February 1999; Revised July 2000; Revised 2007

VISION OF THE ILLINOIS CHAPTER OF THE SPECIAL LIBRARIES ASSOCIATION

The Illinois Chapter of the Special Libraries Association is the regional organization for the State of Illinois for innovative knowledge and information management professionals and their strategic partners.

MISSION OF THE ILLINOIS CHAPTER OF THE SPECIAL LIBRARIES ASSOCIATION

The Illinois Chapter of the Special Libraries Association acts regionally to bring together knowledge and information management professionals and their strategic partners in ways that promote mutual innovation, learning, and networking. It functions actively in the region as an advocate by effectively interpreting to individuals and groups within the region the fundamental value and importance of knowledge and information management professionals in ensuring the success and effectiveness of the individuals and organizations they serve. It enables members to keep ahead of changes in knowledge and information management, business, technology, the economy, and communication channels. It integrates members into the Association and Association activities by increasing awareness and acting as a gateway to Association programs and services, and by providing Chapter programs and services. It supports its members in developing and/or applying best practices in managing knowledge, content, resources, consulting and training.

CORE VALUES OF THE ILLINOIS CHAPTER OF THE SPECIAL LIBRARIES ASSOCIATION

Leadership

• Strengthening our roles as thought leaders in our organizations and in our communities.
• Shaping regional/local knowledge and information management strategy and policy,
• and providing input to the Association for the shaping of international and national knowledge and information management strategy and policy.

Service

• ABelieving in the value of knowledge and information to society, its organizations and individuals.
• Anticipating and effectively responding to our clients’ needs.
• AAdding value, qualitatively and quantitatively, to knowledge and information products and services.

Innovation

• Embracing innovation for service enhancement and professional intellectual advancement.
• Envisioning, developing and implementing new knowledge and information management products and services, and new roles for knowledge and information management professionals.

Continuous Learning

• Expanding our expectations of ourselves.
• Demonstrating a commitment to continuous learning, maintaining leading edge skills, and individual personal growth.

Results and Accountability

• Contributing our expertise to achieving the goals of our employers’ organizations, while operating at the highest levels of ethics and honesty.
• Delivering value-added results in the knowledge and information management economy and in our organizations.

Collaboration and Partnering

Sharing, cooperating and collaborating actively with Association members, knowledge and information managers, business community members and other colleagues to the fullest extent consistent with responsibilities to employers.

STRATEGIC PLAN
Strategy and Tactics
In support of the Association’s vision, mission and priorities and those of the Illinois Chapter, the Chapter Strategic Plan is a multi-year visionary framework to enable Chapter officers, committee chairs, members and partners to make decisions that drive the future. Annual operating plans, developed by the Chapter’s Executive Board, provide specific directions for achieving the Chapter’s overall strategic goals. It is the responsibility of the incoming Executive Board to review the annual plan of the prior year, and to develop an annual plan for the coming year with input from committee chairs, members, partners, and others as appropriate. The Chapter Executive Board also reviews Association strategic planning documents, and periodically coordinates the revision of the Chapter Strategic Plan as appropriate, based on that examination.
Chapter strategic goals are based on four current priorities (Innovation, Learning, Advocacy, Networking) that will be reviewed and adjusted annually to ensure that the Chapter continues to support the strategic goals and priorities of its parent organization and the needs of Chapter members. The priorities are based on input from SLA National, and on ongoing membership input, research, and Board and member discussions. The priorities are interrelated – each influences and enables the success of the others. Underlying each priority are the fundamental concepts of effective leadership and the forging of new frontiers in international, national, regional and local knowledge and information industry communities.

STRATEGIC PRIORITIES

Invest Chapter members with the competencies and knowledge to strategically position them to meet and exceed their professional goals, and to demonstrate significant contributions to the success of their organizations.

Innovation

• Enable Chapter members to become risk takers, innovators, and influencers within the profession and their organizations.
• Aid members in identifying, and researching new trends and leading their implementation in their organizations, thus demonstrating the positive impact of effective knowledge and information management.
• Identify and promote best practices that enhance performance of Chapter members, and drive quantifiable and qualitative contributions to their organizations.

Learning

• Create continuous and accessible high quality learning opportunities tailored to knowledge and information management professionals at different levels of experience, and at different stages in their careers.
• Create learning programs that attract a broadly defined constituency, encourage knowledge and information sharing and redefine roles and opportunities for knowledge and information management professionals.
• Influence academic program curricula and faculty to embrace transformation in the knowledge and information management profession as articulated in SLA’s Competencies for Information Professionals.

Advocay

• Promote the strategic use of innovation and creativity in support of successful decision-making.
• Define and promote the role of knowledge and information management professionals as fundamental to the success of their organizations.
• Publicize the Chapter programs in communications to broader audiences.
• Educate regional employers and decision makers about the strategic importance of the innovation and creativity of knowledge and information management professionals, and the positive impact these professionals can bring to their organizations in terms of successful decision-making, effective strategy formulation and mission achievement, and beneficial financial results.
• Disseminate or develop tools to aid Chapter knowledge and information management professionals in measuring and justifying their value to their organizations.
• Publicize regionally and locally the role and value of knowledge and information management professionals as innovative and proactive leaders.
• Disseminate credentialing information and support credentialing for Chapter knowledge and information management professionals who wish to improve their role effectiveness through improvement of their professional and leadership skills.
• Encourage broader participation in the Chapter by actively seeking to attract individuals in the knowledge and information management profession and related professions.
• Promote the knowledge and information management profession to students and those interested in transitioning into the profession. Devise ways to further encourage them to enter the profession.
• Support the international and national knowledge and information management policy strategy and activities of the Association. As a Chapter working at the regional and local level, seek to increase understanding of broader policy issues and activities while actively influencing and formulating regional and local knowledge and information management policies.

Networking

• Act as a forum for member interaction.
• Seek to improve communication among members.
• Provide opportunities for members, non-members, and those in related professions to learn, share, and collaborate with each other in order to leverage knowledge, information, ideas, innovations and best practices.
• Provide collaborative and relationship-building opportunities for professional growth and knowledge sharing.