W(H)ITHER THE INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL?

INSULARITY PLURALISM CONVERGENCE COLLABORATION James G. Neal Information Professions Accreditation Meeting 9 September 2008

SOME BASIC QUESTIONS

• Are the information fields changing and coming together?

• Are they growing in importance and impact?

• How can potential workers learn about information careers?

• How can employers more effectively find workers?

• How can academic training programs grow in quality and thrive as they meet needs of students and society?

• How does accreditation fit into these issues?

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INFORMATION PROFESSIONALS

Indexer Network Operations Director Bibliographer Reference Librarian Digital Images Coordinator Usability Specialist GIS Librarian Digitization Project Manager User Services Consultant Curator Government Information Specialist System Engineer Educational Technologist Metadata Specialist Disaster Recovery Specialist Graphic Designer Programmer Business Intelligence Specialist Risk Assessment Specialist Electronic Data Librarian Computer Operations Director 3

INFORMATION PROFESSIONALS

Electronic Text Librarian Editor Information Security Officer Copyright Office Director Business Process Analyst Document Delivery Specialist Systems Developer Conservator Digital Video Specialist Desktop Support Administrator Database Administrator Identity and Access Specialist Cataloger Publisher Relations Specialist Digital Repository Coordinator Digital Archivist Permissions Coordinator Information Architect Chief Technology Officer Web Designer Electronic Resources Librarian Library Management System Director Course Management System Director 4

THE SHIFTING CONTEXT OF THE INFORMATION ORGANIZATION

• Customization • Openness • Self Service • Mutability • Productivity • Usability 5

THE SHIFTING CONTEXT OF THE INFORMATION ORGANIZATION

• Assessment • Marketing • Strategic Action • Business Plan • Competition • Resource Development 6

CORE SERVICES TO USERS

• Information Acquisition • Information Synthesis • Information Navigation • Information Dissemination • Information Discovery • Information Interpretation • Information Presentation • Information Understanding • Information Archiving 7

CHANGING ROLES OF THE INFORMATION ORGANIZATION

• Consumers • Intermediaries and Aggregators • Publishers • Educators • R&D Organizations • Entrepreneurs • Policy Advocates 8

THE SHIFTING VISION OF THE INFORMATION ORGANIZATION

• Legacy • Infrastructure • Repository • Portal • Enterprise • Public Interest 9

BUILD THE NETWORK

• • • • • • CONNECTIVITY RELIABILITY CAPACITY PERFORMANCE SECURITY NEW APPLICATIONS 10

PARTICIPATE IN ENTERPRISE SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT

• • • • • • BUSINESS REENGINEERING PRODUCTIVITY MANDATE INTEGRATION OF FUNCTIONS DISTRIBUTION OF WORK AND SERVICES CUSTOMIZATION OPEN SOURCE 11

MANAGE IDENTITY AND SECURITY • INTENSITY OF THREAT • NETWORK EFFICIENCY • SYSTEM OPERATIONS • DATA INTEGRITY AND PROTECTION • IDENTITY THEFT 12

ORGANIZE DISASTER PREPARATION AND CONTINUITY • BUSINESS CONTINUITY • BUSINESS RECOVERY • REDUNDANCY • POLICY AND PROCESS • RESPONSIBILITY • RECORDS MANAGEMENT 13

BUILD CONTENT MANAGEMENT PORTALS • CONTENT TYPES • CONTENT DELIVERY • METADATA • CONTENT WORKFLOW • EXTENSIBILITY • PORTAL AS INTEGRATOR • PORTAL AS REAL-TIME PROCESSER 14

BUILD THE DIGITAL LIBRARY QUALITY = CONTENT + FUNCTIONALITY • PUBLISHED/LICENSED CONTENT • PRIMARY CONTENT • OPEN WEB CONTENT • INSTITUTIONAL CONTENT • MULTIMEDIA CONTENT • INTEGRATED SERVICES • SOFTWARE TOOLS 15

PRESERVE AND ARCHIVE THE CONTENT • Archive as Repository • Archive as Persistence • Archive as Curation • Archive as Steward HOLD ACCESS SECURE CARE • Analog • Digital Conversion • Born Digital • Disaster Preparedness 16

ENABLE/INTEGRATE WEB 2.0 AND 3.0

• SOCIAL NETWORKING • COLLECTIVE INTELLIGENCE • PERMANENT BETA • AUTHORSHIP REVOLUTION • SOFTWARE AS SERVICE/NOT PRODUCT • ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE/EXPERT SYSTEMS 17

