José Vila

I currently serve as Unit Lead for Interdisciplinary Collections Cataloging within the Technical Services Department, where I coordinate and contribute to projects related to cataloging, metadata quality control, and access to collections.

My work has focused primarily on cataloging and metadata, but over the years my professional interests have expanded toward new ways of describing, connecting, and facilitating the discovery of collections. I am particularly interested in the transition to BIBFRAME and Linked Data, new metadata workflows, and the possibilities offered by artificial intelligence for cataloging and quality control.

I also maintain a strong interest in special collections and bibliographic heritage, particularly rare and early book cataloging, an area in which I worked previously and that continues to interest me. I am also interested in the Hispanic collections at University of Miami Libraries and in contributing to their acquisition, description, visibility, and discovery.

My career also has an important international dimension. I studied and worked in three different countries: Spain, the United States, and Belgium. This experience continues to shape the way I understand the profession and has led me to participate in projects and professional activities in the United States, Latin America, and Europe.

Within this international dimension, I am particularly interested in strengthening ties with Hispanic and Latin American library communities. I value creating spaces for collaboration and exchange where we can share experiences, learn from one another, and exchange knowledge about libraries, collections, cataloging, metadata, linked data, and other emerging technologies. I see this collaboration as a two-way process: not only an opportunity to share my own work, but also to learn from the experiences, perspectives, and practices developed in other institutions and communities.