Thinking outside the box

Information Outlook, Sept, 2004 by Ethel M. Salonen

Hello colleagues,

Let us think outside the box for this column. Many of you know that SLA was formed in 1909 by a number of information professional visionaries who desired affiliation with an association that catered to their unique and specialized delivery of information products and services. Let us now imagine it is September 2009, I am your president, and you are those visionary information professionals. You have asked me to develop plans for a global association of information professionals who connect people and information in the 21st century. What follows is my futuristic vision:

Name: Information Services Association: Connecting People and Information

Vision: The global organization for innovative information professionals and their strategic partners.

Mission: Promote and strengthen our members through learning, advocacy, and networking initiatives.

Core Values: Includes leadership, service, innovation and continuous learning, results and accountability, collaboration and partnering.

Membership: Anyone who provides innovative information products and services and who is interested in learning, advocating, and networking with information professionals.

Association Year: January to December with general member meetings that include leadership summits, innovation symposia, and an annual conference.

Board of Directors: Led by a president and 12 additional directors, with the executive director as a team member. Directors may lead a community or a regional cabinet organization, a committee devoted to fulfilling our mission directives, work with our staff on fulfilling our fiduciary responsibilities, or work with our strategic partners on our core values. Works in teams with members, staff, and strategic partners. Meets throughout the association year.

Staff: Led by a visionary executive director, and a management team with strong mentoring and teamwork abilities. Anticipates and responds to member needs, and works within a budget. Works in teams with members, directors, and strategic partners.

Strategic Partners: Appreciate the role that information professionals occupy in the global community. Are active members in our learning, advocacy, and networking initiatives by their participation and their funding activities. Work in teams with members, directors, and staff.

Communities: Fluid groups of individuals who wish to network, learn, and advocate for their specialized areas of expertise. Examples include competitive intelligence; leadership and management development; pharmaceutical and health technologies; and science and technology. Technology is an enabler, yet in-person meetings are encouraged.

Regions: Geographical areas where members can meet to learn, network, and advocate for the profession. Management of each region is very simple, with numerous neighborhoods that are convenient for members to join. Technology is an enabler, yet in-person meetings are encouraged.

So, what do you think? I presented this futuristic scenario to the SLA leadership during their June 2004 Leadership Summit. Many people were intrigued by some of the concepts and others were skeptical. For me, the exercise was interesting and forced me to stretch beyond our SLA boundaries and yet remain aligned with our vision, mission, and core values. As you begin your association unit year activities, I ask each of you to stretch your mind and your strategic thinking. Who knows what we can accomplish together in moving our profession forward!

A Story

As promised, I will relate a story in each of my columns. This one is about the one-year anniversary of the SLA Iowa Region. Dru Frykberg, chair of public relations, sent a news release to the business editors at the Des Moines Business Record and the Des Moines Register, the major daily newspaper. The release described the role of information professionals and information centers in the various organizations in Iowa and Des Moines and announced the anniversary of the community.

Dru followed up a few days later with a hard copy of the news release, a link to my SLA bio, and a story that appeared at KansasCity.com on the role of information professionals as information "detectives." The mailing piqued the interest of a reporter from the Business Record who interviewed me regarding my vision for the future of the profession and the association. The story later appeared in a May 2004 issue of the Record. This is an excellent example of a public relations best practice and one that the SLA director of public relations and our chair of the Public Relations Committee will use in their best practices methods.

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Make it so!

Ethel Salonen

President