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- Gorillas face extinction around the world as their natural environment changes and their habitat shrinks.
- Gorillas - almost extinct and with a great need to evolve/adapt to survive.
- If legal library services are to avoid extinction, they must adapt to change and flourish in niches beyond their traditional territory.
- LAQ has evolved from a traditional legal library, using hard copy and a card catalogue, to a networked library, using electronic resources and emerging technologies.
- Because law libraries are often small, under resourced and relatively lacking in formal power, the Guerilla model can serve them well.
- Like Guerrillas, they need to be mobile, nimble, flexible, resourceful and good at forming alliances to create a big impact and effect cultural change.
- Like guerrillas, they are reliant on the good will and support of the populace (library customers) to survive.
- Guerilla librarianship - borrowing the concept from the marketing industry - is an approach to practice involving:
- creativity
- customer engagement
- flexibility
- Adopt strategies of Guerrilla warfare:
- move among the people.
- gather intelligence.
- learn environment.
- build support.
- Learn user needs.
- Learn about the business to provide services important to them. LAQ examples:
- sensing db
- db of awards
- current awareness tools - Crime Online, Family law notes
- db of key decisions in areas of practice
- official misconduct db
- policy handbook - book/db hybrid
- Organisational alignment - be seen by management to be providing relevant services.
- Combine forces
- Collaborate;
- cooperate;
- form partnerships;
- extend your capability and provide needed services. LAQ example:
- Current awareness services - legal groups provide content and commentary on material.
- Relationships with key people
- IT (administrator developer)
- industry (publishers, law firms)
- The Right weapon
- cheap, reliable. LAQ example:
- flexible and cheap database s/w and Internet technologies that provide:
- seamless experience via IP fixing
- web pages generated dynamically, on the fly, by queries
- Accessing Web 2.0 technologies, wireless and broadband
- Choose your battles
- Don't engage in battles that you can't win or that cost too much to win.
- Needs analysis: what is need, is it available anywhere else,
- Cost/benefit analysis: ease to develop, impact on users, cost to maintain.
- Judicious use of retreat
- Resource not being used or not being updated - be flexible and adaptable and abandon underutilised services.
- The power of propaganda
- Capture the hearts and minds of the people - Marketing is a key weapon.
- Multiple tools:
- presence on Intranet
- updates on new resources and changes to services
- targeted email
- face-to-face
- internal reporting mechanisms - capture management hearts and minds
- training and awareness sessions
- marketing and relationship building exercises
- Key tools
- Technological:
- database software
- web design software
- People:
- skills
- training
- communication
- negotiation
- marketing
- Support:
- of customers
- from IT
- Culture of Innovation:
- avoid chain-of-command
- go straight to the customer and design solutions
- empowers library staff to think about how things can be improved
- embed innovation into practice.
- Re innovation - Hard to get people to provide content in a timely fashion.