Creating Value From Innovation

Creating Value I from Innovation LAURA GORDONMURNANE

LAURA GORDON-MURNANE

BUREAU OF NATIONAL AFFAIRS

Creating Value I from Innovation S o m e corporate executives regard their libraries as black holes that just consume company resourcfs, but thanks to Laura Gordon-Murnane, executives at the Burc.ui of Niitional Aflairs (BNA) know their library actively adds valuL' to the company.

As web master for BNA's intranet, Ciordoii-Murnane creates information tools, databases, and products for the agency's editors and reporters. Toby Mclntosh. managing editor of HNAs Daily Heinnl for {ixvailiri's. says, "One of the greatest

pleasures ot working at BNA is when Laura drops into my oftice and says,'I have an idea.' Her inventiveness stems from thinking about our publications and our subscribers' need.s. A core Laura contribution has been the creation of one-stopshopping news sites, both for our reporters and subscribers."

Her greatest contribution, BNA Web Watch, grew from iDpical scans Gordon-Murnane had been compiling and sending to BNA's editors and journalists. Mclntosh thought subscribers could benefit from these scans as well. At first, he published them on the back page of the IXiily Report for L-xeaiiiiTs. Then he rcahzed that making the information available on the net would not only benefit subscribers but also make potential subscribers aware of BNA products.

Every week since 2002, BNA"^ Web Watch has tackled a current public policy issue, e.g.. Digital Software Piracy, Govci nnu'iit (Openness, and Social Security Individual Retirement Accounts. For each topic, Gordon-Murnane proinformation at BNA is .i two-way street. "When I'm reCURRENT POSITION Intranet Web vides annotated links to searching a topic for Web Watch. I talk to the expert journalMaster and Creator/Developer, Web Watch. Bureau of Nattonal relevant web-based re- ists who cover that topic to learn more about the issue," she Affairs, Wastitngton, DC stnirces from federal and says."In the course of our discussions, I will bring up library DEGREE MLtS, University of nongovernmental infor- resources and the searches we can do."

Maryland. 1998 mation sotirces: white paMarilyn Bromley, BNA's library director, says CiordonSPIN Has cycled Glacier National pers, Ckingressional hear- Murnane excels at every function: as creator (cofouiider of Park, Crete, and Ireland ings, court decisions, statis- BNA's intranet and creator of a blog for correspondents), contics. Federal Register en- sultant (for the design of new subscription web products and tries, and more. Each page then provides links to free trials of external web p.iges). producer, idea generator, adimiustrator (m BNA services relevant to that issue. charge of BNA's internal homepage),and technolof^ trainer.

CIordon-Murnane spends her work life with people who Gordon-Murnane has a picture in her otfice of one ofher value accurate information as much as she does and works heroes. Lance Armstrong.The caption reads,"ifyou are tough every day with political history in the making. There could enough, every road seemsflat."Since she hasn't yet discovered hardly be a more ideal environment for this information a professional hill she couldn't climb, her road must be very junkie and former history Ph.D. candidate. flat indeed. • 31) I LJ MOVEKS is; SHAKERS | M A R C H 1.5, 2(Kl.=i