Strategic Planning for Librarians

George J. Soete

Strategic planning is about Change Choice Focus

2000 and Beyond: Predictions from 1996 (Jim Neal)

Libraries will take over campus computer centers.

Academic library funding will remain stable.

Digital acquisitions budgets will quadruple, eating up 40-50% of acquisitions budgets.

More than 50% of reference transactions will take place over campus networks.

No issue will challenge librarians more than copyright.

2000 and Beyond: Predictions from 1998 (Jim Neal)

Librarians will be key planners in developing technological innovations.

The number of librarians working in academic libraries will decrease.

New building construction will decline sharply.

There will be more pressure, from both inside the university and out, to monitor user access to information.

The library tenure battle will escalate—again.

FLEXIBILITY BLANK MODEL

CONTROL

I

N

T

E

R

N

A

L

E

X

T

E

R

N

A

L

RESPONSIVEADHOCRACY

STABLE HIERARCHY

COOPERATIVE TEAM

RATIONAL FIRM

HUMAN RESOURCES

REWARDS

MORALE

TRAINING

ADAPTABILITY

GROWTH

INNOVATION

READINESS

MEASUREMENT

INFO MANAGEMENT

RULES

STABILITY

PRODUCTIVITY

GOAL-SETTING

BOTTOM LINE

ACCOMPLISHMENT

FLEXIBILITY NOW

CONTROL

I

N

T

E

R

N

A

L

E

X

T

E

R

N

A

L

RESPONSIVEADHOCRACY

STABLE HIERARCHY

COOPERATIVE TEAM

RATIONAL FIRM

HUMAN RESOURCES

REWARDS

MORALE

TRAINING

ADAPTABILITY

GROWTH

INNOVATION

READINESS

MEASUREMENT

INFO MANAGEMENT

RULES

STABILITY

PRODUCTIVITY

GOAL-SETTING

BOTTOM LINE

ACCOMPLISHMENT

FLEXIBILITY SHOULD BE

CONTROL

I

N

T

E

R

N

A

L

E

X

T

E

R

N

A

L

RESPONSIVEADHOCRACY

STABLE HIERARCHY

COOPERATIVE TEAM

RATIONAL FIRM

HUMAN RESOURCES

REWARDS

MORALE

TRAINING

ADAPTABILITY

GROWTH

INNOVATION

READINESS

MEASUREMENT

INFO MANAGEMENT

RULES

STABILITY

PRODUCTIVITY

GOAL-SETTING

BOTTOM LINE

ACCOMPLISHMENT

SWOT Analysis Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats

Sample SWOT Analysis of Libraries

Strengths:• Extensive service experience• Expertise in information management• Major information resource on the net• Tradition of cooperation • Policies to support and manage cooperation• Standards to facilitate cooperation

Sample SWOT Analysis of Libraries

Weaknesses:• Lack of common, ambitious, well-articulated

vision• Lack of broad base of technical expertise• Divergent concerns and priorities• Growing gap between our services and the

needs of our users• Domination by expensive private sector

services• Lack of organizational agility

Sample SWOT Analysis of Libraries

Opportunities:• Vast amounts of information accessible by

greater base of users• New tools to facilitate access, exploration,

understanding and use• Increased levels of resource sharing• Stable and well-established infrastructure• Potential of electronic/optical storage to

facilitate preservation and access

Sample SWOT Analysis of Libraries

Threats:• Budget problems endanger current system• Traditional library roles called into question• Growing competition from commercial

entities• Copyright dilemma• Slow speed of standards setting process

and standards adoption• Lack of research to drive research-to-

innovation process