HLA 2007: World Cafes and Round Tables

There were two "World Cafes" held at HLA this year.  These consisted of 4-6 people sitting at a table, discussing a provided question, the responses being recorded, then moving on to another group/table to discuss the same or other questions.  Some of the questions asked were what libraries should stop doing, who libraries' competitors are, what makes libraries sustainable for the future, etc.  Similar approaches are often used in big groups to harvest the collective intelligence and to try to get some solutions to given problems.  The discussions that happened at HLA were most interesting, and show how vastly different library experiences are based on the type, size, and culture of each individual library. 

The speakers also presented some sessions as round tables, which pretty much functioned in the same way - a group of 8-15 people talking about a given subject for 45 minutes.    My round table on technology training was enlightening, and as various attendees voiced their concerns or problems at their libraries, others chimed in with potential solutions or approaches.  Very good use of the hive mind :)  I'd be interested to see larger conferences - like ALA or even larger state conferences like California's - take on something like this and approach the entire attendee list's worth of intelligence to the organization's, and its members', issues.