The Experienced Info Pro Speaks Out

Internet Library 2008 offered a full range of learning and networking opportunities to all who attended. According to my observations, it also offered a peek at the variety of people who have influenced and will influence the profession. First the view from an experienced info pro on the brink of retirement.

Dan Lester retired last week as Head of Network Services in the University Libraries at Boise State University. In an interesting examination of where we have been and were we are going with technology ("Who Moved My Ultrafiche & 8-Tracks? Insights for the Future"), Dan reminded us of how much has changed during his 50 years on the job. Do you remember the 12" video disk, the Apple Lisa, punched cards, 8" floppy disks, and the OCLC impact printer for printing out library cards? These were the bees knees in their day, but technology has continued to develop since then. Dan gave us a good look at the evolution of technology in libraries and when to adopt. You can link to the slides from Dan's talk, including fantastic pictures of the aforementioned technologies and more, at Dan's River of Data web site.

Based on his wealth of experience in library technology, Dan offered the following things to think about:

1. Everything is temporary.
2. Never buy #1 of anything.
3. Be on the leading edge but not the bleeding edge.
4. Even sacred cows can be turned into filet mignon.
5. The" saving money" reason for adopting technology is almost always bogus.
6. Do bad decisions really matter?
7. Be a shark. Keep moving or die.
8. See number one.

Dan also echoed a sentiment found in several other talks I heard at IL2008 - "be willing to fail." More on that in the next posting as we meet info pros who are just launching their careers.

Remember the 23Things? I'm Finished!

Last summer, sometime around July 1st, I started working my way through the Special Library Association's 23Things. It is a remarkable learning opportunity for info pros who want to become familiar with the multitude of Web 2.0 tools that have come on the scene. These tools, including blogs, wiki's, bookmarking, and more are gaining traction in our workspace. Info pros who are not becoming familiar with these tools risk being left behind. (Note: I am blogging this from Internet Librarian in Monterey CA. Information Today President Tom Hogan listed the finalists in last year's contest for what to call a non-Internet Librarian. Winner? Zoe Anderson at the Napa Library. She dubbed the non-Internet Librarian as Librarian 1.0.)

Happily sometime in mid-September I finished the nine week program outlined by SLA, and at some level I am now conversant in the 23 Things. I strongly recommend this program to each and every SLA member. Knowing what these tools do, how they are being used, and how they might be used in your context, is empowering indeed. Our profession needs informed info pro's leading the way. I may not be Librarian 3.0, but I know I'm not a Librarian 1.0!

SLA has hung out the brass ring for you. I strongly suggest you reach for it.

Are You LinkedIn?

LinkedIn has appeared on my radar screen three times in the last three days. I take that as a sign.

Recall that LinkedIn is a social networking tool. If memory serves, I believe it was originally marketed as a recruiting site for headhunters. Individuals can create and post a LinkedIn profile that includes biographical and contact info. The Web site states that "LinkedIn is an online network of more than 25 million experienced professionals from around the world, representing 150 industries."

According to the The Economist, (radar screen appearance #1), LinkedIn is the "Facebook for suits." Gotta love that description. Reid Hoffman founded LinkedIn to manage his own network of business contacts. The Economist points out that a "big chunk" of company revenues comes from headhunters and companies who pay to search the database and contact members. The article points out that LinkedIn is benefiting from the upheaval in the financial markets as users step up networking and job-hunting activities.

An association discussion list that I subscribe to recently addressed the topic of Web site development (radar screen appearance #2). A clever colleague pointed out that a short term alternative to a fully developed Web site is to register a domain name and use URL forwarding to point to a LinkedIn profile. Pretty cool, huh? By the way, this clever colleague is writing a book on matters of Web site development. When it's available I'll let you know.

