Build Back Stronger- Build Back Smarter! Transforming Business Development through Partnerships

Sponsored by RUSA-BRASS

One of the many roles a library plays is serving as a bridge, connecting patrons to services, collections, and partners inside and outside of that organization. Libraries in academic, public, school, and corporate environments often utilize different strategies and resources to reach a common goal—supporting business research and business development. There are many non-library partners that also share this goal, including small business development centers, government agencies, and local entrepreneurs. Building on the same strategies we use to connect with patrons, libraries can connect with colleagues serving business communities to enhance services to our patrons and promote equity across communities.

As libraries continue to adjust to changes in budgets, technology, and culture from the Covid-19 pandemic, it is more important than ever to find ways to enhance access to resources. While budget challenges may exist, creative solutions often present themselves when a coalition of interested parties comes together to pool resources and expertise.

Our panelists will share their experiences in partnerships—stories of shared funding, spaces, programming, and expertise—that positively impact business services to students, professionals, and local communities. In each case study, collaborating with a colleague outside of their organization enhanced their ability to support business development in their community. While funding plays a role in many of these initiatives, others found success by leveraging the unique skill sets of others to provide a more holistic approach to business development.

Our speakers will share what areas of partnerships they found most challenging, as well as strategies for overcoming these challenges and moving initiatives forward. Participants will leave with strategies for reaching out to potential partners and using funding creatively for programming that benefits constituents from their home institution and community at large. After our speakers share their individual stories, audience members will have an opportunity to ask questions directly to panelists.

Panelist speakers:
Mark Bieraugel, Business Librarian at California Polytechnic State University, will discuss a relationship between an academic library and a local Small Business Development Center to develop a 'train the trainer' program, utilizing students to support local businesses.

Morgan Perry, Business Specialist at Mid-Continent Public Library, will highlight the work of a public library’s small business team that focuses on building community partnerships, especially for equitable service opportunities. A partnership in 2020 with KC Sourcelink, an organization that connects small businesses and entrepreneurs to resources, used unspent programming dollars to hire access to professional services for micro-enterprises.

Mark Pond, Business Reference Librarian at Spokane Public Library, will share how his organization pioneered a crowdfunding approach for a portion of their business collection. This community-based approach to collection development allows public libraries, academic libraries, and local businesses the opportunity to share the cost for high-quality (and expensive) business research tools.

LaMonica Wiggins, Entrepreneurship Librarian at the University of Pittsburgh, will share the story of The Lunchroom Social Innovation Competition, a 10-week event developed in partnership with the University of Pittsburgh Library System and School 2 Career, a local nonprofit youth program. Started in January 2021, the partnership program introduces BIPOC students in the Pittsburgh Public Schools to social entrepreneurship.Through group instruction from Pittsburgh-based social entrepreneurs and practitioners, hands-on activities, and individual mentorship, students work to develop a business venture that will address a need in their own communities.

Alexandra Howard, Business & Teaching Librarian at the University of Louisville, partners with the Director of Business Development at a local organization to support local black-owned businesses and black entrepreneurs. Her primary goal is to work to increase equitable access to information, bridge the university/community divide, and address the racial wealth gap in our nation.

This program will be of interest to library and information professionals who support business owners and students, including academic, public, school, and corporate librarians. This program will also be of interest to librarians interested in learning strategies to connect with colleagues outside of their own organization to develop programs or find shared sources of funding for resources.