Think Like A Startup: a white paper to inspire library entrepreneurialism (original) (raw)
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ROLES OF ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN LIBRARIANSHIP: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES
Nigerian Journal For Rural Finance and Entrepreneurship (NJRFE)), 2024
In librarianship, entrepreneurship entails using cutting-edge methods to guarantee sustainability, boost user satisfaction, and improve library services, and striking a balance. The purpose of this paper titled "Roles of Entrepreneurship in Librarianship: Opportunities and Challenges," was to provide a thorough understanding of the current situation entrepreneurship plays in Librarianship and to pinpoint the chances and obstacles that stand in the way of entrepreneurship in librarianship. This paper listed a few funding possibilities for librarianship entrepreneurship, including retained earnings, angel investors, venture capital, Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), personal savings, and crowdfunding. It examined the functions that entrepreneurship performs in the field of librarianship, including problemsolving and creativity, marketing and promotion, and locating new financing sources. It highlighted a few of the benefits of becoming an entrepreneurial Librarian, including resource management, community involvement, and innovation and technology integration. Along with highlighting some of the challenges faced by entrepreneurial Librarians including financial risk, business savvy, rivalry, work-life balance, marketing, and sales. It concluded that, through its promotion of innovation, enhancement of services, and response to the changing requirements of patrons, entrepreneurship would play a pivotal role in determining the future of librarianship. Incorporating entrepreneurial ideas can result in innovative problem-solving, improved user experiences, and long-term library expansion. It provided way forward such as Curriculum
The paper explores creating entrepreneurial possibilities in Library and Information Science: remedying the unemployment narrative. It portrayed entrepreneurship as the engine house for economic advancement as it plays a vital role in the growth and development of society. It is a treasured instrument for creating wealth, jobs, poverty alleviation, and overall societal progress. There is an outright recognition that information is the chief commodity of the contemporary age and thus saleable. Librarians who market and approach information services with this perspective will unquestionably sell. It captured leadership and information literacy, among others, as skills required of entrepreneurs to function optimally. The entrepreneurial opportunities for remedying the issue of unemployment were excellently highlighted, including information brokerage, database brokerage, information system consultancy, and information organisation service, among others. The paper held that Library and Information Science professionals who venture into entrepreneurship often experience a lack of requisite information literacy skills, a lack of entrepreneurial spirit, an absence of technological literacy, access to market channels, and poor patronage as challenges. Therefore, it was recommended, among others, that library schools deliberately inculcate the culture of entrepreneurship in undergraduates as a remedy to the issue of unemployment among graduates.
LIBRARIES AS CATALYSTS FOR ENTREPRENEURIAL SOCIAL CHANGE
International Journal of Youth Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Development, 2022
This research paper explores the role of libraries as catalysts for entrepreneurial social change, examining their impact on individuals, communities, and society. The study investigates how libraries provide conducive environments for creativity and collaboration, offer resources and knowledge to support entrepreneurial endeavors, facilitate digital literacy and technological innovation, amplify social impact initiatives, and contribute to the overall well-being of communities. Through a comprehensive review of existing literature and case studies, the paper highlights the importance of libraries in empowering individuals by providing equal access to resources, skills development, and opportunities for entrepreneurial success in the digital economy. The research underscores the collaborative nature of libraries, showcasing their partnerships with various stakeholders to enhance their impact on entrepreneurship and social change. Furthermore, the study emphasizes the evolving role of libraries in the digital age, recognizing their contribution to social entrepreneurship, sustainability, and community development. The findings contribute to the knowledge base by shedding light on the transformative potential of libraries as dynamic institutions that foster innovation, collaboration, and social impact. Additionally, the research recommends that libraries strengthen collaboration, enhance their digital infrastructure, foster an entrepreneurial mindset, expand social impact programming, and evaluate and share success stories to further solidify their role as catalysts for entrepreneurial social change. Ultimately, this study highlights the significant contributions of libraries in driving positive change and offers insights into maximizing their potential for entrepreneurial social impact.
The Librarian Entrepreneur? Demystifying an Oxymoron.
Against the Grain, 2009
What makes a librarian an entrepreneur? Is there such a thing, or do we just have librarians who are innovative. What are the qualities of true entrepreneurs and do librarians exhibit them?
