Futuring, Strategic Planning and Shared Awareness: An Ohio University Libraries' Case Study

A critical component of strategic planning is creating a shared-awareness among library staff of the potential societal, political, economic and technological changes that will influence how future users will create and consume scholarly materials, what will be expected of library services, and how facilities will be used. The ACRL Futuring scenarios were adapted at the beginning of the Ohio University Libraries strategic planning process to identify such themes and concerns. Those scenarios prompted a series of in-depth and interactive group discussions, which created a shared awareness of possible library futures and guided Ohio University's strategic thinking. Those interactive exercises led by Professor David Staley, and the subsequent discussions surrounding the scenarios, represent a best practice for other librarians and staff who are attempting to understand the external factors that shape society, higher education and the future of libraries.