Jerry Kline is Chairman of Innovative Interfaces, Inc. and SkyRiver Technology Solutions. Jerry co-founded Innovative in 1978 and began building the company in the spare bedroom of his El Cerrito, California home. Innovative’s first product was a “Black Box” interface that allowed libraries to download OCLC bibliographic records in the CLSI circulation system without re-keying—at the time a revolutionary, time-saving service.

Since that time Jerry has overseen the company’s evolution, from a small start-up to a recognized leader in the field of library automation and technology. In 2011, Innovative has more than 300 employees and the company’s products and services are used by thousands of libraries in over 50 countries.

Jerry is known throughout the library industry as a software executive who listens to his customers and invests aggressively in improvements to existing systems and the creation of new products. He is passionate about the future of libraries and has built a dynamic management team focused on working side-by-side with librarians – helping them to satisfy the changing needs of their users, manage their operating goals, and realize the opportunities of technology.

Under Jerry’s leadership, Innovative has produced a series of successful library technology offerings. These include the Millennium Integrated Library System (1999), the Encore Discovery Services Platform (2006), Electronic Resource Management (2003), and the INN-Reach Consortial Borrowing System (1993). In 2011, the company launched its latest technology initiative called the Sierra Services Platform.

Jerry founded and launched SkyRiver Technology Solutions in 2009. The idea for a new, low-cost, highly functional alternative to OCLC’s cataloging services arose from a series of conversations with librarians who were interested in having a choice of bibliographic utilities.

Jerry received a B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science from the University of California Berkeley in 1974 and began his career designing and developing software at the UC Berkeley Library, where he worked from 1973 to 1978.