Guidelines/Responsibilities Relating to PCC Task Groups

Revised July 29, 2025

The Program for Cooperative Cataloging may form task groups to address specific issues as needed with the approval of the PCC Policy Committee (PoCo). If deemed appropriate, non-Program members may serve on task groups, but a majority of a task group's membership should be from institutions that are Program participants. Each task group should generally have an uneven number of members The membership should reflect the diversity of the Program, thus ensuring that all participants are represented. A call for volunteers from the PCC community is recommended when it would further community engagement.

OCLC and the Library of Congress may name liaisons to task groups. A Library of Congress liaison will be named if the work of the task group is likely to result in recommendations that affect the LC/NACO Authority File, the LC/PCC Policy Statements and Metadata Guidance Documents (MGDs) for RDA, and/or the development of BIBFRAME. An OCLC liaison will be named if the work of the task group is likely to result in recommendations that affect OCLC processes.

Distinguishing Between Task Groups and Similar Non-Permanent Groups

Historically, non-permanent groups have existed in the PCC that have overlapping attributes but that have used different naming conventions. Going forward, the PCC will observe these distinctive definitions to the extent possible:

• A task group is a group with a finite time horizon that is charged to address a relatively narrow set of deliverables. A task group reports to one or more PCC committees. Its membership is generally drawn from a combination of representatives of permanent PCC groups and persons not currently appointed to a permanent PCC group (e.g., liaisons, consultants).
  • Occasionally, a task group has a name that does not include the phrase "task group." Example: PCC Working Group on Metadata Application Profiles [PDF, 140 KB]. The PCC will avoid these ambiguous naming practices in the future.
• A working group is a group with an indefinite time horizon that is a subgroup of a PCC committee (PoCo or a standing committee). Its membership is drawn entirely from that parent committee. A working group may originate as a pilot group, and then transition to a more semi-permanent status.
• An affinity group is an informal group that is not directly administered by the PCC, though it may contain PCC members and its focus may be of significant interest to PCC participants. Example: PCC Sinopia Cataloging Affinity Group.
• An advisory committee is a longer-term group established by PoCo that is intended to help the PCC understand impacts on PCC standards and policies, and target areas where PCC is ideally situated to make specific contributions. Guidelines for advisory groups are described in detail here. Example: PCC Identity Management Advisory Committee.

Approval Process for Formation of New Task Groups:

When requesting approval of a task group by PoCo, the chair of the committee sponsoring the formation of the task group (which might be PoCo itself) will use the PCC Task Group Charge Template [Word, 27 KB] to provide the following:

1. Proposed name of the task group
2. Proposed charge for the task group, including any expected activities, outcomes, and deliverables (e.g., reports and possible follow-up implementation work)
3. Specific action items from the PCC Strategic Directions that are directly relevant to the work of the task group
4. Projected time frame for the task group's work, including the dates of its preliminary and final reports. A deadline of September 15th is required if a report is to be considered at the Annual PoCo meeting.
1. If it is felt that the expertise of the task group would help implement any recommendations after they are approved by PoCo, the task group's term may be extended. Therefore, it can be helpful to add an optional extension date, which would extend the charge of the task group beyond the final report to allow them to help with implementation.
5. Name of the PCC committee under whose oversight the task group will operate.
6. Proposed roster for the task group, if possible, including the names and institutional affiliations of the proposed chair(s) and members, any liaisons to the group from OCLC or the Library of Congress, and any consultants.
7. Link to a PCC Final Report Transmittal & Tracking Sheet [Word, 25 KB] for the task group to be used for tracking the status of the final report as it is transmitted to those groups responsible for reviewing and potentially approving or implementing the task group's recommendations

It is the responsibility of PoCo to assess whether there is sufficient need for a new task group and to ensure that the proposed name, charge, deadlines, and membership are appropriate.

Upon approval of the task group by PoCo, the chair of the committee sponsoring the task group will:

1. Create a PCC Wiki page for the task group that includes the full charge and roster.
2. Send the URL for the PCC Wiki page to the PCC Secretariat for posting to the PCC website.

