As the leading provider of library management solutions in the UK and Ireland, Talis is hosting one of the UKs largest events open to all public and academic libraries Talis Insight. Held on the 6th-7th November at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole, Talis Insight is a free, two day conference open to every library, regardless of their library management system.

Open to all public and academic libraries, Talis Insight promises to provide attendees with something different. It will offer a vibrant mix of thought provoking sessions from influential speakers, plus the opportunity to discuss your hot topics with peers.

Whether you have systems from Civica, DS, Ex Libris, Infor, Innovative, Talis or SirsiDynix, Talis Insight is relevant for you.

This year we have assembled a great list of keynote speakers, sessions and exhibitors. For public libraries, these include presentations from Roy Clare CBE, the recently appointed Chief Executive of the MLA and Tony Durcan, the President of the Society of Chief Librarians. Other sessions include a presentation on the results of the recent CILIP backed Public Library survey by Ken Chad, a Young Librarians panel chaired by Frances Hendrix, and a thought provoking session with Tim Coates.

For academic libraries, we welcome Tony Hey, Microsofts Vice President of Technical Computing who will present on the changing role of scholarly communication. Marshall Breeding from Vanderbilt University in the United States, a worldwide authority on library automation, will present about open systems, supplier partnerships and delivering next generation library services. Other thought provoking sessions include Les Watson (Freelance Educational Adviser), Peter Godwin (The University of Bedfordshire) and Antony Brewerton (The University of Warwick) who will focus on new ways to connect and interact with students. Key representatives from JANET (UK), JISC and Eduserv will also be presenting across the two days.

The event will open with a challenging session entitled What will 'Businesslike' mean when business isn't like business anymore? from Euan Semple, former Head of Knowledge Management at the BBC. The full conference programme is now available online.

Dave Errington, Chief Executive, Talis commented We encourage and support business and technology innovation within all libraries. Through hosted events, open forums, blogging, podcasting and magazines, we stimulate conversations to share ideas and exchange best practice between library professionals. The Talis Insight Conference plays a major part in this.

Talis Insight is set to provide senior executives, managers and practitioners with Inspiration for Change. Whether libraries have systems from Civica, DS, Ex Libris, Infor, Innovative, Talis or SirsiDynix, Talis Insight is relevant. Talis Insight brings together key speakers and peers to debate real challenges facing libraries today, and share ideas for future innovation.

Complemented with an exhibitor showcase where Talis and partner organisations will be demonstrating new product developments that will help libraries satisfy evolving needs of citizens and students. Exhibitors include Insight Media, Salford Software, Telepen, BDS, 2CQR, CILIP, D-Tech, Lorensbergs, Talkingtech and QAS.