Hi, Sue, We regularly hear from SLA members that they benefit from being part of a large, global organization (about 11,000 members in 75 countries) made up of all kinds of information professionals, as well as being active in a local or regional SLA chapter and some of our 27 subject- or sector-based divisions. This affords them the opportunity to collaborate across the profession and to focus on matters of specific interest in their sector or geographic areas. No matter where they work, all information professionals share common goals and face common challenges. SLA recently wound up a two-year research project called the Alignment Study, a comprehensive look at how the role and value of the information profession is perceived by critical audiences in the U.S., U.K., Canada and Australia. With the results, we are building tools to help our members demonstrate their value in the workplace. SLA is also part of a broad coalition of librarians, legal scholars, authors, publishers, and technology companies formed to counter the proposed Google Book Settlement in its current form. These kinds of ambitious undertakings are more effectively undertaken by what some refer to as an “over-arching body.” On the other hand, SLA’s structure allows for the creation of new divisions as new focuses emerge. Our latest is Taxonomy. And I am currently in Germany, where I will be speaking to a group of special librarians and encouraging them to join SLA Europe, our regional chapter, a network of information professionals from across Europe. SLA can be big and small and will continue to evolve to meet the changing needs of information professionals inside and outside of the library setting. Janice Lachance CEO SLA

Sue, on behalf of SLA, I am thinking of the AUKML and CIG members now left without an association to bring them together. You ask about professional associations, "Why did they all evolve?" I can only address how SLA evolved, and is still evolving, to meet the needs of information professionals all over the world. A hundred years ago, a group of librarians got together to form an association that would serve and advocate for a need breed: special librarians whose job was to provide practical, actionable information and intelligence to their organizations. A century later, SLA has some 11,000 members in 75 countries, including a large and growing European membership. While we have a small, dedicated professional staff, SLA is and always has been run by members. Accordingly, our primary focus is on building the best continuing professional development, networking, and advocacy opportunities for our members. In uncertain economic times, the benefits of the association have never been more meaningful to SLA members. In recent years, we have built an online university, Click U, with myriad educational offerings including free member webinars and online certificate programs in competitive intelligence and knowledge management. Benefits such as free online libraries, an innovation lab that keeps members up to date on the latest Web 2.0 technologies, significant discounts on online degree programs from major universities mean that members can keep up their skills anytime, anywhere. We have also formed a network of lively online communities where our members help one another and discuss issues important to their many disciplines. And, of course, SLA holds the largest, most important annual conference for info pros. It took place last month in Washington, D.C., and even in this economy, we saw a 16 percent increase in attendance, including significant numbers of European attendees. One of SLA's most important current efforts is the Alignment Project, the most comprehensive study ever undertaken to identify the best ways for information professionals to demonstrate their value to the organizations that employ them. Our deep commitment to our European members is represented in our approach to this research, which has included a broad sampling of executives and info pros in the U.K. I invited all AUKML and CIG members who are looking for a new banner under which to gather to look into the rich benefits of SLA members. Please feel free to contact me personally, and check out our Website at www.sla.org. Sincerely, Janice Lachance CEO, SLA

Adrianne, I wish we could post video of that fascinating presentation. Unfortunately, we cannot because of the terms of our contract with Gen. Powell. This is fairly standard practice in contracts with high-profile speakers. It gives them some freedom to be frank and open with audiences. And because many derive a substantial income from speaking, it protects their personal value as speakers. We do record our keynoters for the archives, but sadly our contract does not permit us to make them available to our members. It’s one more good reason to try to make our conferences in person. Next year in New Orleans, we’ll hear from James Carville and Mary Matalin, which ought to be fasinating.