Task Group Reports:

1. Preliminary reports of a task group may be informal and should be published on the task group's PCC Wiki page.
2. The final report of a task group should use the Final Report Template [Word, 2.7 MB]. When the final report is published on the PCC website, the PCC Secretariat will include the completed Final Report Transmittal & Tracking Sheet as a cover sheet.

Responsibilities of the Chair of the Sponsoring Committee:

1. Submitting the initial version of the task group charge to the PCC chair when proposing the task group for approval
2. Creating a PCC Wiki page for the task group with the full charge and roster, once the task group has received PoCo approval
3. Sending the URL for the task group's PCC Wiki page to the PCC Secretariat for posting to the PCC website
4. Updating the task group's PCC Wiki page as needed (e.g. making roster changes, publishing interim reports, etc.)
5. Affirming that the recommendations in the task group's preliminary and final reports are in keeping with the charge of the task group
6. For task groups that report to a committee other than PoCo: reviewing and approving interim/preliminary reports, and identifying areas where input from PoCo might be needed
7. For task groups that report to a committee other than PoCo: transmitting all reports to the PCC chair as follows:
   1. For interim/preliminary reports: transmit the report along with a statement as to its status (i.e., approved, not approved, under review, etc.) and a summary of any input required from PoCo
   2. For final reports: transmit the report for review and approval by PoCo
   3. For other task group work products (e.g., new policy/guidelines documents): transmit the document for review and approval by PoCo
8. Updating the Final Report Transmittal & Tracking Sheet as needed
9. Notifying the PCC Secretariat when the task group's final report is ready to be published on the PCC website and when the task group has been discharged
10. Updating the PCC Task Group spreadsheet (external link)

Responsibilities of the Task Group Chair:

1. Generally overseeing the work of the task group
2. Ensuring that the work of the task group is paced to meet the report deadline(s) and that recommendations under development are practical/realistic, arranged as long-term vs. short-term, etc.
3. Ensuring that all task group members are heard and their ideas discussed
4. Working with any OCLC and Library of Congress liaisons on the task group to ensure that appropriate consultations are made
5. Ensuring that the final report includes all required elements as specified above
6. Forwarding reports to the chair of the sponsoring committee
7. Updating the task group charge as needed and notifying the sponsoring committee chair

Responsibilities of Liaisons:

1. Preparing for meetings and keeping abreast of the work of the task group as is expected of any member of a task group.
2. Demonstrating abilities such as flexibility, collegiality, and listening at all times.
3. Reporting to the organization they represent on the task group’s progress and recommendations to assess the need for follow-up discussions within their organization and the task group.
4. Endorsing a recommendation being discussed, if it reflects the policies and practices of their organization.
5. Consulting with their organization to find common ground, if possible, when the recommendation being discussed appears to conflict with their organization’s policies and practices.

Responsibilities of the PCC Secretariat:

1. Ensuring an appropriate Library of Congress liaison has been assigned to the task group and that expectations for the liaison's participation are clearly communicated
2. Posting the URL for the task group's PCC Wiki page to the PCC website
3. Posting the task group's final report to the PCC website with the Final Report Transmittal & Tracking Sheet as a cover sheet; notifying PCC membership of its availability (if requested by the PCC Chair)
4. Keeping abreast of the work of the task group and discussing with higher level management any decisions that may impact Library of Congress procedures
5. Working with the PCC chair to track the status of the task group's reports, monitor progress on any outstanding recommendations, and assess the need for follow-up action

Responsibilities of the PCC Chair:

1. Bringing the proposal for the formation of the task group to PoCo for review and approval
2. Working with the PCC Secretariat and sponsoring committee chairs (as applicable) to track the status of the task group's reports, monitor progress on any outstanding recommendations, and assess the need for follow-up action
3. Scheduling discussion and votes by PoCo on the task group's reports and recommendations as applicable (see section above: “Responsibilities of the Chair of the Sponsoring Committee”)
4. Updating the Final Report Transmittal & Tracking Sheet as needed (i.e., if not done by the chair of the sponsoring committee)
5. Ensuring that approved recommendations are implemented by the task group, or are assigned to one or more groups for next steps towards implementation.

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