An interesting post on 3 Geeks and a Law Blog offers a reaction to the recent Bloomberg Law article "Law Firm Librarians Feel Underused and Underpaid". The article reports on a survey of 80 law firm librarians in the US in which the vast majority report that their skills aren't being fully utilised and that they're underpaid.
In the blog post, Mark Gediman points out that there is much greater capacity for librarians to be involved in business development and competitive intelligence in a systematic, integrated way. These activities require both research and analysis to connect trends to the larger strategy in the firm—which are areas in which librarians have useful skills.
The last paragraph sums it: "Let’s face it, the days of 'they know what I can do and they know where to find me if they need me to do it' are long gone." How are you proving your value?
ALLA(WA) Secretary - Megan Fitzgibbons.
Librarian, University of Western Australia.
In the blog post, Mark Gediman points out that there is much greater capacity for librarians to be involved in business development and competitive intelligence in a systematic, integrated way. These activities require both research and analysis to connect trends to the larger strategy in the firm—which are areas in which librarians have useful skills.
The last paragraph sums it: "Let’s face it, the days of 'they know what I can do and they know where to find me if they need me to do it' are long gone." How are you proving your value?
ALLA(WA) Secretary - Megan Fitzgibbons.
Librarian, University of Western Australia.
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