The business aims of eight national libraries in digital library co‐operation : A study carried out for the business plan of The European Library (TEL) project

Purpose – To describe the process and results of the business‐planning workpackage of The European Library (TEL) project, in which eight national libraries collaborated on a joint approach to access to their digital libraries. Design/methodology/approach – The methodology was in three parts: first, a literature review and the mapping of the partners' existing and planned digital products and services, then a structured interview or survey to determine the partners' business requirements from TEL, then a harmonization process, and finally the results were then combined with normal business planning elements to produce a mission and final business plan. Findings – Business planning for digital libraries has hitherto not been widely reported. The methodology proved to be an effective method of achieving mutual agreement among partners with widely different aims and characteristics. Eleven harmonized service aspirations were agreed and five categories of business aims. Research limitations/implications – Focused on the business aims of national libraries, but the methodology can be relevant to other collaborative projects. Together with the few existing other reports, this can form the basis for a new field of work. Practical implications – The work described led directly to the creation of an operational service, which will be open to all European national libraries. Originality/value – As far as is known, the first reporting of a collaborative international planning process for a digital library, and maybe the first multi‐partner business plan between national libraries.