Presentation at the Hawaii Library Association Conference 2007.

1. Rebranding the Librarian
Profession: A Project of the
ALA Emerging Leaders
Program
Annis Lee Adams
University of Hawaii at Manoa
Jenny Emanuel
University of Central Missouri
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

2. ALA Emerging Leaders Program
Leadership Training
Project Selection
Virtual Work Groups
Poster Session
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

3. What is the ALA Emerging Leaders
Program?
Emerging Leaders began in 2007 as one of ALA
Immediate Past President Leslie Burger’s six
initiatives.
The program enables newer librarians (< 5 years
post-MLS) from across the country to:
work on a small group project
network with peers
gain an inside look into ALA structure
have an opportunity to serve the profession in a
leadership capacity
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

4. How we became ELs
Lee was sponsored by the Hawaii Library
Association
Jenny was sponsored by the Missouri Library
Association
Application included:
Writing a personal statement
Demonstrating employer support for us to attend ALA
Midwinter and Annual Conferences
Providing a letter of recommendation
Agreeing to commit to serving on an ALA committee
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

5. Prior to the 2007 ALA Midwinter
Meeting
We were emailed a long list of potential projects
We ranked our top choices
We were assigned to a project with a team of six
people:
3 academic librarians
1 young adult librarian
1 government agency librarian
1 systems librarian for a public library consortium
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

6. At the Midwinter Meeting
A day long leadership training with handful
of different speakers
A working lunch where our team made a
workplan for our project
Evening reception for networking with ELs
and ALA folks
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

7. At the ALA Annual Conference
Half day of leadership training
Working lunch to set up posters
Poster session with the findings of our
survey
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

8. Our Project
What are the options for rebranding the
librarian profession in the digital age?
We decided to conduct a survey of library
folk using Survey Monkey
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

9. Survey Objectives
Analyze current stereotypes of librarians
Research options for rebranding the librarian
profession
Question library professionals on the
perceptions of librarians and what a better
image may be
Propose solutions for rebranding the librarian
profession
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

10. Examples of Past Efforts at
Rebranding
Ms. Dewey (search engine)
Lipstick Librarian (blog)
You Don’t Look Like a Librarian (blog)
ALA Read Posters @ Your Library
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

11. Obstacles to Rebranding
Diversity of types of libraries and librarians
makes it difficult to come up with a single
brand
Librarians generally do not have marketing
backgrounds
Lack of funding for marketing campaigns
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

12. Survey Methodology
Survey had 13 questions distributed via listservs,
blogs, and AL Direct (ALA e-newsletter)
4 demographic questions: age, librarian?,
education, employer
3 on library use
2 on perceptions of librarians
1 Likert scale with 10 general statements about
librarians
3 open-ended questions: describe the librarian
of the digital age, how to communicate about the
profession, “only a librarian can deliver __ to__”
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

13. Results
Over 3400 responses
88.3% of respondents were librarians
Mostly academic (39.9%) and public
(29.1%) librarians
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

14. Respondent Demographics
30%
25%
20%
15% Ages of
respondents
10%
5%
0%
18-25 26-35 36-45 46-55 56-65 66+
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

15. Respondents’ perceptions of librarians
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Re
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November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

16. How respondents ranked others’
perceptions of librarians
70%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
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November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

17. Librarians:
100%
80%
60%
40%
20% Agree
0% Neutral
Disagree
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HLA Annual Conference
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November 10, 2007

18. Librarians:
100%
80%
60%
40%
20% Agree
0% Neutral
Disagree
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November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

19. What 3 words describe the librarian
in the digital age?
Tech Savvy (687)
Information/Informed (376)
Knowledgeable (368)
Flexible (317)
Savvy (277)
Innovative (262)
Helpful (208)
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

20. Summary & Recommendations
The library community believes the current
public perception of librarians is “Book Expert,”
while we think of ourselves as “Research Experts.”
So, 3 suggestions of how to reposition ourselves in
the public eye as the “ultimate human search
engine” and escape the single-focused stereotype
of “book worm”. . .
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

21. Recommendation 1
Design a media marketing campaign for
television, radio, online outlets, and print that
shows realistic, modern librarians doing the
diversity of work within the profession.
Show librarians that are adaptable, cutting edge,
helpful, hip, innovative, professional, and tech-
savvy.
Promote the person, instead of the building.
This will demystify the profession and entice
others to consider such a career. The librarian
as an "Info-naut."
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

22. Recommendation 2
Rethink the library as a physical location.
Bring the services librarians provide "out of
the stacks" and into the community.
Create a "third space" that showcases
library services that are integrated into the
physical and virtual community.
Librarians "taking to the streets" of
communities and cyber-space.
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

23. Recommendation 3
Network beyond the librarian profession and
"infiltrate" other professional associations and
publications.
Demonstrate the powerful skill set of librarians
and the valuable contributions they can make to
the success of all professions.
Librarians as keystone professionals in society
like doctors and lawyers.
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

24. Our Project Team
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

25. Emerging Leaders: Our
Experiences
Pluses
Networking
Working with young librarians wanting to move
librarianship forward
Minuses
Did not learn much about ALA
Lack of mentorship
Little guidance in joining an ALA committee despite it
being a requirement of the program
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference

26. Any Questions??
Thank you for attending our session!
November 10, 2007 HLA Annual Conference