LinkedIn can also be used as a research tool for finding and using information. FUMSI (radar screen appearance #3) recently ran an article by prolific author and extremely knowledgeable researcher Amelia Kassel on using LinkedIn as a research tool. Kassel explains why and how to search LinkedIn, concluding that "Info pros will want to use LinkedIn similarly to other databases for finding answers to a range of questions."

Sounds as though LinkedIn should be on every info pro's radar screen.

Adding Value to the Information You Deliver

Remember rip and ship? There was a day when the value that the info pro brought to the table was access to and the ability to search commercial, subscription based databases. In those days, a professional search yielded otherwise hard to access information. Ripping the results from the dot matrix printer and shipping it to the client was standard practice.

Online searching is no longer novel. The technology is practically ubiquitous and answering the ready reference question or delivering full text articles is no longer a value add service.

So, what's an info pro to do? For an examination of the justification and how-to's for creating value add deliverables, see Amelia Kassel's Value-Added Deliverables: Rungs on the Info Pro's Ladder to Success published in Searcher. Kassel states that a value added deliverable will include organized research results with a summary of findings.

I recommend using the summary of findings as an opportunity to add further value to your report. The summary should answer the questions, but it's also an opportunity to share insights about the findings. We'll take a closer look at this in future postings.

In the meantime, let us know if you include a summary of findings in your deliverables.

Info Pro Employment Picture

Hiring or not hiring? In the last couple of weeks I've heard several perspectives on the employment prospects for info pros. One came from the owner of a library staffing agency. She painted a rather dismal picture, indicating that we're currently experiencing a slow down in hiring. In my own experience I have had a vigorous response to my own search for info pros who have been cast into the job market as a result of layoffs in biotech.

At the same time, we learn that the Environmental Protection Agency will reopen their closed libraries and that each will be staffed with librarians. In the blogs I subscribe to I see an opening posted for an associate librarian at Christie's (attention art historians) and that LibraryThing is hiring (although the current openings are not for info pros.)

So, what's the deal? I'm guessing that indeed the job market is tight overall for info pros. On the other hand, the entrepreneurial sorts that I commune with in AIIP seem to be holding their own. Clearly there is a market for the value added information services that a 21st Century info pro can provide. Perhaps the answer lies in what kind of value we add. (More on that in a future posting.) What kind of value do you add?

Life Support

You're not alone out there in trying stay ahead of the curve and get through the day. For support, wisdom, and guidance, try Lifehacker and DLM:Dumb Little Man.

Lifehacker contains "tips and downloads for getting things done." Recent posts to Lifehacker discuss browser speeds, best layouts for data in Excel, and why goal setting makes you cringe. It's good stuff, and you can set up to receive the info in an RSS feed. That saves you from revisiting the web site to see what's new. Beware, however, that Lifehacker can post 20 or more tips per day.

For a less prolific, but no less useful life support source, try DLM. "Each week we provide a handful of tips that will save you money, increase your productivity, or simply keep you sane." Recent posts include 5 ways to fall asleep quicker and 15 ways to break writer's block (timely, that one.)

Professional Associations - Do You Belong?

Do you work in the info biz? Do you belong to an appropriate professional association? If not, why not? Your comments are welcome and encouraged.

I belong to the Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP) and to Special Libraries Association (SLA). There are many, many reasons why I belong to these two associations, but the reason du jour is professional development. Today, without leaving my office, I had the opportunity to watch a web based, information packed training session delivered by Ed Vawter, AIIP President and founder of QD Information Services. Ed discussed using podcasts as a source of information for research. Since the vendor was experiencing audio trouble, Ed is going to offer a encore presentation next month, so those who missed it today will get a second chance.

SLA is offering a program called 23 Things. Participants become familiar with wikis, blogs, social bookmarking, picture sharing, podcasting, tagging, RSS feeds and much, much more through actual hands on practice. When proprietary software is required SLA makes it available, so everyone can participate. And, it's free with the SLA membership.

We info pros need to stay a step or two ahead of our clients, and associations such as AIIP and SLA make that possible. Do you belong?