant to the 21st century cataloguing environment. In conclusion the paper considers how Bibliographic Services can remain at the heart of the Library's mission to support the University, particularly through the REF, and the future ways in which we hope to remain critical to the successful functioning of the Library, thereby showing our value not only within the Library but to the University as a whole.