Making sense of a rapidly changing human environment

1. Making sense of a rapidlychanging human environment John Dolan OBE Chair CILIP Council Libraries West Taunton library 5th December 2012

2. Themes • Hello • Looking around us. PESTLE +E (oh not again!) • A forward-looking PESTLE (not a whinge) • Future Library (doh! No surprises) • SWOT on libraries (OMG!) • Future skills (more change?) • Future direction? Future solution? 

3. Me and my shadows… • Places • Harpurhey • Manchester. Central Library. Library school. John Rylands Library. • Business information. • Community Information & Librarianship • Longsight Library • St Helens. Birmingham • National policy, strategy; UK and elsewhere • Stuff • People’s Network • Performance, Research and Standards • PLA 2006 • Equalities … Race • City Libraries • SCL to LIC to MLA to ACE • Libraries Consultant … ? • CILIP … at last

4. Vision A fair and economically prosperous society is underpinned by literacy, access to information and the transfer of knowledge.

5. Looking forward: Not ‘Where are we coming from?’ but ‘Where are we going to and How?’

6. PESTLE … What is it? • Political - key political drivers of relevance • Economic - important economic factors • Social - main societal and cultural aspects • Technological - imperatives, changes and innovations • Legal - Current and impending legislation • Environmental - considerations, local and further afield • + Education - 19th – 21st century http://www.jiscinfonet.ac.uk/tools/pestle-swot/

7. Retrenchment Disaffection Print media decline Social media grows Technology-led conflict Conflict: Faith, Culture Resources-based conflict or better management and distribution? Not going back BRICS economies. 16% of UK exports by 2030 Euro hinders growth Cost of welfare; Barnet Graph of Doom Shift public to commercial sector 3rd sector: more but poorer Foreign investment in UK business and employment Political & Economic Austerity is here to stayhttp://bit.ly/Spia85

8. Brent graph of Doom…if spending projections are accurate and if councils statutory responsibilities are the same then […] social care costs will swallow up most local council spending leaving very little for other services to the community such as libraries, parks and leisure centres.

9. Conflict • Faith? • Homeland? • Culture? • Resources? AVAAZ.ORG

10. Brazil • Russia • India • China • South Africa BRICS undergroundecon.blogspot.com

11. Flood Deficit reduction Drought

12. Migration Ageing population Housing, Homelessness Commercial leisure displaces public service leisure. Fewer community facilities Increased exclusion Social in/justice World health Climate control falters Natural resources decline Fair access to Energy Water shortage UK drought Global crises Water levels rise Countries disappear People move Food and Nutrition Sustainability and security Social & Environmental http://www.mrfcj.org/ www.pwc.co.ukwww.oecd.org/eco/economicoutlook

14. Mobile and Global Personalised Digital Divide increases Commerce dominated Corporates control digital content Innovation v freedom? Productivity is ICT-driven News (papers) totally digital State reacts to real and alleged (political) abuse; controls Internet interactivity Information and Knowledge as saleable commodities IPR used to defend rights Technological & Legal

15. Education v. creative thinking Sir Ken Robinson http://vimeo.com/29485820

16. Government-driven Consumer-ised & Privatised Diversified; varied provision and choice from Narrower curriculum Failing to meet the needs of a Creative age Modular & Renewed and Revalidated Learning replaces Education Information Society > Knowledge Society? Learning to live virtually – information, access, comment, receive … Learning through life: Job, Work and Career dynamics Mobile, flexible, continuous, multiple, fusuion Education, Learning, Thinking

17. Future library

18. Library of Birmingham Input: Architecture andservices Output: Programmes and Collections Resourced: Capital and Revenue

19. Passive Lending resources Acquire, Organise, Control, Lend Adult education Activities for children Talks Local studies etc Reference and Enquiries Mediate with resources Outreach and Mobile work Author visits

20. Library’s role: collect and manage resources; controlled ‘free’ access • Education. Recreation. Information. Culture • Internet provided access but retained the culture associated with control • This is exacerbated by • Neuroses: Corporate IT; Concern for ‘safety’; media hype • Content mostly duplication of physical resources • No experimentation • Little community engagement

21. Active • Programmes of events and activities • Resources, defined by need, not medium • Destination for excitement, discovery, learning communities • Membership from birth • Ad hoc for occasions and festivals Proxy purchase of online resources Marketed services and facilities Learning environments Learner & Entrepreneur Information Advice Guidance Learner Networking and Exchange

22. The library is a place of • Exchange of information and ideas and the creation • Dynamic interaction • Destination: marketed to visitor audiences • Membership: series of events – courses, clubs, learning groups • Ad hoc; seasonal and occasional – festivals etc • Online are • Unavailable resources: Digitised and created-resources; Commercial, ‘licensed’ resources • Learning environments. Learning resources • Conversation and creative spaces • Staff support for learners, entrepreneurs, workers, job seekers • Partnerships with other learning and information agencies

