INSIGHT ‘‘ A
Going forward, I believe greater focus on knowledge management and mobilisation, including harnessing Machine Learning, can be a game changer for the profession.
Sue Lacey Bryant is CILIP President.
The “most important asset of any library goes home at night – the library staff” (Timothy Healey). As this year’s President, I have been blown away by the commitment and ingenuity of members and the many ways in which Libraries Change Lives.
TALE of Two Cities remains apposite, forming a backdrop to our work as library, knowledge and information professionals:
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
CILIP members play invaluable roles in every season of life. I took joy in RhymeTime at my public library, saw inspirational work at HMP Swaleside, learned how NHS knowledge specialists improve care as patients face the worst of times. Joining a debate on AI at The British Library, I was struck by the wisdom of fellow panellists. I have loved finding out about how libraries like the British Library, The Leeds Library and the Museum of Freemasonry Library support researchers to use their specialist collections. From Ulster University Library, Leeds Public Library and Bradford District Care NHS Foundation, to name but three, I heard first-hand about programmes to counter misinformation. .
Skills for today and tomorrow Joining network meetings, I find members tackle current issues and support each other. Recruitment issues and training needs are often raised. Through Information Professional Jobs1 CILIP Career support2
Knowledge and Skills Base3 Info Pro podcasts4
resources we can all use. Winter 2025 , CILIP is providing
Talking with students, for example at Manchester Metropolitan University, is always encouraging. I see the next generation of professionals is inspired to make changes for the better.
Advocacy as ‘Business As Usual’ The government’s announcement on primary school libraries was fantastic news; hearing an adult author on Radio 4 framing two hundred books under a stairwell as a Library, less so… which brings me to the persistent challenge of advocacy.
Certainly, this is a challenge, but one we can equip ourselves to tackle. My clarion call is that we each seize every opportunity to advocate for the impact of library and information professionals – drawing on CILIP’s advocacy, campaigns and Toolkits5
, and citing the evidence
base – some of which I have highlighted in previous issues of Information Professional. I find stories are memorable but numbers count. We must address ‘the bottom line’ and also dispel magical thinking about AI.
,
, the Professional and our new
I can testify that CILIP’s advocacy work has reach. A conversation with an MP at CILIP Members’ Fest in Nottingham sowed a seed leading to the Westminster Hall debate in May. One MP after another testified to the impact of libraries on their lives and careers. At the Carnegies, one author and illustrator after another praised the work of librarians. At CILIP’s Green Libraries Conference, Libraries Minister Baroness Twycross said “All libraries make a difference and should be celebrated”. “Libraries are engines of social mobility”. We are “Saving the world book by book”
Knowledge Management (KM) Going forward, I believe greater focus on knowledge management and mobilisation,
including harnessing Machine Learning, can be a game changer for the profession. Through 2025 I have looked to champion KM Chartership as a means to build our skills, while demonstrating commitment to the profession. Meanwhile, the CILIP K&IM Group is closely involved in a KM Landscape Project6
hosted by the KM
Global Network. This is currently testing a taxonomy around KM and exploring which stories to tell so that people understand “Why KM?”
As my year as President closes, it is a pleasure to hand on the baton to Carryl Allardice OBE. As Head of Information and Knowledge Management at the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Carryl brings a wealth of experience to the role.
Shine on
Members of CILIP are agents of positive change and innovation: at the heart of successful communities; supporting learning, literacy and social mobility; helping to build the economy. Libraries Change Lives for the better. In spring and in winter, libraries are a light in the community (to quote LibrariesNI). Let’s cast aside any proverbial bushels and let our light shine bright. Shine on. IP
References 1.
https://informationprofessionaljobs.com/
2.
www.cilip.org.uk/page/JobsandCareers
3.
www.cilip.org.uk/store/viewproduct.aspx?id=18881697&hhSearch- Terms=%22Professional+Knowledge+and+Skills+Base%22 4.
www.cilip.org.uk/podcast 5.
www.cilip.org.uk/page/CampaignsandAdvocacy 6.
www.kmglobalnetwork.org/activities/km-landscape-2025
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