Meet Karen Farley! Karen joined the Serials Solutions team in February of 2008. She holds an MLIS from the University of Missouri, Columbia and has worked in many roles within the library industry. Karen works as a part of the technology team supporting the existing Serials Solutions management products: The Client Center, 360 Counter, 360 Resource Manager, and UlrichsWeb. As a Program Manager Karen works with product managers and the technology team to turn service features from ideas to reality.
What is your professional background?
I attended library school at the University of Missouri-Columbia and immediately began my library career with school libraries. I have worked as both an elementary school librarian and a high school librarian. I began my career with Serials Solutions in 2008 after ProQuest purchased WebFeat.
What do you like most about working for Serials Solutions?
The people! The staff at Serials Solutions is committed to libraries and the development of tools and products to support the mission of libraries. We have a fantastically committed team.
What do you find most exciting about the future of the library?
The innovative ways libraries are finding to reach the patron is most exciting to me. As technology and society change, libraries are learning to adapt and adopt new technologies. I was recently at a party where someone described to me with utter joy, their discovery of downloadable books available at the library. Supporting new technologies helps to keep libraries relevant.
Who is your favorite author?
Oh come on, that’s like choosing a favorite child.
Do you have a favorite library? If so, what is it?
My favorite library is the Stanislaus County Library in Modesto, CA. It’s where I got my first library card and where I first fell in love with books, reading, and libraries. In the summers the library was a welcome respite from the heat. My mom would take my brother and me to the library to listen to storytelling, then we would select our books to check-out and then we would stop at the Snow White Drive-In for soft-serve ice cream on the way home.
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