Reimagine, Reinvent & Reallocate: Our new reality

Presenter: Sandra Nelson, Sandra Nelson Associates

I've seen Sandra before (Infopeople, I think) and if you ever get the chance to see her, take it! She's a big-picture thinker, pragamatist and tends to focus on the present or near future (unlike Stacey Aldrich who is a futurist).

Sandra talked about two types of changes in libraries - big (reimagining) and small/medium (reinveting)

REIMAGINING means doing new things. Creating a children's museum on the second floor is definitely reimagining. She gave several other examples of reimagining.
Aarhus Public Library in Denmark used their library lobby as a "lab" - a flexible space that contained interactive exhibits/activities that people can move in and out of as they like. There was a literature lab (poetry readings, etc), news lab (wall of screens with news from 10 different counties), Music lab - live music, listening stations; the "square" - a public space for groups to sit and hold meetings, someone held a giant chess game. Each lab was held for 6 months and after all the labs were complete, the lab project ended. She emphasized the importance of letting things go and not continuing to do things year after year after year if they're just not working anymore.

The next example of reimagining was Imaginon (Charlotte-Mecklenbery library). She highlighted the theatre, interactive spaces and children's museum.

For Sandra, reimagining is very closely connected with making things interactive, flexible, user-centered, collaborative.

Next was REINVENT, or creating small/medium-sized change or doing old things in new ways. To help understand when libraries might want to reinvent, Sandra gave these benchmarks:
-After doing something 2 years, look at it carefully
-After doing something 5 years, look at it with suspicion
-After doing something 10 year, throw it out and start over!!

Her examples of reinventing were quite good:
1. Library Koncept in the Netherlands- music pod chairs with iMac computers, downloadable music, and comfy seating. These were awesome and who wouldn't want to sit in the pod and listening to music?
2. Storyville, Baltimore County Libraries has created an interactive children's space centered around children's stories. They have the very interactive exhibits and activities we've been seeing in the museum visits, but all contained within the library walls. If you haven't seen Storyville, take a look at the website.
3. Senior space in Old Bridge, NJ - these folks created a "memory" space for their local seniors that transformed their library and make it much more interactive for the seniors and community.
4. Deweyless cataloging would also be an example of "reinvent".

The last part of the program was Reallocate. In order to reimagine and reinvent we must reallocate. Change comes from people's actions and because staff take up the largest portion of library budgets, we must reallocate staff - their tasks, their attitudes, their level of flexibility, etc. She said managers have to reallocate what staff do, and we each individually have the responsibility to change our own work patterns, thinking, etc. She encouraged us to live out of our imaginations, not our history!

At the end, Sandra seemed to be mostly trying to inspire and here are some quotes she shared:

An inventor is someone who doesn't take his education too seriously. (Ketterling)

The greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence, it is to act with yesterday's logic. (Peter Drucker)

To move forward takes vision, creativity, and courage. (her own)

Let me know if you have any questions about this excellent program. :)