Prepared for the ALCTS President’s Program June 2005 Karen Calhoun A Boundary- Breaking Perspective

June The Well “They come and go and draw from the well” I Ching, hexagram 48, Ching – The Well The Library as a center of collections The Library as a center of experts and tools to guide users to appropriate resources

June The River

June Boundaries and boundary-breaking

June Being a 21 st Century Librarian Starting points: –Technology-driven research, teaching and learning –Disintermediation (users perceive they are self-sufficient) –Accelerating shift in information seekers’ preferences for Web-based information and multimedia formats Librarianship: “There are few professions which contribute so much to the saving of time and to the progress of science.” –Library Journal, 1890

June DOMAIN EXPERTS: Professors, grad. students, researchers, deans, university leaders and staff UNIVERSITY KNOWING COMMUNITY INFORMATION EXPERTS: Librarians, records managers, archivists, others IT EXPERTS: Desktop, computer lab and server support; applications for academic, research, administrative support; networks, telecommunications, security Teaching, Learning, and the Creation of New Knowledge “Knowledge creation is everyone’s concern, and not the responsibility of a specialized few.” –Chun Wei Choo, 2002

June Exemplars of 21 st Century Librarianship “Instead of being a hoarder of containers, the library must become the facilitator of retrieval and dissemination.”—William Wulf, 2003 Blakeley, Daniel H. Cornell Center for Materials Research Facility Staff page

June “Blow up the corporate library”— Thomas Davenport, 1993

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June Making Library Collections and Services Visible Librarians must be where the users are Library must be where the users’ eyes are –Interconnections, interoperability, and information delivery Partnerships, partnerships, partnerships “2 ½ cheers for Google.” --Paul Duguid, May , Cornell University

June Managing “Mindsets” Neither good nor bad Essential for making sense of the world Contain hidden assumptions Not absolute truths Some get stuck in them We need to be aware of them, and sometimes challenge them “Everything is available on the Web” “Librarians wear sensible shoes and check out books” “The library is a wonderful storehouse of books” “Public services librarians understand users’ needs” “Users should search in the right way so they find the best resources” “The best catalog record is the fullest one possible” “Research libraries, as organizations, have great difficulty in … implementing the revolutionary changes that are needed for automated digital libraries.” --Bill Arms, DLib Magazine, 2000

June Creativity: A Way of Managing One’s Inner Processes Friends –Play, inquisitiveness –Inner stability Open, receptive Let go of the past Question assumptions –Flexibility Foes –Cynicism –Fear –Anger –Unexamined “mindsets” –Narrow focus “ A man should learn to detect and watch that gleam of light which flashes across his mind.” —Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance, 1841

June Vision Founded in the belief that the world can be a better place, even in the face of great challenge, even despair Demands individual and organizational creativity: new ways of thinking, seeing, doing Can empower and align people, build momentum, and harness creative spirit Government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the Earth. --Abraham Lincoln, Gettysburg Address, 1863

June Find mutual purpose Provide transitional roles and phases Support staff development Recognize it will take time Persevere Tolerate ambiguity Foster teamwork and innovation Manage transitions, not just change Honor the past Walk the talk Build a coalition Respect people and endings Learn how to have a “crucial conversation” Creative Leadership: People Matter “Transforming an organization is the ultimate test of leadership.”—John Kotter, Harvard Business School, 1998

June A New Kind of Library When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on. —Franklin D. Roosevelt Build a vision of a new kind of library Actively collaborate in learning and creating new knowledge Make organizational boundaries porous Lower barriers to discovery and use Leverage the skills of librarianship to advance knowledge Integrate librarians in community social and information processes

June Visibility and Creative Leadership Increase our visibility Examine mindsets Nurture creativity and innovation Invest in people

June Thank You! Karen Calhoun