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Advocating for librarians as opposed to libraries

These days, a significant number of librarians today practise our profession outside the bounds of physical libraries. Indeed, the information industry – comprising publishers, vendors, database and website design firms, SEOs, and independent consulting firms – is one of the biggest employers of librarians today. Many special librarians successfully practise without ever setting foot in a traditional 'library'. Several of my recent employers, including my current one, employed hundreds of librarians at every level of the organisation. In this piece, I will share my views on how to market your value and skills as an individual professional without being tied to a physical library. In particular, I will share what I think works when advocating for yourself.

Be the brand

As Mahatma Ghandi once said: ‘You must be the change you want to see in this world’. We must choose to model the image and behaviours that we want others to know us by. This concept may seem basic, but if you want to be positioned as approachable, you must model approachability. The same goes for being smart, friendly, accessible, tech savvy, networked, helpful, caring, knowledgeable, a good trainer, and every other attribute desirable in a great librarian and information professional. So, what do you do that creates this image? What is the unique and significant combination of skills, attitudes, and aptitudes that your organisation can't do without?

Promote our profession by telling stories that reinforce the experience of what we do.

Tell your stories here
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Tell stories

A major issue in our profession is the fact that what we do and how we deliver value is invisible, and mostly experienced in the subjective minds and lives of our users. The tangible aspects of our work are secondary to the end-user experience of increased confidence in decisions, increased learning and knowledge, and the creation of new knowledge and inventions. Pointing out the tangible aspects of our work tells but a small part of the story of our value to an organisation. Our great facility with technology, content in all formats, and search and discovery needs to be positioned in context rather than as just a simple collection or skill. The information professional has the valuable and unique role to pull these skills together and to make the ‘magic happen’.

Mine your network

One of the most valuable assets of any professional is your network. You likely know more people in your organisation than nearly anyone else, thus allowing you to connect people who need each other. You are part of a professional network within a school library association, as well as the rest of your library network – and don’t forget your personal network of friends and relatives. When you put these networks to use for your enterprise, you extend your value beyond your own skill set. These networks can be put to use to solve problems and make progress. Find the overlaps between your network and your users – no one person knows everything, and not everything is available in print or digital format. Advocate for yourself as a connection to the entire world of knowledge.

Be visible

It is one thing to be present and available in your library – you’ll make connections with your core customers. However, if you only stay in the library, you’ll rarely encounter others who can bolster your reputation and influence your success. Take every opportunity to attend meetings, socialise, and go to industry meetings and conferences. Get on conference programs and try to present at internal meetings and industry conferences related to your organisation’s area of expertise, not just at library conferences. Try to write for industry periodicals, too. The more you have a presence in your users’ world and not just your own profession, the greater the perception of your reputation and value.

Jump on the social media bandwagon
An illustration for the Kyan blog
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Blog, tweet, and write articles, books, and columns. Build a reputation in your field and your industry or sector. Visibly demonstrate your knowledge and expertise and your critical thinking skills. You have more knowledge about the information space than you may acknowledge to yourself. Access to information is power, and sharing power is a powerful thing. You know many of the magic keys and techniques that will help your users in their day-to-day professional challenges. Be the guru that you can be. Share your insights and knowledge regularly, and position yourself as the helpful go-to person who makes a difference.

Check out your signature

What does your physical office look like? Is it professional or is it clerical? Are there items on display that suggest your talents, such as degrees, awards, and pictures? If you weren’t present, what would people learn about you from your space? Consider your email signature. Does it include anything other than your name? Are your degrees listed on it? Are there links to web pages and other collateral that speaks to your talents? How about your stationery – do you use a personalised letterhead? Are your business cards up to date, and do they include your social media presence? All of these things represent you when you’re not physically present. Ensure that they exude the image and positioning you want.

Promote yourself

There is a difference between bragging and informing people about interesting projects or work that you have done. Telling people about this work serves a dual purpose. Firstly, it makes you part of the social ecosystem of an organisation; secondly, it positions you as a professional node and valuable contact. Shyness doesn’t work. If you’re an introvert, mine the literature for ways to make that work for you so that your contributions aren’t overlooked. If you’re an extrovert, then learn to engage all people you work for – especially those who don’t match your style. Ensure that your strategies are multi-dimensional and hit on all cylinders. A true professional uses a variety of styles.

Choose your positioning carefully

Librarians run the risk of being too closely identified with our tools and environments. This can be a difficult position, especially for special librarians. We run the risk of being perceived as too tied to a particular positioning in our customers’, users’ or organisational hosts’ minds. The concept that we are limited to books, content, physical libraries, technology and tools can easily serve to devalue our role when the information ecology changes. Carefully choose to tie your value to the unique value-added professional services and advice that makes such a difference in your users’ lives.

Advocate for yourself as an information professional. The physical library is a secondary benefit that, without you, becomes a simple book collection. What are your magic beans?

Stephen Abram

Stephen Abram

Stephen Abram, MLS is a Past President of SLA and is Vice President, Strategic Partnerships and Markets, for Gale Cengage Learning. He is an SLA Fellow and the past president of the Ontario Library Association and the Canadian Library Association. In June 2003 he was awarded SLA’s John Cotton Dana Award and the AIIP Roger Summit Award in 2009. He is the author of Out Front with Stephen Abram and Stephen’s Lighthouse blog. This column contains Stephen’s personal perspectives and does not necessarily represent the opinions or positions of Gale Cengage Learning. Stephen would love to hear from you at stephen.abram@gmail.com.

First published in Info Tech Column, August, 2011 and Information Outlook, September 2011 Issue, available from http://tiny.cc/djr56.

Reprinted here with permission.