by John DiGilio, Illinois Chapter, Legal and Leadership & Management Divisions

Collaboration. It is not just a way of working. It’s a state of being and a means of survival. From the rise of empires to the advancement of science and technology, the biggest accomplishments of humankind have oft been the fruit of our working together. Collaboration is the chorus that carries forth the song that promises us tomorrow. To live and learn, prosper and proliferate, is to collaborate at some length or another. John Donne hit the proverbial nail on the head when he said that no man is an island.

Librarians have come to master the art of collaboration through both innovation and necessity. By sharing information, resources, and know-how, we have surmounted many great challenges over the years. Even today, we continue to learn how to reinvent and reinvigorate ourselves, as well as do more with less, through a carefully-crafted series of collaborations. The very existence of this Future Ready 365 blog is a shining testament to what we can accomplish when we work together.

The Legal Division is honored to be featured this week and to be able to collaborate with so many of you in propelling this Association and our profession forward. We are celebrating the success of a new collaboration of our own. We have joined with other organizations from around the world to create a blog to promote the value of law firm librarians in today’s information economy.  On Firmer Ground features the experiences and opinions of law librarians from the United States, Britain, Ireland, Canada, and Scotland in unprecedented unison. FLASH: just after I wrote this, the Organisation of South African Law Libraries (OSALL) signed on to our group! By lifting our voices together, we hope to forge a positive view of who we are and what we do that will carry our profession well into this new millennium.

As you read our posts throughout the week, we encourage you to speak up and get involved. From taking an active role in your local chapters to pitching in with the divisions and caucuses, it is only by working together that we can guarantee a future for this amazing association. We hear the call constantly at our meetings and on our listservs. The challenge is to not let it fall upon deaf ears. The Special Libraries Association has come to be one of the premier organizations for information professionals because of the collaborative hard work and sacrifice of so many of our colleagues and predecessors. The best way for us to show our gratitude is simply to emulate their dedication…their collaboration…and keep it that way for generations to come. Together, we can be truly Future Ready!

Welcome to Legal Division Week on FR365!

John DiGilio is the National Manager of Research Services for Reed Smith, LLP.  He has over 20 years experience in libraries and has written for numerous publications and taught college and graduate courses for attorneys and librarians. He has twice been awarded SLA’s Dana Award recipient. John blogs at iBraryGuy, and follow him via Twitter (@iBraryGuy).