How Good is Our Crystal Ball? Predicting Future Changes for Academic Libraries (2018 Annual)
The ULS Future of University Libraries Discussion Group invites you to join us for an informal discussion at ALA Annual in New Orleans on the role of futures thinking in planning for organizational change. The discussion forum will be held on Sunday, June 24 from 4-5:30pm (CDT) in the Sheraton New Orleans, Bayside A. We will be joined by staff from the ALA Center for the Future of Libraries.
In June 2010, ACRL released a report, “Futures Thinking for Academic Librarians: Higher Education in 2025,” which asked academic librarians to consider what trends may impact the future of higher education and libraries. Authored by Dr. David J. Staley, Associate Professor in the History Department of The Ohio State University, and Dr. Kara Malenfant, Senior Strategist for Special Initiatives at ACRL, the report presented 26 possible scenarios for the future that would most impact academic libraries. As we inch closer to 2025, it’s important for academic librarians to evaluate these predictions to aid in planning for organizational change. How accurate were these predictions? How has the climate of higher education changed since this report was published in 2010? How can academic librarians best use futures thinking and trend reports to evaluate the future for their own institutions?
The ACRL report highlighted 9 scenarios that had both a high-probability of happening and that would also have the most impact on libraries. To focus the discussion, we welcome participants to provide feedback on the top 3 scenarios they would most like to discuss within the framework of futures thinking and organizational change. Survey feedback will be used to guide the discussion questions for the forum at ALA Annual.
Link to feedback survey- https://bit.ly/2LdqMkH
