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22 PLL Persp. 1 (2010-2011)

handle is hein.lbr/aaplper0022 and id is 1 raw text is: THE QUARTERLY OF THE PRIVATE LAW LIBRARIES SIS OF THE AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF LAW LIBRARIES reviewed by Ann Jeter, Jackson Walker L.L.P., Dallas, TX Susan Klopper gave a dynamic keynote address at the PLL Change As Opportunity Summit that challenged many of the assumptions librarians hold. Using the story of her career path, she illustrated the value of strategic thinking for ensuring that library services survive and thrive in today's drastically fluctuating business environment. Three major keys to success emerged from her experiences: Lesson 1: Value is tied to customers' needs, which can be uncovered by asking strategic questions. Lesson 2: Understanding the competitive business environment is more important than subject knowledge. In fact, running the library as a business is critical to success. Lesson 3: Influence depends on demonstrating return on investment. Tying value to customer needs - staying in constant contact with her customers and asking strategic questions - was key to making sure that library services demonstrably met the needs of customers. She marketed relentlessly, identifying and meeting with influencers, asking them for ideas, and converting these influencers to supporters. She identified the white and gray spaces of needs that could be met, embraced opportunities to leave her comfort zone, evaluated the risks of doing nothing, and determined who would miss any services that were discontinued. She walked the organization through the roles the library could and should play. She focused on building relationships with her customers by participating actively in projects and seeking feedback. Running the library as a business- Susan continuously viewed all of the library activities through management's eyes in relation to the firm's goals and missions, and she made sure her messages connected to what customers valued. She hired people who could help her build for sustainability and entrepreneurship. Demonstrating ROI- A well-done business plan based on measurable results can serve as the foundation for demonstrating return on investment. Begin by conducting a SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) or a Balanced Scorecard analysis which is formally set out, revisited, and revised. Identify and document your primary and secondary customers. How do your products and services match their needs? Identify processes to improve your services and document the money saved. You must not only gather data, but understand what the data tells you. Following up with customers can provide useful data, but the data must also help customers connect us with their successes. For building business skills, she recommended looking outside library science literature to McKinsey Quarterly, Harvard Business Review, Business Week, and other business literature. While ultimately the Arthur Andersen information center closings had nothing to do with Susan's management skills, one thing she wishes she had done differently is to deploy her team to all parts of the office, placing them in closer physical proximity to customers. This lesson has relevance to many of us as we experiment with creating practice group specialists or embedded librarians. A more decentralized footprint can further help librarians avoid becoming pre-occupied with defending the library as a static institution or location, as opposed to a service. As an academic librarian, Susan is handling some of the same challenges we face in the business sector. A true value librarians can offer is helping students to understand the importance of good information for solving problems and making decisions. Academic librarians are also confronted with adapting the business model for librarianship. Susan closed with a thought-provoking question- If a library closes, is it murder or suicide? .................................................................................................................................... .................................................................................................................................... Volume 22 Issue 1

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