What Does Success Look Like for the Special Library? SLA 2017 Hot Topics Panel (Revisited)

Special librarians know that to ensure sustainability they must build a strategy, embrace change, and even create it. They know that the path to success includes doing more with the tools they have, and the skills they’ve built. But do special librarians truly recognize success when they achieve it? Equally important, do they focus on communicating the value of their success to leadership and peers?

As a prelude to our upcoming SLA 2018 Hot Topics Panel discussion, “Don’t Just Be Integrated: Be Integral,” we’d like to remind you that during last year’s Hot Topics session, moderator Stephen Abram and our panelists discussed important questions, such as:

• What are the characteristics of a successful special library?
• How do you know when you are successful?
• How do you make sure others know you are successful?
• How do you communicate the value of success?
• What are the benefits of success?

Our experts covered topics such as alignment with the strategic objectives of your organization, metrics and measurement (quantitative and qualitative), managerial reporting, storytelling, branding and marketing.

Following our annual tradition, we wrote a whitepaper (available for download) that presents the compelling information shared during the event, combined with additional valuable insights gained from panelist interviews conducted in preparation for the discussion.

The participants on our panel “What Does Success Look Like for the Special Library?” were:

• Karen Sloat—Senior Project Consultant, American Academy of Facial Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS)
• Megan Smith—Knowledge Services Manager, American Physical Therapy Association (APTA)
• Russell Rokicki—Library Operations Manager, Duane Morris LLP

Moderator Stephen Abram, Principal, Lighthouse Consulting, facilitated the discussion—adding perspectives drawn from his own distinguished career as a special librarian and consultant to the information sector.

We invite you to download a copy of the white paper from Lucidea’s Hot Topics Session, “What Does Success Look Like for the Special Library?” and we hope you’ll attend this year’s panel, the fifth in our lineup of popular sessions—this time with a focus on embedded librarianship and what it takes to become integral to your organization’s success.