What's the key to creating a better libary or information center? Is it installing a coffee bar? Developing a mobile Website? Expanding the collection, or making it easier to access? Offering wi-fi?
Steven Bell, associate university librarian for research and instructional services at Temple University, thinks the secret lies in design thinking. In his Spotlight Session at the SLA 2011 Annual Conference, here's what he'll be saying about this topic:
The design thinking community was rocked just recently when one of its biggest proponents, Bruce Nussbaum, declared that design thinking is dead. If you are someone who believes in the power of design thinking, this comes as surprising news.
Within the library community, design thinking as a way of practice is busy being born. The challenge lies in articulating the value of design thinking. For me, it's not a panacea for reviving an organization in crisis; rather, it's a path for stimulating innovation in the workplace and a process for moving from innovation to implementation.
On the Future Ready 365 blog, I wrote that design thinking can help us construct the type of experiences we want to deliver to the user community, no matter what the future holds. No, design thinking is far from dead. Now is the time to integrate design thinking into your practice.
Steven's session, "Design Thinking for Better Libraries," will be held Tuesday, 14 June, at 10:00 a.m. Register now and put this session on your calendar.
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