Librarianship in the 21st Century

The main purpose of this article is to address the issues that distinguish 21st Century librarianship from the traditional librarianship of the past two centuries. A second, but closely related purpose, is to seek consensus on just "What is 21st Century librarianship?" by inviting comments.
Understanding the way today's young people learn and communicate, using instant messaging, 'texting', e-mail, the Internet, and even computer games, is a vital part of 21st Century librarianship. 21st Century librarians are developing new skills in order to help prepare our youth to be successful citizens, and to retrain our adult library users faced with the challenging technological changes of the future.
21st Century libraries are created by 21st Century librarians with input from 21st Century patrons and communities. A 21st Century library results from a completely new mindset, a new perspective in stark contrast with the traditional 19th and 20th Century libraries of America. It stems from a new focus on patron-centered library services. A 21st Century librarian is tuned in to the 21st Century patrons, hones 21st Century librarian skills, and strives to be relevant to those seeking information services today and in the future.
Key Issues
But all of the above raises more difficult questions: How do 21st Century librarians stay in tune with the information needs of three very disparate types of library users all at the same time? These are (1) the “digital natives,” or “millennial patrons,” (2) the “digital immigrant” patrons, and (3) the “traditional” library users. Which technologies need to be adopted first, and how are they employed most effectively? Which materials, and in which formats, are most appropriate? And will they most likely become obsolete rather quickly, like most technology? Finally, and perhaps the key question: how do 21st Century librarians most effectively acquire the necessary technology skills?
21st Century librarianship requires librarians who will lead the way—leaders who will face the challenges of strained budgets, and with stout hearts seek to make history rather than passively succumb to history.
The 21st Century library will have great books and will make them available in both paper and digital format; 21st Century librarians accept the fact that computers and Kindles are here to stay, and in their early generations of development. 21st Century librarians embrace technology, especially when it helps organize, archive, and provide ready access to information as it grows exponentially.
Traditionally, librarianship has been about facilitating the acquisition of information. And that presupposes librarians are the experts in the acquisition, evaluation and dissemination of information. Contrast this with the “millennial patron," and the “digital native” library users. Most of these 60+ million young people are growing up while acquiring information digitally (of good, bad or indifferent quality), primarily without the help of a librarian. They commonly "Google it." So, 21st Century librarians may wonder what this rising generation needs from libraries? And these librarians, in order to survive, are earnestly seeking ways of staying relevant to their needs.
21st Century librarians recognize the "digital divide" that separates the various categories of library users: (1) the "millennial generation" or “digital natives,” (2) "digital immigrants," and (3) the “traditional” library users. Traditional library users typically do not or cannot use technology, such as computers for looking up books.
Having introduced the key concepts and issues of 21st Century librarianship, we will now consider how to plan for 21st Century libraries.
Planning for a 21st Century Library
A 21st Century library plan includes five strategic areas of operation:
Strategic leadership and planning
1. Pay attention to social, cultural, economic, and political trends and consider their potential impact on our library.
2. Collect, track, and analyze library data for patterns of usage and change. (Do we need new ways to gather data that are more helpful to planning for technology?)
3. Contact our stakeholders to seek input on library plans. (Do we have new/different stakeholders or constituent groups?)
4. Spend time within the community to understand the needs and interests of our user population. (Does our community have universal access to technology and resources - how do we contribute to enhancing universal access in our community?)
5. Review library policies related to Internet use, patron records, access, copyright, and confidentiality to make sure they reflect new technology applications.
6. Compare the last three years of spending for any technology or electronic resources. (What areas show the need for increased funding allocation on a regular basis?)
7. Take advantage of all external funding opportunities? (Look at potential grants, community sources, and business sponsorship.)
8. Determine who will represent the library and advocate on our behalf locally, statewide, and nationally.
Human resource development
1. Review position descriptions and explicitly state what technology competency requirements are needed for each job.
2. Create staff learning plans to promote and track the continuous learning activities of staff, and provide input into the annual review process.
3. Review every vacant position as an opportunity to enhance technological capabilities of the library and staff. (Use vacancies as an opportunity to align staff positions with library service goals.)
4. Recognize innovators for enhancing the library technology presence in the community.
5. Provide support for all staff to participate in conferences and training (in person and online), and promote awareness of best practices.
6. Foster an organizational culture that values the sharing of ideas and practices within our library, in our service area, and among our colleagues.
7. Provide input to our library system for developing support programs and continuing education that address our needs.
8. Set high standards of performance for every level from Board member to entry-level staff.
Management of technology infrastructure
1. Align the technology plan with the library’s overall strategic plan.
2. Check our inventory of software available to library users that provides them with access to our digital collections and to standard tools. (What version of operating system and office software do we have installed?)
