Emerging Technologies, Evolving Professionals:Change Management Practices for Library Systems and Technologies

Upcoming LITA title (2019)
By Courtney McAllister

Submission Deadline: June 15, 2018

Decisions Announced: July 1, 2018


Do you have first-hand experience managing technology changes at a museum, archive, or public/academic/special/law/corporate/military/medical library? A technology change could be an intimidating project, like an ILS migration or makerspace launch, or something a bit more subtle, like introducing a new chat widget at the reference desk. Please consider submitting a brief write-up of your experience to enrich an upcoming LITA guide.

As we all know, library systems and technologies are evolving rapidly, but maintaining one’s technical skill set is not enough to successfully organize and implement change. Information professionals must also develop techniques that enable them to navigate the intricate interplay of human anxieties, perceptions, expectations, and mental models that accompany technological change. This guide is designed to equip new and seasoned practitioners with the strategies they need to master interpersonal and technical interdepencies.

“Notes from the Field” segments will integrate a diverse range of condensed case studies into the guide’s core chapters. These brief, first-hand experiences will address the following topics (please focus on either 1, 2, or 3):


1. The role of change agents in technology change. Specifically,

a) Your experience hiring a change agent to introduce or implement a technology change...

What was the catalyst for the change agent?

What traits did you look for in a prospective change agent?

How did other staff respond?

What worked/didn’t work?

Was the technology change successful?

If you started the process from scratch, what would do you differently?


b) Your experience fulfilling the role of a technology change agent...

How did other staff respond?

What strategies did you employ to adapt?

What worked/didn’t work?

Was the technology change successful?

If you started the process from scratch, what would you differently?


2. The role of assessment in technology change. Specifically,

What assessment strategies have worked/not worked for you.

What questions have you asked to guide your assessment of how technologies are operating within your organization?

How have you determined technology needs at your organization?

How have you evaluated potential technology changes?


3. Socializing technology changes among end users. Specifically,

How have you promoted or announced an upcoming technology change to end users?

How did you gather feedback?

How did you respond to user feedback?

What surprised you most about user reactions?



Please write a brief (1,000 words max) summary of your experience(s) with any ONE of the above topics, and submit for consideration by June 15, 2018

Please send an email with your submission and contact information to [log in to unmask] Use of the following subject line is strongly encouraged: LITA Case Study, YOUR NAME

Notification emails will be sent by July 1, 2018

Thank you very much!

Sincerely,

Courtney McAllister




CPT Courtney R. McAllister, MA, MLIS | Electronic Resources Librarian

Daniel Library<http://library.citadel.edu/home> | The Citadel<http://www.citadel.edu/root/>

171 Moultrie Street, Charleston, SC 29409

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