*Note: The following is from our archived collection of older documents, and may not reflect the most current information.
Annual State of the Association Address
David R. Bender, Ph.D.
June 13, 2001
Good morning. Before I share with you my thoughts on the state of our Association, I'd like to offer thanks to a few people who have been key to our successes over the last year. First, to Denise and all the 92nd Annual Conference Planning Committee: you've done excellent work making this week a reality. Thank you all for your diligence and vision. We are proud to report that our total conference attendance this year was 5,217. As reported earlier this week, our total number exhibitors was officially 345 companies in 480 booths. Another very successful SLA Annual Conference is now almost complete.
I would also like to thank you, Donna Scheeder, for your willingness to put up with me over the past year and for your efforts to manage what has become a very smooth transition to new staff leadership. But more importantly, I thank you for your patience, your kindness, and your friendship. Serving with you during my final year as executive director has truly been a pleasure. Thank you for all you've done for the profession and for the Association.
I will spare all of you the many other thanks that I could give at this point. Rather, I'd like to share a couple of thoughts on the state of our Association.
It seems not that long ago that I was standing before many of you and others like you, a brand-new association executive with a burning desire to lead an international organization. And the words I spoke in my first annual membership address back in 1980 still seem relevant today. For example:
"We are faced with a decade of crisis management, within the Association and within our libraries. We are continuing to learn that our resources are not limitless. Therefore, priorities must be set concerning the amount of and the consequences for distributing the resources to perform activities."
I also remember a time, some ten years ago, when we were in this very city for our eleventh meeting together. And my words then are even more germane today:
"Complexity is a powerful force driving the year's events. So what lessons can we learn? External challenges often lead us to some introspection about ourselves. It is an uncertain time... a time when we can choose to be assertive or passive, dynamic or hesitant. A time when, as my relatives back in Ohio would say, it is necessary to either fish or cut bait. I say, let's go fishing!"
Time truly is not a linear concept. It is more like a spiral, as the forces of the past continue to shape the present, and the future. The challenges and opportunities we currently face are not unfamiliar, if you take the time to acquaint yourselves with our history. You'll see that many before you have already faced these challenges and, for the most part, succeeded. Today, SLA stands at a crossroads, not merely because of the pending changes in staff leadership and management. I am extremely confident that Roberta Shaffer, as your executive director, will make all of us proud in the coming years.
The crossroads is also not simply a point in time where we are faced with making some critical strategic decisions, although the decisions we face will have a lasting impact on the future of this Association. Making some of these choices will be very difficult, and their results are likely to make some of us uncomfortable. But the recommendations to be proposed by the five SLA Task Forces will bring SLA forward as a leaner, meaner, and more effective Association.
In truth, the crossroads at which we now stand is a convergence of various forces: generational shifts, technology, the global economy, the social climate within our profession, and the status quo - for better or worse. To permit "analysis paralysis" accomplishes nothing. Our gut instincts for survival and success are an important part of the continuing effort to lead the Association forward.
At a recent Information Futurists Institute meeting, I presented a paper on the future of information associations. Clearly, SLA was at the center of my thoughts, but I believe my points in that paper reflect the needs in all associations.
In that paper, I laid out four points for re-establishing the role of the information association:
1. Returning to the concept of community building. Networking is the single most important benefit of membership in SLA. While the Internet and related communications technologies can support our community building efforts . they cannot supplant the power of face-to-face interaction among colleagues facing truly common challenges.
The management principles and practices of the Industrial Age are giving way to the new philosophies of The Knowledge Age. This shift is re-arranging priorities in the workplace, as new skills and capabilities are re-defining the role of all employees in today's organizations. No longer are products, services, or tangible assets seen as the greatest sources of value. People are now the most important resource available. Every individual's ability to manage knowledge and to embrace change contributes to the organization's overall greatness.
In our changed circumstances, it is imperative for information professionals to connect with each other through the communities of practice found across the profession. And it is our commitment to investing in the extraordinary human capital found within our membership that makes SLA so special and able to meet the demands of change over time.
2. Making innovation a priority. Even though innovation is critical to our long-term success, it is not often seen in the work of information associations. Frequently, new services that are viewed as innovative are simply borrowed ideas. This is not true innovation. Rather, innovation comes from imagination, creativity, flexibility, a sense of urgency and a willingness to fail fast in order to succeed quickly.
3. Creating authentic learning opportunities. Learning is yet another area in which we have the opportunity to become indispensable to information professionals from around our community. The variety of education and training programs available from a number of providers should continue to serve the profession well. Learning, however, is distinctive because it emphasizes the need to change the way information professionals think. more often than not, adults require "un-learning" of long-held beliefs and practices, and the exploration of new ideas and ideals that can advance their roles in their organizations, communities and society. I believe this core value should be a part of SLA's mission.
4. Implementing financial models that allow for wise assessments of revenue streams. We must also review our financial modeling, to ensure that our existing revenue streams are sustainable for the right reasons. Although we are a non-profit organization, SLA offers a wide variety of products, services and experiences that generate revenue. In addition,, SLA's Fund Development Program, the Finance Committee's Financial Long-Range Plan and the staff's Annual Program Plan are examples of our on-going push to bolster the Association's long-term fiscal health. But only through continued careful analysis, effective business planning and prudent management can we achieve the ambitious agenda that I have laid out this morning.
I consider these four points to be SLA's "horizon objectives." In the ebb and flow of organizational life, we may sometimes place greater emphasis on one or two rather than all of these objectives. Still, all of them should be integral aspects of the journey that SLA is yet to take in order to better serve our global community. Take note: we cannot be good at everything, but we must be great at whatever it is we aim to do. And we must change, in order to pass through our crossroads. As management thought leader Tom Peters says, we must be distinct, or we will become extinct!
In closing my first address to the membership, I asked that the all those present to please rise for there are a number of individuals I would like to thank for their guidance and help. The audience had been broken into 9 categories, today I have 12. As your category is named, please be seated.
1-All Past-President
2-Past Boards of Directors
3-President Donna Scheeder
4-Current Board of Directors
5-Volunteer Leaders
6-Lynn Smith and Stephanie Russell
7-Staff
8-Partners, exhibitors, vendors, sponsors
9-Information Community Press
10-Roberta Shaffer
11-Each of you the members who are SLA
12-My family: Lori and her husband Kevin; Scott and his wife Debbie; Robert and his wife Heather; and my partner, Philip
Thank you all for being here this week at our 92nd Annual Conference, and for your continued commitment to making SLA the best that it can be.
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