Joining ZAI in 2019 as Director of Library Services, Mary Talley leverages more than 30 years of library leadership, strategic planning, and project management expertise to drive the success of ZAI’s library and archives contracts. She helps customers remain relevant and visible as they navigate the evolving landscape of libraries and information services with strategic insights, operational innovations, and access to top-tier subject matter experts.
Ms. Talley oversees a dedicated cadre of professionals who help our customers achieve their goals and excel in fields such as scientific, financial, and legal research, archives and digital repositories, data analytics, bibliometrics, biostatistics, metadata and cataloging, marketing and outreach, scientific writing, and editing, collection maintenance and more.
Before ZAI, Ms. Talley founded and led two thriving library-focused businesses, Library Management Systems and TalleyPartners, and spent over a decade as a Director at Axelroth & Associates, spearheading complex strategic planning initiatives for government, non-profit, and corporate libraries.
A Fellow of the Special Libraries Association (SLA), Ms. Talley has held leadership roles at local, national, and international levels; received awards for research, mentorship, and leadership; and spoken and written widely on the future of libraries. She holds an MLS from the University of Michigan and a BA from the University of California, Riverside.
Passionate about travel, Ms. Talley has explored nearly every continent, including hiking the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu, horseback riding in Mongolia, kayaking through Arctic icebergs, tracking leopards in Nepal, and immersing herself in the storytelling traditions of Ireland.