Thriving as a 21st Century Information Professional

I will be addressing the Network for Information and Knowledge Exchange (NetIKX) members at their meeting on Wednesday 29^th September about the challenges and opportunities facing information professionals in today’s information rich, time poor environment. To some extent this is going back to my roots, having been more closely involved in the dark arts of knowledge management (and specifically on-line communities) these past few years. However, information management and knowledge management are two sides of the same coin, and I’ve always made the connections between them when talking about either.

I quite like simple definitions, so for anyone confused by the terms “information management” and “knowledge management”, here’s a useful pointer:

Information Management is about organising stuff..

..Knowledge Management isn’t!

So, having cleared up any confusion there, I’ll just mention that my presentation to NetIKX will be about organising yourself to become more knowledge aware. The full synopsis (an oxymoron?) of the presentation is as follows:

The volume of information continues to grow at an exponential rate; new tools, products and web services appear almost daily. The recession has hit hard but nothing seems to stem the tide of innovation. If anything, the economic climate has fuelled even greater innovation and allowed companies to be even more radical in the way they use the information tools and platforms now available. These are challenging times for the information professional. We all need to be able to work smarter, acquiring and developing the skills to become more effective knowledge and information workers. The talk/presentation will pinpoint the tools and behaviours that can help us develop and sharpen our skills and embrace the opportunities for collaboration and knowledge sharing now available. Specifically:

how to develop the filters and lenses to overcome ‘information overload’

understanding the barriers to engagement and collaboration and how to overcome them

how we can break down the information/knowledge silos that exist in the organisation

how ‘Web 2.0’ and ‘Social Media’ tools can support personalized learning and self development

I will make the slides available on slideshare subsequent to the meeting, but don’t want to spoil any surprises (and there are some) by posting prematurely. Suffice to say I’ve identified five key steps to help information professionals make the most of the information-rich environment we now live in, and how to tap into and connect with the ‘networks of knowledge’ that are fast becoming the fundamental DNA of the social web. On a slightly more provocative note, I will also challenge the perception that we are indeed information rich and time poor; trends over the past several hundred years have given us increasingly more leisure time – it comes down to how we as individuals use this time. Much food for thought!

If any of this stirs your interest or curiosity, come along to the session on 29^th September.

A note from the organisers:

If you are a NetIKX Member there is no charge. Non Members are welcome to attend at a charge of £50. If you have not attended a NetIKX meeting before we are offering a reduced fee of £25, refundable if you join, so that anyone interested in joining NetIKX can come along and try us out. join NetIKX now