A Web of Shared Experiences and Relationships
I need to conduct a cost-benefit analysis of my company’s information center, but I’m not sure which methodology to use or what results to expect.
Can anyone recommend a free, simple-to-install software program that some volunteers can use to manage a small nonprofit library?
Does anyone subscribe to an alert service that pulls content from social media sites?
These are just three of the dozens of queries that have been posed in recent weeks on SLA Connect, a community tool that links all SLA members to one another. Each query generated several responses, providing the questioner with plenty of useful information with which to make a decision.
Membership in SLA offers many benefits, but none so valuable as a global network of information professionals who bring a wealth of experiences, skills, knowledge sets, ideas, and practical advice to the daily conversation about special librarianship. Within this global network are dozens of smaller communities organized along geographic and disciplinary lines, each offering its own distinct member benefits, such as—
- networking activities (Anyone up for a tour of the Shedd Aquarium library?);
- educational programming on topics ranging from bibliometrics to networking skills to creating an engagement-centered library;
- job leads for early- and mid-career librarians alike;
- social events such as dine-arounds and holiday parties; and
- volunteer opportunities in areas like program and event planning and communications.
Together, these events, activities, programs, and opportunities create a web of shared experiences and relationships that no social networking site can begin to match. So if you’re looking for a place to call your professional home, join the thousands of special librarians who rely on their SLA colleagues for answers, advice, and so much more.
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