Becoming the entrepreneur librarian: building skills, networks and experiences abroad

This paper explores how a librarian who is working abroad can improve and develop key skills in emerging technologies and subject specialties in today’s global environment. Traditionally librarians needed to attend conferences on-site to learn important trends in the field of librarianship; however, with today’s global technology, it is now possible to attend webinars, virtual conferences and training sessions to gain new skills and contacts all online and free. Today librarians can and must be entrepreneurs in pursuing their own learning interests and goals beyond traditional approaches. This paper is a reflection of one U.S. librarian’s experience in crafting a successful professional development strategy where he utilized various tools and resources from online courses to webinars to remain relevant and up-to-date while working abroad. Librarians must be proactive to craft their own professional development strategy in order to maintain important skills needed in today’s global environment.