MIND THE GAP! ACADEMIC INFORMATION LITERACY VS WORKFORCE INFORMATION LITERACY

In 2003 Lloyd [1] noted that there ought to be a shift in thinking by librarians and that this requires librarians to develop partnerships with workplace communities so as to understand the role that information plays in the knowledge economy. Furthermore she stated that it was necessary to develop a new language that is relevant to workplace communities and a language that ties information literacy instruction to authentic situations in the workplace. So how can we as librarians prepare students to engage in the variety of information activities that constitute workplace practice today and how can we better tailor our information literacy instruction to meet those needs in the future? One answer could be to gain an understanding on how information competencies are recognized in workplace settings and what kind of information competencies that employers seek. In this pilot study we address the following questions: Does the concept of information literacy or similar appear in British/American and Swedish job ads? What kind of qualifications are most frequent asked for in job postings? What kind of information skills do employers really look for and how does this match with the skills newly recruits have?