INFORMATION ORGANIZATION 2.0 EMBRACES • Rapid Technology Development/Deployment • Professional Maturation/Tension • Library Role Diversification • Complex Relationships/Info Flows • Perpetual Assessment • Challenges to PTB • Low Tolerance for MBC • Boundary Erosion 18

ENHANCE THE LEARNER EXPERIENCE • • • • • • • TECHNOLOGY UBIQUITY WEB-BASED SERVICES TECHNOLOGY SANDBOX PRIVACY SPACE SUPPORT SERVICES INFORMATION FLUENCY POST-GRADUATE ACCESS 19

ENHANCE THE RESEARCHER EXPERIENCE • • • • • • • • • • Personal Advancement/Recognition Contributions to Scholarly Literature High Quality Instructional Experiences Successful Students Work on Innovative Projects Collaboration with Interesting Colleagues Financial Compensation Remuneration for Own Work Excellent Laboratory, Library and Technology Support Opportunities to Experiment with Technology 20

SUPPORT THE NEEDS OF BIG SCIENCE • MASSIVE DATA • UNSTRUCTURED DATA/CURATION • EXTRACTION • DISTRIBUTION • COLLABORATION • VISUALIZATION • SIMULATION 21

TRANSFORM SCHOLARLY COMMUNICATION • THE URGE TO PUBLISH • CRISIS IN SCHOLARLY PUBLISHING • ROOTS OF DYSFUNCTION • ELECTRONIC STRATEGIES • NEW ECONOMICS/COMPETITION • QUALITY ASSURANCE • PERMANENT ARCHIVING • ASIA FACTOR 22

ADVANCE THE OPEN REVOLUTION

• OPEN SOURCE • OPEN STANDARDS • OPEN ARCHIVES • OPEN DESIGN • OPEN LINKING • OPEN COURSEWARE • OPEN KNOWLEDGE • OPEN ACCESS 23

ADVANCE THE REPOSITORY MOVEMENT • • • • • • • DISCIPLINE REPOSITORIES INSTITUTIONAL REPOSITORIES DEPARTMENTAL/SCHOOL REPOSITORIES INDIVIDUAL REPOSITORIES GOVERNMENT REPOSITORIES NATIONAL REPOSITORIES PUBLISHER REPOSITORIES 24

ADVOCATE THE INFORMATION POLICY AGENDA • INTELLECTUAL FREEDOM • PRIVACY • CIVIL LIBERTIES • EDUCATION PROGRAMS • RESEARCH PROGRAMS • INTERNET DEVELOPMENT • TELECOMMUNICATIONS • GOVERNMENT INFORMATION • APPROPRIATIONS • WORKFORCE POLICY 25

FIGHT THE COPYRIGHT WARS

• INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS • NEW LAWS AND LEGISLATION • COURT CASES • TRADE AGREEMENTS • LICENSING • USE GUIDELINES • DIGITAL RIGHTS MANAGEMENT • OWNERSHIP OF COPYRIGHT 26

PARTICIPATE IN ENTREPRENEURIAL DEVELOPMENT

• LEVERAGING ASSETS • NEW CUSTOMERS/MARKETS • FINANCIAL MANDATE • COMPETITIVE MANDATE • PRESTIGE MANDATE • DEVELOPMENT AND RISK CAPITAL • BUSINESS PLANNING • CULTURAL FIREWALLS 27

BARRIERS TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP

• • • • • • • • • Bureaucratic Processes Low Levels of Cooperation Distrust of Innovation Lack of Control Over Own Work Poor Project Management Environment Focused on Criticism Insufficient Resources Emphasis on Status Quo Unhealthy Competition 28

STIMULANTS TO ENTREPRENEURSHIP

• • • • • • • • • Freedom to Decide How to Accomplish a Task Good Project Management Sufficient Resources Environment Free of Threatening Evaluation Mechanism for Considering New Ideas Collaborative Environment Feedback and Recognition Systems Intriguing Problems Sense of Urgency 29

RESPOND TO USER EXPECTATIONS • • • • • • • • • CONTENT ACCESS CONVENIENCE NEW CAPABILITIES COST REDUCTION PARTICIPATION INDIVIDUAL PRODUCTIVITY INDIVIDUAL CONTROL ORGANIZATIONAL PRODUCTIVITY 30

PREPARE FOR ACCOUNTABILITY AND ASSESSMENT • • • • • • • • INSTITUTIONAL EXPECTATIONS GOVERNMENT/FUNDER MANDATE MEASURES OF USER SATISFACTION MEASURES OF MARKET PENETRATION MEASURES OF SUCCESS MEASURES OF IMPACT MEASURES OF COST EFFECTIVENESS SYSTEM DESIGN FOR USABILITY 31

