The Future—My TakeThe Future—My Take

Or, Random Musings from the Chairlift . . .

““The Times, They Are The Times, They Are A’ChangingA’Changing. . .”. . .”

Today’s students live a life shaped by technological innovations

Undergraduates immediately go online often with a general web search

So Does an Earlier So Does an Earlier GenerationGeneration

“’I live on the Internet,’ General Powell said. He cited his favorite site: www.refdesk.com. . . . The reference site is so comprehensive, General Powell said, he has thrown out all his encyclopedias and dictionaries.”

--New York Times, 1/26/01

We Have New ClientelesWe Have New ClientelesDistributed learnersAlumniNon-affiliated users of locally-created

digital collections

Changing Emphases within Changing Emphases within Research LibrariesResearch Libraries

Commitment to the digital libraryCommitment to alumniCommitment to collaboration Lower value placed on traditional services

Access to More and More of Access to More and More of Our Resources is DigitalOur Resources is Digital

Digital collections have broken the constraints of time and space

Users of electronic resources continue to need assistance

Reference assistance should also break the constraints of time and space

In-Person Transactions are In-Person Transactions are DroppingDropping

Reference Desk Transactions

0

20000

40000

60000

80000

100000

Year

This is Not Just a Cornell This is Not Just a Cornell PhenomenonPhenomenon

We’re No Longer the Only We’re No Longer the Only Game in TownGame in Town

AskJeeves receives over 4,000,000 queries per day

Remember Colin Powell!

Our ChallengeOur Challenge

We must use traditional strengths and values to build new programs and services

We must create a new paradigm wherein we no longer define ourselves, our professional roles, and our services solely—or chiefly —in terms of “the desk”

VisionVision

Users will have digital access to high quality reference services anytime from anywhere

Reference service will be a key component of the digital library

Digital reference should be “High Tech and High Touch”

Guiding ValuesGuiding Values

The core values which have informed our services and programs for years must inform our new services and programs

Traditional View of ReferenceTraditional View of Reference

Librarian and Library are the centers of the universe

Users come to the desk in the library for service

Desk hours reflect library needsUsers come to the library for instruction

A New View of ReferenceA New View of Reference

Users are the center of the universeServices revolve around usersReference services are available digitally

and physicallyReference services are synchronous and

asynchronousReference service hours meet users’ needs

We Take Instruction to Our We Take Instruction to Our UsersUsers

Library instruction is presented on the webLibrary instruction is presented in wired

classroomsWe create a mobile, wireless lab for use in

non-wired classroomsLibrary instruction is presented in the

library

We Must Continue to be We Must Continue to be Willing to Experiment and to Willing to Experiment and to

Take Risks!Take Risks!

Create New Reference Create New Reference Services, Programs, and Services, Programs, and

Models of ServiceModels of Service

Expand and Enhance Digital Expand and Enhance Digital InstructionInstruction

We Must Continue to Grow We Must Continue to Grow Professionally and Develop Professionally and Develop

New SkillsNew Skills

Three Years OutThree Years Out

More time spent on digital referenceHarder to define primary clienteleLonger hours of service {24/7 model}Streaming media services to remote users

And If We Don’t Make These And If We Don’t Make These Changes?Changes?

We will become increasingly irrelevant to our users

We will lose administrative and institutional credibility

We will likely lose staff and resources through reallocation

We will be marginalized and eventually reorganized out of existence

A state without the means of some change is without the means of its conservation.

--Edmund Burke