Research Librarianship In the Geosciences: Transforming to Meet Information Challenges In the Petroleum Industry

In the corporate library environment we share a similar goal with academic or other special libraries. We seek out, analyze and deliver quality information to our customers. We strive to make effective use of emerging technologies to meet our goal. Additional factors that impact the corporate library world include market dynamics, mergers and globalization.

At ExxonMobil Upstream Research Company, library research is managed in the Technical Information section of Training and Information Services. Our research librarians collaborate with geoscientists and engineers as they identify, develop, and produce petroleum resources.

Over the past eight years Technical Information has responded to meet new challenges in a variety of ways. We

--developed an “on call” reference/research model

--embedded a research librarian into a planning group

--leveraged new technology to expand our information resources, marketing and customer training efforts

--partnered with a geoscientist on a research project

--reorganized Technical Information along functional lines, streamlining processes and expanding interaction among related groups (collection management, document delivery, and marketing)

This paper will describe the evolution of our current research librarian model and how we expect to creatively address changes in the dynamic world of petroleum research.