Creative Destruction and Library Services

I came across this editorial in Issues in Science and TechnologyLibrarianship
Excerpt:
“ …..Reduced library visitorship due to the more desirable digital delivery of services and collections means that science librarians (among others) have to change their way of operating. For example, the recent emphasis on the creation of inviting spaces to attract users is probably not an effective long-term survival strategy. Think about it: What if the Department of Motor Vehicles' stated objective was to get as many people into their brick-and-mortar office as possible? What if bank executives instructed their branch managers to induce as many people to come into the bank as they could? Would these strategies actually improve service or outcomes?
The digital delivery of information means that librarians have to develop more direct-to-reader services. And because publishing infrastructure and standards are so well developed in science, it will be the science librarians who are first in this area. If we can't deliver content and services to our users in their offices and labs, then it is likely that someone else (e.g. Google and Amazon) will…”  

Managing a 21st-Century Library Collection

Some ideas from the conclusion of this article (Managing a 21st-Century Library Collection)

 about to what librarians need be doing to assure the future of libraries:

• work with different players in every aspect of the information supply chain.

• we need to engage our users. 
  
• we need to be out there finding out how they do their research and how they do their work.

•  understanding users is an important prerequisite before we work on engaging users

• we really need to get our resources out to where students do their work

• we need to engage our content providers in conversations about licensing terms and how we should

• we have to be engaged with our system providers, making sure we are not just getting the system we deserve, but actually getting a system that we really need.

R we Still Relevant?

The Role of University Libraries in the Digital Age

from EdCetera

As cloud-based content becomes increasingly popular, it’s easy to wonder whether libraries will remain relevant in higher education. Students can download research materials in the blink of an eye, and professors can offer digital or scannable course packets just as easily as they can refer people to original hard copies.

Future U: Library 3.0 has more resources, greater challenges

Libraries strive to balance the physical and digital despite dwindling budgets

Green
“The nature of the academic library has always been to provide a platform for research, study, social activity and discovery,” he said. “I think, at its heart, the nature of the library will never really change, but the services that we provide and the role that we play in a student’s or researcher’s life will constantly shift.”

2012 top ten trends in academic libraries

A review of the trends and issues affecting academic libraries in higher education

Trends in US Academic Libraries 2012

A SNAPSHOT OF PRIORITIES & PERSPECTIVES U.S. Academic Libraries

2012 OCLC conducted a member survey
to understand librarians’ top
priorities, current key initiatives,
thoughts on service and top
methods for keeping current on
happenings in the library field.

Big on Ecollections, Ebooks, the Online Library