Some believe that we are now entering the Internet's second phase, one in which people stop using it as a tool in support of historically defined functions and begin to rethink the approaches themselves. This is when established institutions must stake out a niche, evolve, or die (see "Scholars, scholarship, and the scholarly enterprise in the digital age") — a very tricky time for both organizations and individuals.

If you are trying to navigate this maelstrom of change, and especially if you want to influence the outcome, you need to get creative. While university degrees, association workshops, and vendor training sessions are worthwhile as a way to learn about new technology, you also need to explore unconventional educational methods. In this article, I'll discuss how a three-pronged approach can help corporate librarians redefine their mission and find new niches when content collections "go virtual." To see how and why it works, I'll look at:

• how corporate libraries have been evolving over the last decade;
• the underlying causes and effects of change;
• the limitations of conventional forms of professional education;
• unconventional tips for finding and exploiting opportunities.

The evolution of corporate libraries
Contrary to some predictions, libraries have not disappeared with the proliferation of ubiquitous access to electronic information. In fact, many public libraries are busier than ever. Although school librarian positions are being cut due to state and local budget problems, the libraries themselves are protected by accreditation requirements. Not so for corporate libraries. When the books go, the librarians often go with them, and the physical space is re-purposed.

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Created on 4/30/2010 l Updated on April 30, 2010