ESTABLISH A RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT AGENDA • CREATION OF NEW KNOWLEDGE • LABORATORY FOR EXPERIMENTATION • MAGNET FOR NEW SKILLS • POTENTIAL FOR CAPITALIZATION/TECH TRANSFER • SUPPORT FOR DECISION MAKING • ORGNIZATIONAL RISK TAKING • FEDERAL, FOUNDATION AND CORPORATE INVESTMENT 32

RETHINK SPACE PLANNING AND IDENTITY

• • • • • • • TROMPE L’OEIL SPACE LIBRARY USE TRENDS TECHNOLOGY AS CATALYST LEARNING SPACE SOCIAL SPACE COLLABORATIVE SPACE FLEXIBILITY AND ADAPTABILITY 33

DEVELOP NEW RESOURCES

Success ≠ Resource Allocation Success = Resource Attraction • • • • • • • • FUNDRAISING RESEARCH GRANTS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER LEASE OF SPACE SALE OF PRODUCTS SALE OF SERVICES RECOVERABLES/FEES CO-INVESTMENT 34

DEVELOP THE WORKFORCE

• • • • • • • • RECRUITMENT STRATEGIES ROLE OF PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION EMPLOYMENT STRATEGIES DEVELOPMENT STRATEGIES RETENTION STRATEGIES LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT/SUCCESSION PLANNING FERAL PROFESSIONALS/SOCIALIZATION ISSUES MUTUALISM/INTER-PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS 35

FERAL PROFESSIONALS IN THE INFORMATION ORGANIZATION

• Professionals With Diverse Academic Credentials • Wide Range of New Professional Assignments • Professional Roles of Support Staff and Students • Impact on Values, Outlooks, Styles, Expectations • Impact on Community Understanding, Recognition, Respect • Impact on Organizational Relevance and Impact 36

BUILD NEW ORGANIZATIONAL MODELS

• Conventional Administrative Hierarchy and Academic Governancy/Bureaucracy • Centralized Planning and Resource Allocation Systems and Loosely Coupled Academic Structures and Maverick Units and Entrepreneurial Enterprises 37

INFORMATION ORGANIZATION AND INNOVATION • Redefining the Physical Expertise Intellectual Infrastructure • Understanding the Geography Psychology Economics of Innovation 38

INDIVIDUAL’S RELATIONSHIP TO THE MEDIUM

• Physicality • Geography • Psychology • Sociology • Cognition 39

HILDRETH ON SYSTEM DESIGN

• • • • • • Audience Suitability Metaphorical Consistency Display Legibility Simplicity of Design Ease of Navigation Searching Power 40

ASCENDANCY OF INDIVIDUAL AND TECHNOLOGY

• Deference to hierarchical authority in decline • Heightened levels of mistrust and skepticism • Increased focus on self-worth, personal gratification and personal choice • Massively distributed collaboration • Constant partial attention 41

HOPE POWER ACTION QUALITY

THROUGH EXPANDING COLLABORATION

SUCCESSFUL PARTNERSHIPS KEY MECHANISMS

• Self-Analysis • Personal Chemistry • Compatibility • Benefits/Opportunities • Strategic Integration • Tactical Integration • Operational Integration • Interpersonal Integration • Cultural Integration 43

SUCCESSFUL PARTNERSHIPS KEY CRITERIA

• Individual Excellence • Importance • Interdependence • Investment • Information Sharing • Integration • Institutionalization • Integrity 44

EXPECTATIONS FOR THE INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL • • • • • • • • • • Commitment to Rigor Commitment to Research and Development Commitment to Assessment and Evaluation Communication and Marketing Skills Political Engagement Project Development and Management Skills Entrepreneurial Spirit Resource Development Skills Leadership/Inspirational Capacity Deep Subject or Technical Expertise 45

QUALITIES FOR INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL • • • • • Clear Sense of Mission Self Vision Base of Knowledge Strategic Positioning Continuous Improvement 46

HOW DO WE FEEL?

• Anxious an abnormal and overwhelming sense of apprehension and fear “Our age of anxiety is, in great part, the result of trying to do today’s jobs with yesterday’s tools.” Marshall McCluhan • Disrupted interruption of normal course or unity, thrown into disorder “One of the litmus tests is that a disruptive technology enables a larger population of less skilled people to do things that historically only an expert could.” Clayton Christensen The Innovator’s Dilemma • Chaotic state of utter confusion, unpredictability in the behavior of complex systems “Chaos often breeds life, when order breeds habit.” Education of Henry Adams 47

W(H)ITHER THE INFORMATION PROFESSIONAL?

INSULARITY PLURALISM CONVERGENCE COLLABORATION