3. Review security software licenses annually to ensure workstations, servers, and the network are secure from unwanted outside access and viruses. (Ensure that these items are part of an ongoing budget line item.)
4. Review the disaster plan to ensure technology resources are addressed.
5. Initiate a quarterly spot check on backups to verify that procedures are followed.
6. Know the location of departmental electronic files that are critical to library services, programs, collections and operations. (Are we dependent on individual staff members to locate files? If so, set up new file management procedures.)
7. Review statistics about network traffic to determine the adequacy of our bandwidth. (Can we get this data from our Internet Service Provider or do we need to collect this data within the library?)
8. Review our computer hardware configuration to maximize service and minimize space requirements. (How do we balance our space and connectivity needs? Are we still dependent on wired connections?)
9. Promote our virtual library. (Do the physical walls of our library constrain access to the full suite of our resources and services?)
10. Review our library environment and services as a gathering place for technology users. (What added value does the library offer over commercial establishments with wireless Internet access?)
11. Assess the overall speed and functionality of the library’s online catalog and its related components. (Do library users experience seamless and responsive library transactions when checking library records, placing holds, and searching databases?)
Technology applications for collections
1. Inventory electronic resources currently offered to our library users.
2. Identify electronic resources available to our library but not currently offered. (Are we providing access to all electronic databases funded by the State Library that could be available to our library community?)
3. Personally access databases remotely to evaluate ease of access and breadth of offerings. (Compare access mechanisms of other libraries to determine the most effective means for our library.)
4. Review opportunities for the library to create digital content. (Do we have a local collection? Can we access Utah’s digital resources?)
5. Evaluate our library’s web presence. (Can we feature key programs and events as a podcast or video blog? Do we have library staff enthusiasts who can sustain a library blog, or social media?)
6. Challenge traditional perceptions about user-created content and expression. (Do we allow patron reviews of library resources? Do we encourage publication of patron work on our website?)
7. Be patient - the adoption of newly introduced digital resources may be slow and the impact may be difficult to measure.
Integration of technology into services
1. Target the website to capture the attention of specific audiences and maximize the library’s services and programs. (Do we have something on our website for everyone we serve?)
2. Introduce a new service or resource with complementary training and a marketing initiative.
3. Make the library accessible 24/7. (Have we launched virtual reference services? Can our digital resources be accessed remotely?)
4. Comply with accessibility standards. (Do we have assistive technologies to support our library users? Have we evaluated our website for both accessibility and usability?)
5. Introduce instruction in multiple formats (in person and online) about using the library’s digital resources and new technologies. (Are we offering programs that address such popular technologies as image sharing, social networking, and media production?)
6. Promote partnerships and collaboration in the development and delivery of services.
Skills for 21st Century Librarians
What skills are most important for librarians to have in the 21st Century? Rather than focus on specific useful skills, like HTML, and network administration, 21st Century librarians need to understand the “big picture”: how to really be able to keep up with technology, make good decisions about its implementation, use it and promote it to library users.
Basic technical competencies
1. Ability to embrace change: Our patron populations are rapidly changing as are the technologies for serving them. We need to be able to look at how we are serving our patrons and to change our strategies if what we are doing is not working (or is not the best we could be doing). Change should be looked upon as an exciting thing — as a positive thing. We should fear not providing the best services to our patrons much more than we should fear change.
2. Comfort in the online medium: Librarians need to do so much online these days, way beyond basic catalog and database searching (which sure isn’t easy either). Librarians have to be able to use search engines and use them well. They need to be able to find quality online resources. They need to help patrons set up e-mail and teach basic Internet skills. They need to be able to troubleshoot problems users are having accessing online library resources, at least to the extent where they can figure out if the problem is on the library’s side or the user’s side. Reference librarians are often providing reference services online via e-mail and synchronous chat. More important than knowing specific tools is a general comfort in the online medium. You just can’t provide reference services without basic Internet and search skills.
3. Ability to troubleshoot new technologies: Many of us may wonder from time to time, "did I get an MLS to fix paper jams?" But that is just a part of the good customer service we provide in libraries. We need to help students and faculty use the scanner, fix the printer, and troubleshoot any other technology problems they may be having. As we get new computers, printers, scanners, etc. we need to learn how to troubleshoot those. The key is just being able to have a decision-tree in your head of what to ask or try when there is a problem. Unfortunately, many librarians cannot troubleshoot this stuff. Too often they just throw up an “out of order” sign because they just don’t have enough computer knowledge to figure out what the problem is. Librarians should be able to play with the technologies in the library, to learn what problems commonly come up, and to fix them if necessary, because it is often our responsibility to fix them.
