Saving the Information Profession, Google, and the World: The 15th Annual SCOUG Retreat
By Carol Ebbinghouse
Library Director, Western State University College of Law
Information Today, Inc.
SLIS Summary
Attendees of the annual Southern California Online User Group (SCOUG) retreat in L.A. wrestled with the theme: "What Are the Skills Needed for Tomorrow?"
What skills will define the information industry over the next 5 years? What are the traditional skills of information professionals, and of those skills what are needed today?
One attendee noted, "We need to market ourselves and inform people about our skills. We need to package our expertise to these new companies and people. Those new people are into the technology, but we have the respect for the information. For them it is content. For us it is learning and knowledge and information--much more than data. Why were we perceived as gatekeepers? Why do other people have the perception of themselves as liberating information? Is it all language?"
Traditional and non-traditional roles for the future.
Many trained in traditional library skills have successfully applied them in non-traditional careers. Many recognize the need to communicate better with upper management, use financial models and spreadsheets effectively, and speak their language. It is vital to adapt to management, administration, and executives--learn their lingo, understand their habits and environments.
One person thought the librarian-types must destroy the civil servant mentality and take risks. The skills of management and leadership are essential when librarians begin to rise in the ranks. Traditional librarian types also need to learn how to market themselves, their programs, products, and libraries. One attendee encouraged traditionalists to earn an MBA in Management of Information, saying she can't find a librarian with the business skills she requires, so she has to hire MBAs with research skills.
Information professionals have been able to communicate with each other, but are less equipped to communicate exciting ideas with the outside world. There is a tendency to wait for things to be perfect, rather than to take risks and put needed products and services out to the public. Traditional skills don't include communications, marketing, and risk taking.
Has KPMG or Arthur Andersen ever sent information professionals such as librarians to conduct an information audit? Are there librarians or information professionals at the vice president level of any consulting firm? These professionals don't talk about contributing to the bottom line. They generally can't say in three sentences what we can do for a company. MBA types can. They learn to communicate value to someone else.
Skill Sets
SCOUG conference participants created a list of valuable traditional and non-traditional skills.
- Traditional
- Service aspects, but passive
- Cataloging orientation
- Reference interview
- Investigative, analytical, intuitive
- Listening skills for clarification
- Structural understanding of information transfer
- Communication skills
- Source knowledge
- Collaborative skills
- Research skills and competitive intelligence
- Non-Traditional
- Market analysis
- Business model of for-profit
- Management skills
- Productivity
- Negotiation
- Marketing
- Proactive customer service
- Financial analysis
- Risk taking
- Competitive information
- Sales skills, communication
- Technology and innovation
Organizations need to capitalize on both the traditional and non-traditional skills required. Traditionally skilled people, especially, need to be in all departments.
Read the full Searcher article and the "save Google" activities:
www.infotoday.com/searcher/nov02/ebbinghouse.htm
Learn more about SCOUG
http://www.scougweb.org/
Posted December 05, 2002