Helping The Hybrid: Leveraging Personal Networks to Support

Changing Roles

Olwen Walker, Kirkland & Ellis International LLP

Sara Batts, Reed Smith LLP

• What is a Personal Learning Environment?• What do we mean by a hybrid role?• Why is this a useful idea? • Some suggestions and

recommendations

What exactly does a PLE look like?

Sara Batts

Blogged at bit.ly/UnData

OLWEN WALKER

READING• Freepint• Legal Information Management• Internal Policies & Procedures

EXTERNAL NETWORKS• City Legal Information Group• British & Irish Association of Law Libraries• LIS-LAW Mailing List• Colleagues in Other Firms

INTERNAL NETWORKS• Monthly Records Calls• Colleagues• Training

TRAINING• External Seminars• Internal Training• Soft Skills• Key Subject Areas

• Informal learning nebulous• Recognises informal

contribution• Spot unrecognised sources • Address deficiency or excess • Organise personal

information flows • Deal with information

overload

What is a hybrid role?

Records

Library

Conflicts

Legal Assistants

Pros

Variety

New challenges

Professional respect

Knowledge of the business

Cons

Not enough time

Becoming less of a specialist

Prioritising

Less attention to each component

Key resources • Internal networks– regular conference calls and online training– meet with all new hires

• External networks– Seminars

• Training– Internal & External

• Background reading– Legal Information Management– Freepint

Developing a hybrid role• New ideas and new challenges• Internal visibility– Introductions–Departmental meetings

• Utilise external contacts• Think about using a PLE• Serendipity – being in the right place at the

right time

Implications for the PLE idea

• Getting up to speed in a new area• Key Players and Major Concerns• Don’t have to reinvent the wheel• Establish the lie of the land • Extensions of existing networks• In your context, is it need to know?

Two ideas&

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In conclusion