Where are we going in our profession and our association? So many places, so little time...
Deb Hunt
As someone who has been in both a more traditional information professional role in a corporate and academic environment and also owns her own independent information business, I've seen a lot of changes in our profession over the years.
I believe we are going in the right direction as we continue to be proactive in promoting our value to the decision makers in our organizations or to our clients, or both. This becomes even more important in tough economic times as budgets and positions are cut. We must be our own best advocates, demonstrating how we positively affect the bottom line in terms of money saved and earned, grants won, faculty recruited and other areas that show our worth to our organizations and stakeholders. Only then can our true worth be appreciated by those who control budgets, hire or fire staff, and make decisions that affect us.
When was the last time you took a continuing education course or attended a professional development seminar or conference, presented a paper, had a technology event or open house in your information center or library, or invited your boss for coffee to talk one-on-one? Ah, don't have the time? We can little afford to NOT have the time. Our professional lives depend upon it.
We are all very fortunate to belong to SLA. It provides many, many avenues for learning, networking, volunteering, growing professionally, and staying challenged by trying new things. 23 Things, the Innovation Lab, Click U, the Career Center and other benefits of membership are ours to use as we stretch a bit. Newly unemployed? What better investment in yourself than to retain your membership in SLA and utilize all these free tools to enhance your skills and employability.
So let's go -- onward in our profession and the second century of SLA. Let's support one another and help one another as we all move forward together. It's going to be an amazing trip.
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