In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, the role of an information professional has undergone a significant transformation, demanding a distinct set of knowledge, skills and attributes for success.

Fundamentally, information professionals should deeply understand information architecture, data management, information literacy and emerging technologies, like artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain technology. In the era of big data, professionals must stay updated on new technological advancements to deal with evolving challenges and enhance work efficiency. An illustration of this is the research efforts to implement AI in automated fact-checking systems, aiming to identify fake news across platforms (Gupta et al., 2021). Additionally, a comprehensive grasp of information ethics and legal frameworks is crucial for handling issues related to data privacy and intellectual property (Ferguson et al., 2016).

Regarding relevant skills, Ayinde & Kirkwood (2020) mentioned ten skills for information professionals to thrive in the Fourth Industrial Revolution. These skills include sense-making, social intelligence, novel and adaptive thinking, cross-cultural competency, computational thinking, new-media literacy, transdisciplinary, a design-oriented mindset, cognitive load management and proficiency in virtual collaboration. Presenting these high cognitive, emotional and technological skills is beneficial for successful collaboration. Information professionals should foster interdisciplinary partnerships, leveraging diverse perspectives to tackle complex challenges, especially budgetary constraints —a prominent obstacle hindering library adoption of Web 2.0 technologies (Akwang, 2021). To cope with financial constraints, information professionals should demonstrate skills to collaborate with other libraries, seek alternative funding sources, like public-private partnerships, or establish connections with the corporate sector (Ashiq et al., 2021). 

Furthermore, adaptability stands out as a critical attribute in this new revolution. As per the Modified Model for Technology Adoption proposed by Akwang (2021), the actual adoption of new technologies is contingent upon the perceived viewpoints and attitudes of librarians. A positive disposition towards new technologies can lead to favourable responses, enhancing the efficiency of their operations. Therefore, Information professionals need to have a mindset of continuous learning, embrace change and quickly adapt to evolving tools and platforms, especially when confronted with rapid and uncertain changes in the world.

References

Ferguson, S., Thornley, C., & Gibb, F. (2016). Beyond codes of ethics: how library and information professionals navigate ethical dilemmas in a complex and dynamic information environment. International Journal of Information Management, 36(4), 543–556. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijinfomgt.2016.02.012 

Gupta, A., Sukumaran, R., John, K., & Teki, S. (2021). Hostility detection and covid-19 fake news detection in social media. ArXiv.Org. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2101.05953 

Ayinde, L., & Kirkwood, H. (2020). Rethinking the roles and skills of information professionals in the 4th Industrial Revolution. Business Information Review, 37(4), 142–153. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266382120968057 

Ashiq, M., Rehman, S. U., & Mujtaba, G. (2021). Future challenges and emerging role of academic libraries in Pakistan: A phenomenology approach. Information Development, 37(1), 158–173. https://doi.org/10.1177/0266666919897410