05.09.2018

By Skip Prichard

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to visit my hometown of Baltimore, Maryland, for our inaugural meeting of the Americas Regional Council. Nearly 200 attendees from 120 institutions and 36 US states came together to discuss technology trends in libraries.

It seems that everything is changing at a rapid clip. Even our vacuums are texting us and our fitness regimens have become virtual. Not a day goes by when we don’t read about developments that will rock our world—from flying cars to containers that sense they’re nearing empty and order a refill.

Our conference attendees discussed the impact of these changes in society and specifically on libraries. Dr. Carla D. Hayden, the 14^th Librarian of Congress for the United States, opened our conference with an inspiring keynote. If you know Dr. Hayden, you know that I was in the unfortunate situation of having to follow her on the stage.

It was after our presentations that we had a chance to speak about the impact of change on our organizations.

Dr. Hayden and I spoke briefly about all of the changes in libraries.

In this brief video, we discuss:

• the need for constant change in libraries today,
• “pinch-me moments” in libraries,
• libraries’ roles in society, and how they are more relevant than ever before,
• the most crucial skills NOT being taught in library school,
• the importance of having a support network, and
• the value of partnerships and collaboration.

I hope you enjoy hearing Dr. Hayden’s thoughts on these topics as much as I did.