Professional Involvement: what,

why & howBethan Ruddock

@bethanar#npid2011

What is professional involvement?

‘learning from my peers and professional networks and being to help/assist/collaborate in and out of workplace.’

‘learning, developing and contributing. I also think entitlement to 'professional' label is based on involvement (or CPD at least)’

‘'professional involvement' = continued learning’

Learning

‘Sharing experiences/approaches with fellow professionals, including (especially) what didn't work!’

‘It means knowing (some of) what's going on, what issues are big etc., and having a means to vent my opinions on that. It also means contributing to everyone's prof dev - by speaking/writing/organising stuff - & supporting colleagues informally.’

Sharing

‘I think it's about active participation and engaging with peers in your industry’

‘It means interacting with librarianship and / or the library industry, beyond your own job and institution.’

‘being in contact/discussion with other professionals across sectoral boundaries, engaging with topical issues’

‘Having an awareness of what is happening across the profession and contributing to that in some way through prof org or not’

Participating

‘a chance to influence the direction of my profession and my career within it.’

‘have your own opinion, but be prepared to change, don't be afraid to make mistakes, be open’

‘testing ideas & tweaking to make them work effectively for all. Finding ways to improve.’

‘Having a good group of people on Twitter to ask random q’s on a Friday afternoon, & getting immediate, useful answers!’

And more…

(thanks to @girlinthe, @mandahill, @barbaragordon, @lukask, @suzyredrec, @wigglesweets, @el399, @estherarens,

@therealwikiman, @nunuthunder, @thomasconnelly and @samanthahalf)

… engaging with the profession in any way that is beyond the normal demands of your job

Professional involvement is…

Professional organisations

Run events/conferences/training courses

Provide opportunities for networking

Provide opportunities for structured professional development (eg Chartership)

Provide a mentoring or peer support program

Publish journals/magazines/newsletters/blogs

Have committees, staffed by members

Provide careers advice & employment support – throughout your career

What can they do for you?

Join! Membership organisations need your support

Volunteer for something: join a committee, write an article/blog post

Attend events & provide feedback Network – share ideas, support other

members Become a mentor

What can you do for them?

Create your own…

Professional involvement can be whatever you want it to be…

But what else can I do?

Blogging

Tweeting

Advocacy

And much, much more…

Knitting

Image from http://www.ravelry.com/projects/girlinthemoon/classmark-mittens

Jigsaws

Images from http://intothehobbithole.blogspot.com/

Cartooning

Images courtesy of http://derangementanddescription.wordpress.com/

Dancing

Travelling

Image from http://www.itinerantpoetrylibrarian.blogspot.com/

‘They provide the opportunity for: benchmarking;

discovering solutions to problems; finding out about

tools others have used first; making you realise you are

not alone in your struggles; encouraging professional

engagement’

‘They are great for informal training, sharing good

practice, bouncing ideas around, commiserating and

supporting in times of trouble - and giving good advice.’

Why… ? Peer networking

‘To be effective anyone in the library/information needs to be able to network with peers. Not only can this help either directly or indirectly with your career but is stimulating and thought provoking to find out how others tackle particular issues. Your peers are also a valuable information source in themselves!’

Why… ? Peer networking

Why…? Opportunities

43% of opportunities came from prior personal contact

41% came from previous professional achievement/involvement

16% came from ‘traditional’ methods, eg call for papers

Why… ? Reputation

Library Journal ‘Movers and Shakers’ 2011

Why..? Skills

Why... ? Employability

Why… ? Fun!

How do I get involved?

YES!

Can I help?

1. Practitioner experience

What professional involvement (if any) have you tried? What works for you and why? What positive experiences of professional involvement have you had? What

negative experiences?

2. Boundaries and control

Are there any barriers to your professional involvement? What are these barriers? Why are they there? How can you address them?

3. Future of the profession

What are you doing as a practitioner to prepare yourselves for the future? Is it possible to prepare yourself? What help do you need to prepare for your future career? Where can you

get it?

@bethanarbethaninfoprof.wordpress.combethan.ruddock@manchester.ac.uk