okay so that thing I said I was going to do . .

Post more and share my experiences about the new (now old) job?  Didn't do that.  However, better late than never!  My first job as a knowledge management consultant ended last week.  In the end, I did exactly what I was hired to do, although at times it felt like we were never going to get there.  It was a great learning experience for me, and for the steering committee I worked with.  I left at a time when we all could sit back and reflect on how far we'd come and I was touched by the difference I helped to make in a relatively short time.

Among the many things I learned was how life works in a corporate atmosphere and how projects can seem to be going nowhere but then quickly pick up the steam they need to carry through to a successful end.  After a slow month or two, suddenly a term I wasn't familiar with, change management, was keeping me up at night and reading article after article about user adoption and success strategies, as the project started to ramp up again.  Its a slow process to build business champions who not only believe in the change they are advocating but also fully understand it too.  All work in helping the team to understand what we were moving towards was valuable.

I found that my librarian skill set - the ability to organize and classify information, a deep understanding of search strategies and strong research skills were a valuable commodity in the business world.  As a new kind of worker there, one who's focus was on making documents (information) readily available, transparent and organized, I brought a perspective that was needed and appreciated.  I would advise my traditional librarian colleagues to investigate the field if they are interested in a change.

I'm now on the look out for what is next for me, and not limiting my search in any way.  Life is an open book, and I hope to be well versed by the time I get to the last page.