23. SWOT on libraries

24. The Library Idea: a SWOT Early years School Academic … Further & Higher Education Research and innovation Business, commerce Banking, Finance, Law Entrepreneurs and Industry Health, Wellbeing, Care Government and Public Administration Special and Third Sector Public

25. Independent Accountable Authoritative Secure Lifelong Multi-sectoral Collaboration Information and knowledge world Sharing skills Destination Libraries Community-based Mature workforce Unique Strengths & Opportunities

26. Fragmented Competitive Under-valued and/or under-resourced Ageing workforce Nostalgia ‘manifesto’ Poor evidence Internal Slow to change No national strategy Funding cuts Workforce cuts & reluctance External Seen as (old) buildings Superseded by Internet Collaborators defensive/resistant Weaknesses & Threats Dave Pattern Huddersfield

27. Future skills

28. Professional Knowledge and Skills Base • Ethics and Values • at the centre • Key knowledge and skills • make our profession unique • Professional expertise and generic skills • in the wider library, information and knowledge sector context • wider organisation and environmental context • maintain current awareness and understanding of the wider profession • for knowledge of the world outside their own workplace

30. Ethics and Values - a Leveson moment Professional expertise - professional power

31. Generic skills - skills of strength

32. Skills priorities

33. Organising Knowledge and Information Knowledge and Information Management Using and Exploiting Knowledge and Information Research Skills Information Governance and Compliance Records Management and Archiving Literacies and Learning PKSB: Professional expertise

34. Organising Knowledge and Information Knowledge and Information Management Using and Exploiting Knowledge and Information Research Skills Information Governance and Compliance Records Management and Archiving Literacies and Learning PKSB: Professional expertise - professional power

35. PKSB: Generic skills - Skills of strength • Leadership and Advocacy • Strategy, Planning and Management • Customer Focus, Service Design and Marketing • IT and Communication

36. Is there a solution? direction?

37. It’s you! - a local solution based on a shared direction

38. Ethics and Values - a “Leveson Opportunity”

39. 9. Leadership and Advocacy Provide active leadership by inspiring and managing themselves and teams, both inside and outside the organisation and by promoting the positive value of library, information and knowledge services across the organisation and society. Includes leading and inspiring teams, influencing key stakeholders and understanding external frameworks

40. 10. Strategy, Planning and Management Setting long-term goals and objectives, and managing their planning and delivery within financial and legal constraints, while ensuring that strategies and priorities are in line with and support business objectives. Includes knowledge of business, operational and financial planning and management.

41. 11. Customer focus, Service Design and Marketing Understanding user needs, shaping library, information and knowledge services to meet those needs and using appropriate methods to inform customers of accessibility, value and benefit of the resources and services. Includes knowing the customer, identifying and communicating with stakeholders, designing and promoting services and evaluating the outcomes.

42. 12. IT and Communication Using a range of electronic information resources and systems, including databases, catalogues, Web resources and software. Includes new internet applications and social media tools and providing user-friendly electronic resources and tools. Communication skills include oral, writing and presentation skills, networking and relationship building and working effectively with individuals and groups.

43. and…Wider Library, Information and Knowledge Sector context • Sharing knowledge and information between sectors • Broadening horizons, gaining a different perspective • Joint working, cooperation and partnership working • Employability (there is much greater movement between sectors)

44. and … Wider Organisation and Environmental context …knowledge of the world outside the workplace. • the operating context and environment of their wider organisation … • the wider Political, Economic, Social, Technological, Environmental and Legal factors • the Information Society and the implications and opportunities that presents to the profession

45. Umbrella 2013 Four themes • Future Skills and Future Roles: What will society need from our profession? • Information to best support society: Information and digital literacy in education, work, health and leisure • Beyond Information Matters: Pushing the frontiers of Knowledge and Information Management • Partnerships for progress: Community engagement reaching our communities at organisational, local, regional, national and international levels

46. Economic necessity Political will? Knowledge Information Learning Citizenship “In a time of cuts, education is the winner” Evan Davis on Chancellor’s Autumn Statement Today Radio 4 5.12.12

47. Back to the future… Vision • A fair and economically prosperous society is underpinned by literacy, access to information and the transfer of knowledge. • CILIP’s advocacy priorities in 2013 will be • Information Management • Information Literacy … the skills held by information and library practitioners which everybody needs

48. Thank you! John john@johndolan.co.uk

49. References • Social Futures Observatory http://www.socialfuturesobservatory.co.uk/ • MR Foundation – Climate Justice http://www.mrfcj.org/ • The Network www.seapn.org.uk • Libraries and Society: Role, responsibility and future in an age of changeDavid Baker and Wendy Evans. Eds. Chandos 2011 • From Lending to Learning: The development and extension of public libraries Ronan O’Beirne Chandos 2010