WiLS October 2015 Vendor Partner Interview: Peter Zeimet, Innovative

At WiLS, we want to bring valuable information to our library partners, including information about the missions and big ideas of the vendors and publishers they may already do business with.  Each month, WiLS will interview a partner in order to bridge the gap and open the door to valuable collaborations.  This month, we are delighted to share insights from Peter Zeimet, Team Lead, New Sales at Innovative.

These interviews are part of a series of interviews with both WiLS library and vendor / publisher partners.  Your feedback is appreciated.  If you have any to offer on this article, or suggestions for upcoming interviews, contact Andrea Coffin at .

Tell us about your company’s background.

Our mission is to help our partner libraries succeed by supporting their goals of serving their communities and making the most of their investment. We serve all kinds of libraries – public, academic, special – including large consortia in several countries. We have been in business for over 35 years. In fact, our first product was a tool to download records from a large database of bibliographic records into a library automation system. We continue to make cataloging more efficient today with our SkyRiver product!

We are known for our staff longevity and commitment to libraries. Innovative employs more than 400 library and technology experts and more than 100 are degreed librarians. Twenty of us have been with the company for more than 20 years and members of our executive team are among them. We stay in close contact with our customers through dozens of formal development partnerships and the Innovative Users Group. Its last annual meeting drew around 1,000 library professionals from 21 countries.

Why do you, personally, choose to work with libraries?

I have a MLIS degree from UW-Madison so my interest in libraries goes way back. I have always been attracted to the power of information, and librarians are trained to navigate the various sources. We are also experts in determining the authority of the information sources. Never underestimate the power of a librarian! My interest in librarianship began during the rise of the Internet, so it was a unique and transformative time for libraries. I can still remember working in a college library when we got our first CD-ROM tower with full text articles. I thought: “Things can’t get any better than this!”

What do you like to know about the libraries you work with? What helps you better understand their needs?

Since I work in library automation I like to understand more about why a library is looking to make a change. Something is triggering their desire for change, whether we are talking about a bibliographic utility like SkyRiver or a new ILS. On top of that, understanding the big picture is always a help. Librarians say they want more features, but often the reality is they want specific functions to work really well. We do not just want more buttons on our remote control!

What big ideas are being worked on at your company? What problems are being solved?

We are building new tools around cloud architecture – the standard for the Internet. This provides greater opportunity to optimize service for browsers and mobile devices; so it is very exciting. The cloud deployment also means that libraries have less uncertainty and risk when it comes to technology. There’s no need to worry about budgeting for replacement hardware or monitoring wear and tear.

Another big idea is helping libraries make the most of their budget. Innovative has a strong legacy of reporting and analytics tools. This continues with development of solutions that allow data-driven choices about resource allocation. Our Decision Center product helps keep costs down and service-levels high.

How can librarians become partners in product or training development?

Innovative has a product development philosophy that involves using development partners. So, rather than building products in isolation then releasing them (and hoping they are well-received in the marketplace), Innovative works with a diverse group of development partner libraries that represent a cross-section of the marketplace. These users are active in the development conversation, often with weekly calls and continual use of the product. They have a fundamental say in how the product is shaped. We are always interested in considering new libraries as development partners.

Do you have anything else you’d like to share with us?

We are very excited about the partnership with WiLS and SkyRiver. Wisconsin is an important state to us and we have a long history of supporting its libraries. The partnership allows us to deepen that partnership.