4. Ability to easily learn new technologies: There are so many new technological things at the library. The best way to learn new technology is to "play" with it. It’s easiest to learn new technology at a time when no patrons are using it and you’re just casually playing with it. Put it through its paces. Try to do all of the things it’s supposed to do. Read the documentation if there are things that are confusing. Learning about technology is definitely a skill. People need to learn how to learn about new technologies without having to ask other people for help all the time.
5. Ability to keep up with new ideas in technology and librarianship (enthusiasm for learning): Keeping up with new technology is often not an explicitly listed part of one’s basic weekly job duties, but its importance cannot be stressed enough. We need to be able to keep up with what’s new in technology and what libraries are (or could be) doing with it. And we need to be able to keep up in the shortest time possible because we are busy. Try and take some time out of your busy schedule to keep up, whether you are reading the professional literature, browsing blogs, or attending a Webcast.
Higher-level competencies
1. Project management skills: When you have an idea for trying some new technology, be prepared to organize and implement it. For example, to implement IM (Instant Messaging) reference at your library, first create a proposal for your supervisor with examples of how other libraries are using IM and how you want to implement the technology, determine which tool(s) to use, how to train staff, market the service, and so on. This will give you a roadmap for implementation. It’s also important to be able to delegate tasks to colleagues and to get people to work as a team. Also you will need to be able to talk to and work with people from different areas (IT, faculty, community members). 21st-century librarians need to be able to take a project from an idea to the finishing touches (training, marketing, and ensuring sustainability).
2. Ability to question and evaluate library services: There are many little things you can do to improve your services. Step one is rethinking everything. Question why you are doing things the way you’re doing them. Question whether what you’re doing is really helping your patrons. Question EVERYTHING. Oftentimes we have policies that really aren’t helping anyone. Maybe it’s a relic of a time when it was useful or maybe it’s a policy that only benefits the librarians. Either way, it’s important to keep asking why we do the things we do and how these things affect our patrons.
3. Ability to evaluate the needs of all stakeholders: 21st Century librarians need to understand how changes in the way the library provides services will affect all stakeholders. Sometimes we focus on the needs of one group and ignore the fact that the changes that will benefit one group will not benefit another. With any change, librarians should create a list of all of the different stakeholders and actually discuss how it will affect each of them. Stakeholders would include not only library patrons, but staff, IT, and administrators. If you implement a project that library staff do not support, the likelihood of success is poor.
4. Vision to translate traditional library services into the online medium: With the growth of distance learning and the fact that so many patrons access the library from the Internet, it’s important that librarians translate traditional library services into the online medium. This includes readers’ advisory, reference, and instruction services. How can we provide equivalent services to people who only access the library online? 21st-century librarians need to know how to capitalize on the technologies out there (HTML, blogs, wikis, screencasting, IM, etc.) to provide these services online to their patrons.
5. Being critical of new technologies and the ability to compare technologies: It is often a challenge to figure out what the right tool is for the job at hand. We need to know what the requirements of a project are and what each available technology can do. We need to be able to compare different versions of the same type of software to figure out which will best meet our patrons’ needs. We also need a sense of pragmatism about technology. We need to avoid "technolust." We shouldn’t just implement wikis because wikis are cool and we really want to use them. There is nothing magical about the technologies; it’s how we use them that matters. Technology should always fill a need; and we should think realistically about which technologies are actually needed in our libraries and which are just things we personally want to try.
6. Ability to sell ideas/library services: 21st Century librarians need serious marketing skills and salesmanship to be successful. New ideas often need to be “sold” to administrators, IT, faculty, colleagues, and students. Once we implement a service for patrons, we need to market it so that they will actually use the service.
Public Library Collaboration in the 21st Century
The 21st Century Library Mindset
Ideas
five laws of library science are an important foundation of 20th Century library practices which have been reworked for a more digital age. Five new laws of librarianship acknowledge that the modern library is concerned with knowledge and information in all it's forms, not just books.
Five new laws of librarianship
* First New Law: Libraries serve humanity.
* Second New Law: Respect all forms by which knowledge is communicated.
* Third New Law: Use technology intelligently to enhance service.
* Fourth New Law: Protect free access to knowledge.
* Fifth New Law: Honor the past and create the future.
Model
<big>Care more than others think is wise
Expect more than others think is possible
Risk more than others think is safe
Dream more than others think is practical</big>
Managing Millennial Patrons
Generation Y
Generation Y (considered to be born from 1982 through 2001), so labeled as a follow on to the previous Generation X, but self labeled as Millennials (apparently wanting to disassociate themselves with the previous GenX). Most distinctively, they are indeed a “new” generation of learner, consumer, citizen and library patron.
