Quantum² Highlights
A newsletter of the Dialog leadership development program for information professionals

Dear Quantum² Member...
With June nearly here, the Quantum² team is gearing up for a very busy week at the Special Libraries Association 2005 Annual Conference, June 4-8, 2005, in Toronto. Here are some of our activities:

• Teaching continuing education courses on Saturday
• Sponsoring and participating in the SLA Leadership Development Institute on Sunday
• Celebrating our latest Quantum² InfoStars on Monday
• Sponsoring Tuesday's keynote address by Bill Buxton
• Attending more than 30 divisional events sponsored by Dialog

Members of the Quantum² team will also be at Dialog's Info Pro Development booth in the exhibit hall throughout the conference. If you'll be in Toronto, be sure to stop by to meet and chat with us in person about how you are using Quantum² techniques.

Quantum² CE Courses at SLA

As noted in last month's highlights, on June 4, 2005, a team of Quantum² coaches are offering two half-day Continuing Education courses (CE credit given) at the SLA Annual Conference in Toronto. There are still a few places left. To attend, please visit the SLA Conference Web site and register.

• Creating a Knowledge Sharing Culture
  Saturday, June 4, 9:00 a.m.-Noon
  Presenters: Libby Trudell and Anthony Danko

• Adding Value to Information Services
  Saturday, June 4, 1:00 p.m.-4:00 p.m.
  Presenters: Liz Blankson-Hemans and Betty Jo Hibberd

Quantum² Topic of the Month: Justifying Value

In June, we will offer the third session in our spring workshop series on "Justifying Value." We introduced the series concept as a way to enable participants to really dig into a topic by exploring it from several interrelated perspectives. The three workshops in the series are:

• Measuring Impact: Cost Justification for Information Services
• Understanding the Information Budget Process: Time/Cost/Quality Tradeoffs
• Defining the Value of Information Services: Beyond ROI

We have found that a number of people are attending all three workshops, and that these participants are enabled to draw on a portfolio of tools for budgeting, quantifying value and linking cost to specific benefits. Tools provided in the three workshops include:

• Template for creating impact statements
• Worksheet for making budget assumptions
• How to speak your CFO's language

Based on participant feedback, the series is especially valuable for information center managers currently dealing with putting together a new budget plan or coping with budget cuts and expense justification. However, one of the key takeaways from the series is that budgeting and value justification shouldn't happen just once a year—it needs to be an ongoing process that involves a structured approach to soliciting feedback on client satisfaction, collecting examples of both cost savings and business successes supported by the information center, and tracking costs related to specific projects. With these resources, the information center is empowered to justify its value through a communication process, and not just wait for the budget axe to fall.

For more tips on cost justification see the Quantum² white paper, "Cost Justification for Information Services".

Download the white paper: Cost Justification for Information Services
from the Quantum2 website.

Your suggestions for workshop topics are always welcome and encouraged. If you know a friend or colleague who would benefit from Quantum², please encourage them to sign up today.