Innovation in libraries may be as simple as staying on the bus
2017
Innovation is often thought of as doing something completely new. In fact, innovation may also be viewed as an iterative process that builds on existing knowledge and, through trial and error and incremental successes, makes something better. This iterative process is the focus of this paper that expand on our presentation given at the 2016 Conference for Entrepreneurial Librarians. Using the Helsinki Bus Station Theory and other perspectives as the framework for exploring how innovation and entrepreneurship can be applied to libraries, the authors identified activities that initiate and encourage innovation in library settings. Conference attendees learned techniques for implementing interactive innovation.
Cultural entrepreneurship in libraries
New Library World, 2006
PurposeThe purpose of this research is to show how librarians today need to be cultural entrepreneurs in order to create and maintain thriving libraries in the Internet age.Design/methodology/approachThe “creative class” theory developed by Richard Florida (2002) has been widely and rapidly embraced by many policy makers around the world.FindingsCultural entrepreneurship in libraries is in line with a new and dominant trend seen in many countries in which cities promote themselves as centres of creativity. It is creativity, not the traditional values of trading in goods and services, that is now seen to be the force behind economic growth, especially in metropolitan areas. Growth is mainly determined by the ability to attract creative people, develop a creative atmosphere and build creative clusters.Practical implicationsThis creativity development and the interest of local authorities in the creative industry are both opportunities for librarians to promote their libraries and demo...
Building Entrepreneurial Competencies in Library Staff: Getting Started
Citation: Vecchione, A. (2018). Building entr epr eneur ial competencies in libr ar y staff: getting star t-ed. PNLA Quarterly, 82(1). Abstract Library staff in public and academic libraries face challenges to build library staff competencies to serve a growing population of entrepreneurs. Most public libraries provide workforce development assistance, and of those, 48% provide entrepreneurial services to these communities (American Library Association, n.d.). What can we learn from those libraries in order to build our capacity to grow entrepreneurs? When library staff teach individuals about new technologies in our makerspaces, these community members invent new tools, or objects. How do we extend their expertise? Library staff can create pipelines to fabrication resources , patent centers, and small business resources in order to assist our communities to grow and start their own businesses. Meeting these growing needs, finding and providing information services in this vein is a part of the traditional library model. How can libraries best serve entrepreneurial-minded individ-uals? How can libraries boost their capacity to meet this need? What kinds of training do we need to address this issue? Introduction While most (99%) of public libraries offer workforce development to job seekers, 48% of libraries and library staff across the United States are offering entrepreneurial services to their communities, as part of their library's suite of services. Other libraries are just beginning, and even more are in some stage of consideration. Service to entrepreneurial types is a growing area. Many people can be considered entrepreneurs and everyone can learn how to provide services to individuals in this group.
International Journal of Sustainability Management and Information Technologies, 2021
This paper conceptualizes entrepreneurship skills and opportunities for librarians in the field of library and information science. Characteristics of entrepreneurship, Entrepreneurship education in Nigeria, Library and information science as a field of study It presents the librarian as an entrepreneur, entrepreneurship education in the field of library and information science, Skills needed in field of library and information science for Entrepreneurship, Areas of opportunities for a Librarian as an Entrepreneur in the field of librarianship. Challenges that are imminent with entrepreneurship practices by librarians which are: Economic Meltdown; Government Policies; Fear of competition and failure; Lack of entrepreneurial spirit; Problem of generating compelling business ideas; Poor Sources of fund; Poor Attitude of Librarians towards entrepreneurship; Excess workload on the librarian. The paper was concluded by the researchers with the following recommendations: Government should endeavour to make policies that are favourable to small scale businesses in the country so as to encourage entrepreneurship; Librarians that are trained in the field of librarianship should develop the spirit and endeavour to venture into the entrepreneurship areas so as to prevent other professionals from taking foods and opportunities from our tables; It is rightly stated that the sky is big enough to contain all the birds that are flying in it so therefore, irrespective of those who are already occupying positions in the entrepreneurship venture, up-coming librarians should not be afraid to delve into business venture after all competition brings about growth and development into the business world.
This paper aims to examine entrepreneurial opportunities available to library and information science graduates. It examined the concept of entrepreneurship, job opportunity, librarianship, contemporary era as well as highlighting the skills required by library and information science professionals, the paper further identified challenges such as poor attitude of library and information science graduates towards entrepreneurship, lack of entrepreneurial spirit, poor sources of funds among other factors hindering professionals from engaging fully in entrepreneurship and suggested use of skills acquired during training and development of entrepreneurial spirit by LIS graduates as some of the way forward. The paper concludes that LIS Professionals should embrace the entrepreneurial opportunities available to them having acquired all the skills required to embark on the business of entrepreneurship in the course of training to become professionals.