There is debate as to whether Gen Y’s parents are Baby Boomers or GenXers. Truth is, both, their parents are generally very late Boomers, and early GenXers. Early Boomers tended to have children younger than the late Boomers and GenXers, so there tends to be a confusing overlap between the early Boomers who had early GenX kids, and late Boomers and early GenXers who had kids around the same time, the GenY.
Millennials are typified by their use of instant communication technologies, are also somewhat peer-oriented (which means they prefer the opinions of anonymous peers to that of ‘experts’), are into expression and acceptance, are more culturally tolerant than previous generations, have an inclination for delaying some of the rites of passage into adulthood, and trend toward living with their parents for longer than previous generations. They are generally considered the “Trophy Kids”, due to the “everybody’s a winner” approach to group activities, and as a result tend toward generational consensus building. They like to work collaboratively, and prefer to shape their jobs to fit their lives rather than adapt their lives to the workplace.
Technology in the 21st Century Library
NY Public Libraries “”

VISION STATEMENT
Every individual in New York State should have access to electronic doorway library services. An electronic doorway library (EDL), as an integral part of the statewide electronic learning community, uses computers and telecommunications technology, a full range of library resources, and the services of skilled library personnel to:
* create, assemble, evaluate, and use information;
* extend access to library services from homes, schools, work places, and other locations;
* facilitate access by people with disabilities and other special needs; and
* go beyond the library's walls to obtain information and resources.
Electronic doorway libraries meet the ongoing library and information needs of education, government, business, and all people regardless of age, background, and location.
Trusteeship in the 21st Century Public Library
ISSUES
* What do 21st Century public library Trustees do?
* What is my role in a 21st Century community?
* How is my Board different from 20th Century Boards?
* What do we need to understand?
* How do we acquire the necessary knowledge and skills?
* What do we do to create a 21st Century library?
ACTIONS
* Acquire, Learn and Use new Technologies
* Get to know all your patrons
* Include diversity on your Board
* Include diverse age groups in library programs, and especially on library staff
* Advocate for technology in your library
* Use social media to communicate with your patrons
Facilities of a 21st Century Library
What Library Schools Can Do
It appears that schools of library and information science (SLIS) are lagging well behind any movement toward 21st Century librarianship. ALA and PLA are not addressing the topic on any significant scale. The limited information that does exist is basically “Library2.0” technologies that lack any comprehensive theory for application, or cohesive direction toward specific goals. It appears no prominent SLIS has 21st Century Librarianship courses in their curriculum. Some incorporate Library2.0 type topics in some courses, but, again, no coherent approach to a 21st Century librarianship concept. There is no vision of 21st Century Librarianship where it really counts, in SLIS.
It also appears that SLIS are sending MLS graduates into our profession equally as unprepared as school teachers to apply basic technology skills in whatever library environment they choose to begin. School media specialists and academic librarians are at the forefront of these changes in librarianship, but public librarians have much to learn to catch up to where they need to be regarding 21st Century librarianship. Community public library staff are much less technologically literate than most of their patrons.
Unfortunately, much of the MLS theory gets lost in the face of reality dealing with patrons and daily issues. An MLS program is not intended to be a skills program. Advanced degree programs are inherently theory based and not training and practicum based. However, information with immediate application in addition to contemporary theory is highly useful. One example is the [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ym06hUckPeg University of Michigan Library: The Future of Libraries (YouTube)] with an excellent perspective on what libraries and librarians should become.
Library schools can help by teaching students how to develop a strategy for continuing their education once they are out of library school, how to develop skills for learning new technologies, and how to develop a strategy for troublshooting technologies. No library school student should be allowed to graduate without basic Internet skills and search skills.
Library schools should definitely teach students how to sell library services and new ideas to different stakeholders. Practical evaluation skills can also be taught; it’s not always easy to figure out what is working and what is not. Some library schools actually offer classes on project management (even technology project management!) or evaluating software. Classes on traditional library services should address how these services can be provided online. HTML skills are also really important, but it’s the “big picture skills” that matter the most.
Technologies will come and go. Change is inevitable. 21st Century librarians need to be able to adapt to and embrace change, easily learn technologies, keep up with changes in the profession, plan for new services and evaluate old services, develop services that meet the needs of all stakeholders, evaluate technologies, and sell their ideas and market new services. By so doing, they will be better able to meet the challenges of changing user populations and emerging technologies.
If SLIS are to stay relevant, like we all want libraries to do, they need to become more - more nimble at including current professional demands and requirements, not just “tried & true” library theory. Schools of library and information science MUST get more relevant and cutting-edge curriculum NOW to address these 21st Century librarianship issues. Tomorrow is too late.

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