This is a recent HBR article to read in the context of library strategies.

I’ve long been a proponent that libraries focus too strongly on transactions and counting same.  I am a believer in transformational librarianship.  That means that we should spend more time understanding and focusing on the transformations and this is largely in engagement strategies with our publics and users.

So, read this article in that context:

Moving from Transaction to Engagement

by R “Ray” Wang

http://blogs.hbr.org/cs/2011/10/moving_from_transaction_to_eng.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+harvardbusiness+%28HBR.org%29

“Engagement systems share nine common traits
A few thought leaders  have helped drive the thinking on systems of engagement. Geoffrey Moore has discussed
how systems of engagement will drive knowledge worker effectiveness and  productivity. Dion Hinchcliffe of Dachis group details the transition from systems of record to systems of engagement in how  the social web and open internet are changing business. As with the shift to the Internet, organizations that miss this shift from transactional systems to
engagement systems will face dire consequences.

Our initial research identifies nine characteristics of engagement systems that differ from the transactional systems of yesteryear (see the table online as well):

1. Design for sense and response.

2. Address massive social scale.

3. Foster conversation.

4. Utilize a multitude of media styles for user experience.

5. Deliver speed in real time.

6. Reach to multi-channel networks.

7. Factor in new types of information management.

8. Apply a richer social orientation.

9. Rely on smarter intelligence.

Experiential and personal fulfillment systems will power the next waves of innovation.”

Stephen