Information professionals often wonder what they can do to promote their library, make it successful and increase their value within an organization. Achieving ibrary success can seem unattainable, but it shouldn’t be thought of as an elusive “white whale”.

Graham Beastall, a member of Soutron Global’s management team and founder and Managing Director of Soutron Limited, took a moment to reflect on what makes library success happen.

What Makes Library Success Happen?

It is often said that success breeds success. It is very interesting to see how different clients approach delivering library services. Every organization is different but the energy and creativity of the librarian is what makes the difference.

 

I took a telephone call recently from the manager of a library, someone I would like to call a friend, who I have known for a many years. His boss, who he rarely sees because the organization is going through massive changes, had made an effort to seek him out and ask him to look into records management for the organization. My librarian friend, since his appointment two years ago, had set about making changes in the library which had raised its profile. These included digitization projects, replacement of a legacy library system with new technology, introduction of mobile friendly search portals and an enterprise search facility followed by bringing the archives into focus, helping to better present the history of the institution.

 

During the call, we talked about a new database and the need for more analysis before any attempt to configure the database. We joked that he barely finishes one project than another is waiting in the wings. Where do they come from? I knew his predecessor and there was never the same level of interest in the library and its own involvement in other areas of the business.

 

It made me question, ‘Why is it that a library succeeds and attracts attention?’  What are the ingredients that make a library valued in an organization that makes it more prominent?

 

A ‘go to’ place.

Read the full story here. What do you think makes library success happen?