Contact:
Cara Battaglini
+1.703.647.4917
cara@sla.org
SLA 2006 DRAWS OVER 5,800 PARTICIPANTS
Largest Gathering of Information Professionals in North America a Success on Many Fronts
Alexandria, Virginia, USA, 30 June 2006 - The Special Libraries Association (SLA) announced today that exhibitions and attendance numbers for its 2006 Annual Conference held 11 - 14 June in Baltimore, Maryland USA, surpassed those from SLA 2005 in Toronto and are among the highest that SLA has seen over the last few years.
"We had excellent and intriguing speakers again this year and the entire program was jam-packed with topical and relevant content. I am not surprised that we attracted so many participants. Baltimore really treated SLA well, and lived up to their nickname of 'Charm City'" said SLA Chief Executive Officer Janice R. Lachance. "Overall, the 2006 Annual Conference was a huge success and as always, the bar is now set higher -- 'mile-high' to be exact -- for SLA 2007 in Denver, Colorado."
The final attendance tally for SLA 2006 totaled 5,848 individuals from around the globe representing 33 nations. Of that number, 1,057 participants were first time SLA conference participants. SLA?s Info-Expo, the largest information and knowledge management exposition in North America, featured 305 companies and organizations and 482 total booths. SLA welcomed 71 new exhibitors this year.
By comparison, the SLA 2005 Annual Conference in Toronto attracted 5,283 participants and the INFO-EXPO featured 262 companies and organizations with 441 booths.
Flashback
SLA 2006 officially began on 11 June at the Baltimore Convention Center with the Grand Opening of the Info-Expo. Later that evening, 23 people were honored for their accomplishments in the information industry during the Opening General Session. SLA President Pam Rollo presented SLA Awards and Honors to the honorees, including an honorary membership to inventor and futurist Raymond Kurzweil.
The session also included keynote remarks by American political reporter/commentator Gwen Ifill, who told the crowd that she heavily depends upon the researchers and librarians at PBS to prepare her daily for her programs. Ifill shared her perspective on the explosion of media and content sources available to people today, and opined that it was a positive thing: "The growth in options helps us realize that we must seek out sources of news that are credible and reliable," said Ifill.
New Leadership, New Strategies
At the Annual Business Meeting on 13 June, CEO Lachance delivered her annual State of The Association address. She challenged the audience to envision what SLA will look like in the future, and then asked for their commitment to make their shared vision a reality. Her speech is available online at http://www.sla.org/content/SLA/governance/bodsection/edcorner/index.cfm.
President Rollo presented 2006-2007 President Rebecca B. Vargha with the "Chain of Office," symbolically passing leadership of the Association. In her inaugural address, President Vargha discussed her leadership philosophy as well as the platform issues she will be addressing throughout her time in office. These included membership growth and planning for the SLA centennial celebration in 2009.
A new Board of Directors was also seated during the meeting. A 2005 bylaws amendment aligned the terms of SLA officers with the Association?s fiscal year. As a result, this ?class? of SLA leadership will be in office for a total of 18 months allowing the cycle to align properly beginning in January 2008.
The outgoing Board of Directors, which met prior to the start of the conference, received a series of reports from task forces on topics and issues ranging from expanding executive growth to the strategic alignment of SLA to meet the future needs of the profession.
The Blogs Have It!
Bloggers made their mark this year at the SLA Annual Conference. Many members and external media outlets reported on activities and, in many cases, "live blogging" the various sessions. For the second year, SLA staff and conference participants provided a detailed account of the conference?s activities through the SLA Conference Blog which provided commentary, photos, and event updates to participants on-site as well as members who couldn?t attend.
SLA CEO Janice R. Lachance announced during the Association Business Meeting that she was entering the blogosphere with her own personal blog, InfoX, available at www.sla.org/infox Lachance talks about why she chose to start a blog in her first posting, "It occurred to me that, as I travel around the world, I get to meet with, and talk to, the various stakeholders in the universe of information management. Much of my time is spent listening to chapter and division leaders, delegates from our sister associations, cutting-edge industry partners, government officials, CEOs and CFOs of Fortune 500 companies, university deans, and of course SLA members. I am one of the people who have the rare opportunity to sit at this intersection and observe the exchange between and among all of them." Lachance's blog will be focused on her observations and thoughts, "I hope to spark some good dialogue about the future of the profession and SLA."
Grand Finale
The Closing General Session keynote remarks from Walter Mossberg, columnist and author of the "Personal Technology" column for The Wall Street Journal, were thought-provoking and addressed how technology changes the way we work and live. Mossberg discussed the need for someone, in media organizations and corporations, to manage research and information: "It is important for decision-makers to have someone who understands the context, can look for adjacencies, can seek out and report on the information. Executives don't have the time and expertise to search. Having a skilled researcher or librarian can pay huge dividends."
SLA 2007
Next year?s Annual Conference will take place in Denver, Colorado USA. The theme for the event will be "Climbing to New Heights." Scott Adams, creator of the Dilbert comic strip, will serve as one of the featured keynote speakers.
About SLA
The Special Libraries Association (SLA) is a nonprofit global organization for innovative information professionals and their strategic partners. SLA serves more than 11,000 members in 75 countries in the information profession, including corporate, academic, and government information specialists. SLA promotes and strengthens its members through learning, advocacy, and networking initiatives. For more information, visit us on the Web at www.sla.org.
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